Although our first year with Mycah has been no different, I can still so distinctly remember our trip to China! I can liken it to meeting my other 3 kids for the first time…although the setting much different! The smallest details still come to mind about March 18, 2013:
packing his little backpack of goodies and worrying about forgetting paperwork,
what I wore, how hot the room was, how LOUD the room was,
how incredibly nervous my stomach felt,
seeing him behind the curtain before they brought him out,
seeing them coldly pull him along by the hand as they dragged him out of the waiting room and brought him to me,
how they prompted him to call me "mama" and then just gave me his hand and walked away,
how his feet seemed glued to the floor as he was unsure of this new weird-looking lady that he was to now call "mama",
how I finally picked up his tiny little 30 lb body and he smelled SO bad,
how I showed him his back pack and his eyes lit up (but no smile!) at the site of a Mickey Mouse toy and a dum-dum sucker,
taking pictures with our other WACAP families and their beautiful new children,
finally leaving and heading to the store with a child that looked like he was in absolute shock and took no comfort in being in his mama's arms.
And oh the relief that flooded over me at that moment. It was done. He was here. And although I knew the days ahead would be full of many unknowns, one thing was sure…he was no longer an orphan, but a much sought after son.
In my memory, our days in China were the trip of a lifetime. But now he tells me he was scared and sad. Which was pretty obvious during our trip! But a few days later we were heading home to start life as a family of 6.
Once we met Darrell and the kids at the airport, and walked to the van, I was already seeing the first real smiles from my sweet boy. I think he was relieved to know he wouldn't be stuck with two weird looking ladies anymore (no offense Sonia!), but there were actually KIDS involved in this deal now!
Mycah has grown in every way imaginable this year. He has gained 10 lbs and grown 7 inches. He understands everything that is said to him, including most abstract things, and has quite a vast speaking vocabulary that is now only sprinkled with a few Chinese words on occasion. He can cross monkey bars, ride a bike, tie his own shoes, sing about Jesus, say and write his ABC's, work an iPad and computer as well as my 9 year old, and he now finds comfort in the arms of this mama. And daddy…but he is still mostly a mama's boy.
The time has flown, but it has been precious. I am so thankful that God picked us to be his parents. Although we have had our share of challenging days, I cannot lose sight of the fact that this little boy who had so little has blessed our hearts so much!
"Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him." Psalm 127:3
