March 22, 2012

Gyumri, Armenia

Snow and ice covered the ground and temperatures hovered near zero. We spent the morning trying to distract our minds from the wait, the wait to find out if the judge would grant us permission to adopt one tiny 11-month-old baby girl.

Our driver took us to see Mother Armenia. Fitting considering the circumstances.  We climbed the stairs and stood in her shadow. All of Gyumri lay spread out in the distance. We were, literally and figuratively, standing on the precipice of parenthood.

It felt surreal then and it feels surreal now when I remember that day, and everything that led up to that day. Waiting, waiting, waiting. Years of waiting.

Then we got the news. Tears of joy? Yes, absolutely. But also relief, bone-deep relief that we were–finally–parents. And some sadness too, that my father (who passed away, literally two months to the day and hour we became parents) would never know how everything came together, would never meet his granddaughter nor see us as a family.

I also thought about how this decision would impact our daughter–our daughter–sometimes I still marvel at those words. Too young to understand that we were about to become a family, these two people who spent a few weeks playing with her.  Strangers, really, who were committing to a lifetime of nurturing and guiding her…as best we could.

Here we are, two years later. Older, grayer (though leaner and more fit!), maybe a tad wiser, more lines from the stress and frustration that comes with parenthood. How do we handle this? What do we do about that? Navigating things we never dreamed of when we thought about what it would be like to bring a child into our lives.

And here she is. Baby Bird is no longer a baby, but a toddler, growing bigger, stumbling and learning, thriving. Bringing laughter and discovery into our home in ways we never imagined.

March 22, 2014

Happy Birthday to us–Our family turns 2!

Take the road less traveled, Beth