One Year Ago Today

A year ago today started out like any typical Monday. Hit the snooze on the alarm clock about five times and then pull myself out of bed and into the shower.

A year ago today started out like any typical Monday. We had been back from vacation for about a week and how I wished we were back on the cruise ship. Oh well, vacation cannot last forever, although one can dream. Before we left for vacation CCAI had received the latest waiting child list, I was hopeful but didn't want to invest too many emotions that our daughter was on this list. I couldn't do it to myself again. I was so sure she was on the last list and was so heart broken when all the referrals were out and she was not to be found. I talked to one of the WC ladies and she said maybe the next one, but most likely the one after that, it just depends on the children on the list. So I tried to not emotionally invest in maybes. Even though it was just a mere 16 months since we sent our application into the CCAI, I have been waiting to be a mother for the longest time. I was over the wait and couldn't stand to see another pregnant woman or go to another baby shower. Kevin was sure it was our turn this time, that our daughter was on this list. I for a change was skeptical one. But Kevin insisted we would get the call.

A year ago today, I went to work like any typical Monday. Traffic was light, as it was Fourth of July week, so I travelled rather quickly. At my desk with some coffee, check some emails and off to an all morning meeting. For some strange reason I decided to take my pager to the meeting, not knowing what was in store before the meeting was over. Amongst process maps and discussions, my pager goes off! It is a 911 page to call home, I jumped up, I thought something serious had happened! I ran back to my desk and quickly called home. Kevin answered the phone and told me I wouldn't believe what happened, "I came upstairs and the cats started a fire in the kitchen!" As I was trying to wrap my brain around the cats and a fire. He tells me "We got the call, we have a match!" I was speechless, I couldn't believe his words. When I called home I was not expecting this news, I did not expect to hear we got the call. Kevin told me she is 10 months old and told Pam to email her file to me. I quickly forwarded the email to him so we could look together. I waited what seemed a life time for the email to reach him. We looked at the same time and fell in love. She was our daughter! I called Pam (CCAI) and talked about Wu Chun Qiu and asked for her complete file to be FedEx to us. The excitement was over whelming. I ran back to my meeting and couldn't speak! One of my colleagues exclaimed, "You got the call" . The meeting was wrapping up so I went back to my desk to make some calls and forward her file to CHOP. I was on Cloud 9, 10, 11, and 12! My manager sent me home to celebrate with Kevin. I was grateful, my mind was spinning and I could not concentrate on work for sure. My drive home seemed to take forever! Once home, we shared our news with our closest family members! It was an amazing day.

A year ago today ended not so typical, a little baby girl in China found her way to us! And we were blessed with Lotus ChunQiu! She has added so much joy, happiness, and love to our lives. This day I will remember forever.

For those waiting for your referral call or waiting for TA, be patient, the wait is really worth it! I use to hate hearing that phrase while waiting, but everyone was right! The wait time fads away the moment your child is placed in your arms. I would get so upset every time we hit a road block along the way, I felt it was making our wait time longer and longer. I now believe these road blocks happened so Lotus would make her way to us. And when the time was right, she found us, the timing was perfect! We are the proud parents of such an amazing little girl who has changed our lives so much. We look forward to watching her grown up into a beautiful young woman, blossoming like a Lotus flower in the early morning, reaching her fullest potential.

Love,

Deb and Kevin

The first few photos of our daughter