Crazy for Corina

Well, it is official! Really official! As in we can announce and yell it to the world! Well maybe not the world but we can now let our family and friends know what we have been keeping on the down low for a couple of weeks. Not because we did not want to share with everyone but we are required to follow the guidelines of our adoption.  Part of those guidelines are that we have been waiting on our PA (pre-approval) from China.  So we were not allowed to post on any type of social media until we received this.  So here goes: 

We are CRAZY for CORINA!

Corina just turned 2 and she is already well loved by our family( I personally feel she has several up in heaven keeping a pretty close eye on her for us). We have had a couple of weeks to start dreaming and thinking of the time we will get to finally meet her and then to actually bring her home. Yes, I know our world will flip up side down, twist all around, shake a bit because what are we going to do with a GIRL!!!!  I don't think she has any clue what she is in for with this rowdy house full of boys( I include Kent in that). I don’t know that there are words that can describe what this journey has become for our family. There have been so many emotions (don’t ask Kent, he will tell you that I always have emotions! I will say that I am so lucky to have Kent. He is always my steady. When my emotions start pouring he sorta pulls it together for me).  Once we officially saw Corina and made the decision that she was part of our forever family and that we would soon be part of hers it felt like we finally hit the big milestone in the adoption. It was like receiving a picture of your ultra sound and hearing the heartbeat.  While I have not carried Corina in the traditional way (I won’t even go into detail of how confusing this has been for Gavin and his curiosity of a pregnant belly)as a family we have been carrying her in our hearts. We knew we were going to find our little one, we did not know for sure the gender (many will argue that a little girl was soon to be!), we did not know the age, or what needs she may have.  I worried that I would miss knowing she was the one for our family. I will not say that everything came about with trumpets blaring and neon flashing signs , but looking back and thinking about how it all worked out I have to say that there was a sense of peace and happiness when we locked in her file and it has been there ever since. When ever I looked at her picture while we anxiously awaited some answers I truly got a sense of this is it. This is your child.   I am a sign person, I know some of you are laughing and that’s OK, I believe that things sometimes just happen and then sometimes little things or feelings come along that push you in the right direction.  With Corina those things happened.  I am sharing all of this only because I don’t want to forget or one day when my kids read this they will hopefully understand how we came to this point.   I remember thinking, take it all in, how lucky are we to be changing our family dynamics in this way.  With each of my children I remember having fears about being a good parent, loving them enough, keeping them safe and healthy, teaching them about kindness and compassion, will I be able to do all this( I am definitely working on all of these and struggling many days, making mistakes, beating myself up over it, trying again). Well I worry with this adoption about the same things. I guess that is one more sign that says we are heading in the right directionJ I hope we can be all that Corina needs in parents. I have no doubt that my boys will make amazing brothers and that the luck of having each other will go both ways.  I think we all have a lot to learn from each other and from this point the next chapter in our story really begins.