January 5th

While cleaning my home office over this holiday break I came across (among many things) a page I'd quickly typed, printed, and filed on December 23rd of 2010.   (We'll get to "January 5th" in a moment.)  After a year of emotional trauma and tireless lobbying efforts, we had finally received notification that the Office of Refugee Resettlement of the Department of Health and Human Services was granting us a temporary match with "Beatha Samedy" and "Jameson Mesilas." We would soon travel to Pittsburgh to spend time with the children under the supervision of the administrators and social workers at the group home where the kids resided.  If all went well, the children would be released to live with our family and for us to proceed with an adoption process.  The stress was far from over, but this was the biggie -- the break-through notification that we were finally approved at least with a path toward becoming a family.  On the night of December 23rd my usually mellow Hunter, showered and lying in bed, was full of energy as I came in to have our nightly bedtime chat and back rub; he said (beaming), "I can't believe we're getting the kids -- it feels like a dream!"

Today, January 5th, is our 2nd anniversary of Gotcha Day -- when Anna and Jameson were officially placed in our care after collaborative approval by Pittsburgh personell and US officials.  This afternoon we're having some pizza at home together -- between lots and lots of comings and goings for various basketball clinics and games -- a bit of time to remember the pizza ordered to our hotel room two years ago (somewhere in Ohio, where we paused for the night our travels from PA to home).  It tasted like freedom, and relief. 

Today, this cheesy, carb-heavy, late lunch is about realizing how much we've all worked at our healing, received support and truth from each other and our family and friends, and benefited from individual growth and increasing closeness within our relationships. 

Thank you, all, for your patience, help, and understanding as we went through that all-encompassing journey.  Nobody does anything alone, and we are grateful and humbled for the angels in our lives. 

Pass the Parmesan!