Where does time go??

One year ago today we walked off the plane with our new daughter and introduced her to her family and many new friends. We can hardly believe that she has been with us for a year. We had the days when we asked each other "what have we done" to days when we could hardly believe that she was finally here with us and we were all together as a family. We love that little girl so much and are so thankful for her loving spirit. She has adjusted so well and is getting so excited for Christmas and has a really long list of things she would love to have. It doesn't matter where kids are from but they all know about gifts and presents.We talk about Christmas and how we celebrate Jesus' birthday and how much he loves all of us.

She is getting ready for a girl's/cousin slumber party tonight at Grandma's and is so excited for it. I'm sure they will have a great time!

We love you Anjali!!

One year Ago-Part 2

Our first meeting


One year ago today Kevin and I walked into the orphanage to meet our daughter for the first time. It was an exciting time--I couldn't wait to see her face to face, touch her and just kiss her. It was an amazing day and she warmed up to us by the end of the visit. We are so amazed at how much she has learned since that day and how well she has adjusted to all the new things around her. She has learned a new language, eats different food, has new friends, goes to a new school, lives with her family, wears different clothes, goes to church and many other things. I am not sure how I would have adjusted to all these new things but we are so proud of her and that she has just learned so much. She seems to be very happy (most days--I keep reminding myself she is 4). She loves to sing, listen to music, eat KIT-KATS, color and doodle, go shopping for new clothes, play Legos, play house, ice cream, watching BOZ videos, popcorn, playing outside, camping, going to the beach, going in her sister's bed and even cuddling with mom on those days when we can sleep in a little.
We are so thankful for the many blessings we have and we continue to thank God for the amazing adoption story we have to tell. We know that he guided us each step of the way on our journey and placed Anjali in our family for a reason. Thanks for your prayers and thoughts for our family the last year--we couldn't have done it without the support of friends and family.

One Year Ago

We were warmly welcomed on our arrival in Mumbai


The long plane ride to Mumbai


Anjali's referral photo

It's hard to believe that one year ago we were on a airplane for many hours beginning our (physical) journey to India to pick up our daughter. We could hardly believe that we were going to meet Anjali who was already so loved in our hearts and who we had been praying for so long. As I rode on that airplane one year ago I kept thinking with each passing hour that we were getting closer to holding this precious little girl in our arms! I remember crying couple of times as I thought about her and that she was in for a really big change in leaving her familiar world to come home! We prayed for her and that she would bond with us and that God would give her peace about it all.

It has been an amazing year with many blessing and some challenges but God has shown his faithfulness and plan. This little girl is such a blessing and we are so thankful that God has given us the privilege to be her parents and family. We love you Anjali! I'll write more about her soon and what she has been up to in the last several months.