Three weeks after we buried my mom and a week after we found out my dad's cancer had returned, we got our referral that matched us with Habtamu, our son. It was a bitter sweet day to say the least. After almost 3 years of paperwork and waiting, we had a picture of our son. Words cannot express all the emotions that I felt. In the midst of such excruciating grief, the Lord was bringing beauty from ashes. Honestly, it took me quit a while to even allow myself to feel anything. A dark cloud of grief was hanging over my head and would stay there for long time to come.
This is one of the first pictures we received of our son. The journeys to Ethiopia were long and hard, but oh so worth it. 8 months after our referral, we brought our son home to stay. His transition has been nothing short of amazing. He and Noah are the best of friends, and Karis loves her other brother so much. He brings laughter, silliness, smiles, and such a servant and kind heart into our family. I truly feel our family is now complete. There is so much more I could say, but more will come as I get to share all that is going on in his life.
A more recent picture of Habtamu. What a difference 3 years makes! I am so blessed to be his mom and that the Lord chose us to be his parents. The bond of a mother is not merely genetics, Habtamu is my son and I am his mother. The love of a child really is not based on blood, biology, or actually carrying him/her in your womb. I love him just the same as my biological kids and know they are all three a gift from the Lord.
