Here. THERE. Again. FINALLY. F O R E V E R. It's official on all fronts, Emalie is a Krauss! On October 4, 2013, we went to the courthouse where the judge officially declared Emalie a member of our family. This final step to the adoption confirmed what we have known all along-- she belongs with us. I have never been a religious person, but that is not to say that I'm not a spiritual person. This past week I have reflected on our path through this process. I remember that moment (sitting in the car outside the Verizon store in Silverdale, WA, reading a magazine) when I saw an ad for an international adoption agency. On the page was a face of the most beautiful little girl. It was like a bolt of lightening that struck my heart and buckled my knees; it was joined with the thought, "I have to have her." Sven came back to the car and wanted to know what was wrong and why I had tears in my eyes. I told him about this revelation. Much to my surprise, he took me seriously, we did a lot of talking and we started the process a few months later. I've always believed that that message came not from within but somewhere else. And now that we have Emalie in our family, I truly believe it was HER that was supposed to be a part of our lives-- forever. (And, oddly, there is a striking resemblance between Emalie and the girl in that ad I saw in the magazine that day....and no, not all Chinese people look alike!!)
When we were assigned our court date a few weeks ago, I called my parents and Thad and invited them to be with us for this special day. Boy, do I love my family-- they rallied, they came, they shared. It was an unplanned week of simply being together as family-- the ultimate reason for their visit in the first place. We're repeatedly told that Emalie so so lucky. We knew this is a phrase we would hear a lot, we were prepared for this during our adoption classes. People may not fully understand when our response is: "We are the lucky ones." And no, it's not just something we say to be polite. It's truly a win-win for us all. This little girl has filled voids in my heart that I didn't even know I had. Yes, she's lucky, but I'll always feel luckier.
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| Grandpa and Emalie. |
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| Grandma, Emalie and Grandpa. Notice that Emalie went and got a cup and coaster (sitting on the arm of the couch), so she could be just like Grandma. |
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| Doing puzzles with Grandpa. |
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| Story time with Grandpa. |
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| Emalie even persuaded Uncle Thad to read her bedtime stories! |
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| We have a big house, but not a lot of bedrooms. Mom and Dad slept in the guest room, Thad slept in Nik's room and Nik slept in my office. He was so cozy in there it made me want to sleep in there, too! |
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| Emalie's big day. |
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| Hmm.....why so grumpy?! |
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| Our little China doll. |
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| This is where it happened! |
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| Emalie could sense the excitement, so she just clung tighter. I have to laugh thinking that Grandpa G. was probably looking down on us saying the same thing he used to say about Nikolas, "that kid is as big as you are!!"! |
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| It's almost our turn. |
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The ceremony was finished faster than Nik can open his presents on Christmas morning!
Here we are with the judge. |
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| Thad was so nice to be our cameraman for the event. I wish he could have been in this photo with us! |
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| You know how the weather creates a mood? After a nice, warm summer, this is the first day of snow that we had. It made the day feel even more monumental. |
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| What better way to celebrate an adoption from China?! Order Chinese!! |
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| Emalie likes it. |
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| Dad even liked it, too!!! (Hold the rice.....) |
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| Thad was only able to be with us for a few days of the week, but it sure made everything more special that he was able to come. We missed Kelly though!!! |
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| Grandma's turn for a snuggle at bedtime. |
Portraits from the special day:
Mom, Dad, Thad--- thank you so much for interrupting your schedules and going out of your way to support us for this event. WE are so very lucky. Love you!
