Tuesday, October 2, 2007

SIX MONTHS!

"For this child, I prayed; and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of Him." 1 Samuel 1:27 (Hannah's verse)

Hard to believe, to even imagine, that our precious Hannah Leigh has been home six full months. In some way, it feels like she has always been here and in reflecting, I suppose, she has. She grew in our hearts and stayed there until we could actually see her, physically be with her. Some days, I feel I am just a novice mommy to her, learning her mannerisms and drawing out all the beautiful things that she has to share.

I will, at some point, do a video of when Daddy received Hannah and the days that followed. For now, we will relive those moments in the stillness of photographs. Our original website that follows our journey is Our Voyage to Hannah Please feel free to visit.

She has changed so much, yet her little personality has been in tact all along. She is a fighter, a survivor. At the facility where she was cared for, she was coined "The Mayor" and I can see that about her. She is an old soul, with a deep, thinking spirit. Her sense of humor is fleeting, but wickedly funny and she takes everything in. Jim (our dear friend who accompanied dear ol' Dad to China) said to me on the phone that very first day, "She is taking it all in, surveying the situation. Oh, just you wait and see how she takes you in, you'll be wrapped up in her in a heartbeat." He was right... hook, line and sinker, the three of us fell in love with this beautiful girl.

We will always be grateful to her birth family (it is still very hard for me to contemplate them without tears). They made the ultimate sacrifice and we are eternally grateful. We will always be thankful to whomever matched us with this wonderful little person. How did they know? Ahhh, yes, that is where faith steps in. We know our steps and hers were numbered in just this sequence that we might be together.

We know that it comes with bumps and hiccups. At some point, there may be difficult questions and difficult issues that pass our narrow way, however, we feel prepared to deal with those, in love and in truth. We know that the Lord used that loooong wait to prepare our spirits and help us become informed so that when the unknown strikes, we can approach it with grace.

Our first glimpse of Hannah, referral photos February 1, 2007




Happy Homecoming


The Announcement!Big News!



Easter Day, April 2007 (home about 72 hours)
"A bunny and a basket, huh? Wait til you hear how I got here!"


Six Months later...October, 4, 2007







You have come a long way baby and boy, are we blessed!

21 comments:

Christy said...

CONGRATS on 6 months!!! What a milestone and look how well she is doing. I am just so happy for your beautiful family. I love to see happy Oct 05 DTC'ers!! She is just precious!

Christy :)

Much Ado said...

Just beautiful! Thank you for sharing this with us.....it is amazing to see the changes over 6 months! God is good.

Stefanie said...

Happy six months together! She just radiates all the love of her new family :)
I LOVE the announcement, it's darling!

Don and Lisa Osborn said...

What a happy, happy post. I remember when you got your referral and am kicking myself for not posting congrats and delurking back then. To think we could've been friends for the past six months. Grrr...:o)

Anyway, Heather, I am so thankful for this anniversary and the joy Hannah has brought to all of you. She is a beautiful girl INSIDE and OUT and I love seeing how animated she's become and the gorgeous photos of her with big sister Em.

Thanking God for your family and the gifts and blessings of adoption!!!

Love,
Lisa

3 Peanuts said...

Happy Anniversary Heather1 Hannah looks adorbale and happy!

Kim

Lori said...

I love this post Heather!
First, congratulations on having Miss Hannah 6 months!!
She has just blossomed incredibly and is so joyful! Her referral picture is so precious, I'm sure it was love at first sight.
You have a BEAUTIFUL family!!
I love seeing pictures of YOU for once! (teehee) You're so pretty.
And I KNEW it, you totally belong in the South with that coiffed hair and all! :)

Anonymous said...

Oh Heather,

That really made me cry.

sheryl said...

Happy 6 months! Hannah truly is a joy and a blessing. I love seeing how much she has grown and changed in such a short time. She is truly blossoming in all the love that surrounds her. Your post brought a smile to my heart today, and I really needed that! :D I love the picture of you and your beautiful girls.

Hugs,
Sheryl

Sheri said...

This brought tears to my eyes! You expressed so beautifully what so many of us feel. I can't wait to have some time to go look at your original website. Hannah is just adorable and her referral pictures were are cute as well (which isn't always the case). ;)

Congratulations on six months!

~Sheri

Jewels of My Heart said...

What a beautiful post. How happy that your little Hannah is home safely with her family. YOur words touched my heart.

mommy24treasures said...

lovely post, love the photos.
I stayed home while daddy went to get our little seeetheart as well, ahh the butterflies of being home while your hubby meets your daughter! I remember them like yesterday.
You have a beautiful beautiul ladybug.

Praise and Coffee said...

Ok, wiping the tears, that brings back a flood of memories!
Our little girl came home a year ago when she was 2. It's been an amazing year, I can't imagine our lives without her.

God bless your family,
Sue

Unknown said...

Oh my goodness!! She is adorable and is getting so big. Emily looks like a beautiful young lady -wow how time flys. We must get together soon. I Miss You!!!

Angie said...

Happy 6 Months!! Your words are so beautiful as you describe life with Miss Hannah!
I remember the day you got your referral and it was posted on Adoption Voyages...I thought that Hannah's referral photo was one of the prettiest I had ever seen. She is such a precious child.
As I have said before, keeping up with your family here and on AV has kept my dream of Ruthie alive. Thanks for sharing little bits of your life with us!

Danielle Moss said...

Happy 6 months together! Oh I am so out of it. I read this and realized I never left a comment! That's what happens when you go to bed between 2-4am for a week or two.

Happy 6 months with your family Miss Hannah. You are so blessed to have such a wonderful family, and they are SO blessed to have you!

Love,

Danielle

prechrswife said...

It is hard to believe it has been 6 months since we hosted your travel journal--wow! Hannah is such a precious little girl. :-) Love those smiling pictures.

Kelley said...

Look at how she's grown! WOW!!! Six months have just flown by...unbelievable!

Jen, Dave, Leah and Daniel said...

Happy happy 6 months! Your girls are beautiful. Congrats! LOVE the Elmo pic. Too cute and hilarious!

Beth said...

CONGRATULATIONS on 6 months together with little Hannah! She is such a beautiful girl. She looks so delicate in her referral photos. It is incredible to watch how these little sweethearts all blossom with their families. Great post! Thanks for inviting us all to share your joy.

Beth

Leslie said...

Wow 6 months! It goes so fast! Her referral picutures were gorgeous! She is so beautiful, I love seeing the picture of you with your girls. So sweet! I will have to check out your other site documenting your journey. Matilda Jane is getting sent out the end of this week!

Mark, Carol and Siena said...

Happy 6 Months to your whole family, Heather. Thinking of you!
Much love.
Carol AKA Siena's Mommy

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