The day finally came! It was what we have been waiting for, fighting for, hoping for, for almost three years! On that day in April 2010, when I opened up the New Horizons for Children photolisting page and saw our Rita, I in no way thought it would take this long to make her mine!!! And as we looked over the photolisting in March and April 2011, and saw Valerija with her sister, I had no idea that one day she would be ours!!! But God said "hold on!" And little by little, He began revealing His plan for us. One child at a time. One who surprised us with heartbreak, one who surprised us with acceptance, and one who surprised us just because she could!!!!!
It's been a long year and a half since we started our official adoption journey. But as we stood in the cold wind over the Karosta Bridge, fixing our adoption lock to the steel girders, and throwing the keys in the icy waters (ok, maybe upon the frozen waters) below, it all just felt perfect! Yes, I had engraved 2-6-2013 this time. Although we arrived in Riga on Groundhog's Day, this trip would not be a repeat of October! For this time, we knew what we had to do! We knew the elephant must be killed! And although there was a slight bobble at the start of court, the girls took up their weapons and fought! Once recovered, there was no hesitation, there was no looking back! They marched forward, committed to this new life and we moved on down the path!!!
We had a great visit with family and friends after court, and enjoyed a long, icy drive back to Riga that night with our translator. I met several new friends on that trip who made such a difference in our girls lives. If it had not been for these 3 people, our girls futures could have been significantly different, as well as ours!
So now, as we wait for the 20 day waiting period to close, we plan for our fourth and final trip to Latvia, after which the girls will become American Citizens! I don't know at which airport we will land upon arrival in the US on 4/19, but we will celebrate somewhere...New York, Atlanta, DC, Miami... April 19th- my Dad's 83rd birthday! Our girls final arrival to America! I remember it was at my Dad's 80th birthday party that the words "New Horizons for Children" first entered my life. How fitting that on that day, 3 years later, those words will be fulfilled in our lives! The girls want to go to New York. I've never been there...so maybe New York! Maybe celebrate with a cake from Carlos' Bakery in New Jersey? All I know is that, just like on this entire journey, God will lead us HOME!
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