Gotcha Day - Will & Lena (2015)

One year ago today, Andy, Dow and Beth visited Will and Lena at their orphanages for the last time! May 6, 2014, became Gotcha Day for Will and Lena!  The journey to get to that point was hard fought on so many levels.

Will and Lena leaving Lena's orphanage on May 6, 2014!

Will and Lena, Gotcha Day 2015

This past year has been no piece of cake either.  We hardly knew what hit us last summer!  In fact, last summer seams like a blur with only little memories here and there for me.  One big thing I do remember is how so many people helped us from bringing meals to helping give the children baths!  Thanks again to so many of you who were there for us and are still there offering up prayers on our behalf.

While this year brought lots of adjustments, God also brought just the right teachers (both school and church), medical professionals, and new friends who are teaching our children guitar, art, and gymnastics!  We are so grateful for the adults who have already helped to shape them and have had such a positive impact on them.

We dealt with some unexpected things such as Will having five surgeries including three due to a hearing impairment in both ears.  We became very familiar with Children's Hospital and are so thankful for the medical professionals who are committed to the health care of children.  On the very positive side, we have not dealt with grieving children who missed their familiar environment and the loss of caregivers.  Instead, Lena and Will seemed to know they were "home" from the very beginning.  They rarely showed any signs of insecurity or fearfulness (except for the ceiling fans and dogs at first!).  We have worked very hard and continue to work hard on helping them know how to be part of a family and a community (school, church, etc).

Over this past year, God has revealed a lot of things to me about myself - some were really hard to see! But He has also revealed even more to me about Who He Is!  I am so deeply humbled as I even write this because when He called us to adopt two children, I kept saying I can't do this!  God kept saying I know you can't, but I can!  When I think back over this past year, I know He has been faithful in keeping His promise for He has sustained our family, showered us with grace and mercy and helped Will and Lena make the biggest adjustment of their lives.

We still face some challenges but to see where God has brought us from is amazing.  And to add icing on the cake, Will and Lena know about Jesus and that He loves them!

To celebrate Gotcha Day, each child releases a balloon in the air for each year they have been home and get to pick where to eat.  Then we pull out the pics of their first Gotcha Day and enjoy looking at the changes in them.  While Will and Lena may not have really grasped the meaning of this one year anniversary, they certainly felt special.  Hope's Gotcha Day is just around the corner, so be looking for another update soon!