Referralversary

**I posted this yesterday and then it disappeared. Not sure why. So here it is again. Sorry!

On May 12th, 2010, we got the call that changed our lives and we saw our son's face for the first time. It was a day of such a myriad of emotions. In the weeks leading up to the call, I was going a little crazy with anticipation so I expected to feel nothing but joy and excitement when the call finally came. Of course, I did experience both of those emotions but it was the level of grief upon hearing the details of his first weeks of life that took me by surprise. My heart hurt for a family in Ethiopia that I had never met and at the same time I was overwhelmed with gratitude that LB was alive and well. The end result of international adoption is pretty crazy if you think about it. Two families from halfway around the world become forever connected through the life of an amazing child. Adoption is such a perfect representation of life's ability to show you tragedy, beauty and grace all at the same time. It's truly miraculous.

Here are a few of those photos we saw a year ago. In some ways he doesn't even look like the same kid. The eyes are the main giveaway that it's him.

Earlier this week, D said something to me about how the year anniversary of our referral was coming up on May 13th. I had to politely remind him that the referral was actually on the 12th. He didn't believe me at first but soon realized he had the date wrong. His error is worth mentioning because it reminded me of something similar that happened about 6 months after we were married. Our wedding anniversary is October 12th. I like that it is also the 12th day of the month. D came home from running errands and showed me his receipt from getting gas in his car. He told me to look at the total. It was $10.13. I was very confused and gave him a blank look. He got this smirky look on his face and teased me that I had already forgotten our anniversary. Ha! It was fun to point out that he was the one who already forgot!

Whether it the was the 12th or 13th, we will never forget all the important details and emotions of our referral day!