Forever.

Today we will look at our girls and say forever. I cannot tell you how happy that makes my heart.
I got a call early yesterday (around 9:45am) at work from our social worker who put me on speaker phone with DHR's attorney and the girls Guardian ad Litem. They let us know that before court had ever gotten started the biological parents came in with an offer to sign over parental rights.
Wow.
Completely unexpected.
So we negotiated a plan to keep things very limitedly open. We will send pictures and the girls letters if they wish. The girls will have one supervised (by us) visit with biological family each year which will probably begin next year around this time.
This kind of plan is something we had talked about before and had thought 'no'. Now we know this is the best and healthiest way for our family. The girls may or may not wish to continue contact as they get older. The biological family may or may not show up yearly or send letters but that door is open. The truth is, while our girls have very limited attachment to their first mom, they do know who and what she is to them. It makes things different. It makes this the best plan.
If I'm completely honest, that they signed over rights softens our hearts. Over the last nine months there has been bitterness and anger at how our girls' entire lives have been spent drifting from one home to another exposing them to both good and some terribly bad situations. But in the place of that bitterness we are able to move on with our lives with a sense of respect for how that wrong was righted yesterday. It may have taken 2 1/2 years for that right decision to be made but, after all, that time is what brought them to us. Again, as we've learned over and over through this, it is all in God's time.

So we've asked the girl's to go on a date with us tonight ("are you gonna wear your wedding dress momma?" asked my little girl:). And before we leave home we will tell them what we are celebrating.
Never ever again will I have to say, "We hope it's forever but we just don't know yet" when one of my girls expresses anxiety over leaving our home. For the first time as their mom I can offer them absolute protection and security. That makes me feel whole.

It is a happy time for us and we couldn't possibly say thank you enough for your prayers and support!
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.

We will keep you updated as we proceed with the adoption.
God bless.