This weekend we pseudo-celebrated a birthday. I say "pseudo-celebrated" for 2 reasons: 1) It only involved a DQ icecream cake and a song, and 2) Our little dude wasn't here for it.
I guess it really was a momentous day on several fronts. It will be his last birthday inside institutional walls and more importantly, although he's now 4yo, he will not be transferred out of the Baby House since we've begun the in-country paperwork for his adoption.
Birthdays can be tough times for adoptees. It's often a time to remember his/her birthmother and wonder about the "whys" behind her decision to make an adoption plan.
Yesterday I found myself wondering about our Little Dude's birthmom. I'd be crazy to think she wasn't thinking about him... the joy and expectation she was feeling 4 years ago leading up to his delivery... the love she had for him as she felt him grow and kick... then the cold, hard reality that he has Down syndrome-- a chromosomal difference not well accepted in her country.
In many ways her decision was already made for her. Institutionalizing a baby with Ds is what you do. There are no programs to assist you with his Special Needs. Society and Tradition determined what the outcome would be. And so, one tiny and very special little boy entered an orphanage while a mother left the hospital with empty arms and full breasts.
With an overflowing heart, I thank you-- our Little Dude's Birthmother-- for giving him life. I pray that you've found peace and will know he is well cared for and loved.
I guess it really was a momentous day on several fronts. It will be his last birthday inside institutional walls and more importantly, although he's now 4yo, he will not be transferred out of the Baby House since we've begun the in-country paperwork for his adoption.
Birthdays can be tough times for adoptees. It's often a time to remember his/her birthmother and wonder about the "whys" behind her decision to make an adoption plan.
Yesterday I found myself wondering about our Little Dude's birthmom. I'd be crazy to think she wasn't thinking about him... the joy and expectation she was feeling 4 years ago leading up to his delivery... the love she had for him as she felt him grow and kick... then the cold, hard reality that he has Down syndrome-- a chromosomal difference not well accepted in her country.
In many ways her decision was already made for her. Institutionalizing a baby with Ds is what you do. There are no programs to assist you with his Special Needs. Society and Tradition determined what the outcome would be. And so, one tiny and very special little boy entered an orphanage while a mother left the hospital with empty arms and full breasts.
With an overflowing heart, I thank you-- our Little Dude's Birthmother-- for giving him life. I pray that you've found peace and will know he is well cared for and loved.
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