Gotcha(for the non-pc)

It's been a year since this little one joined our family. It's been a year of mostly joy. It was harder than I figured it would be to move from three children to four. I spent a lot of time playing catchup. Our three kids fell totally in love - with occasional moments of exasperation. I understand better what God's adoption of me means. Kaitlyn has honed her "empress" skills, learned to be a little sister/daughter, and fits perfectly in our family. Frankly, if she had been "made to order" she couldn't be more perfect for us.


Kaitlyn is doing so well that we sometimes forget that she is still bonding and attaching to our family. During the current upheaval of remodeling/moving to grandma's she's had some anxiety. Today she heard me tell the other kids to go out to the car as I was heading to find her and tell her the same thing. I could hear panic in her voice as she started to cry and rush to find me. It makes my heart ache to realize that she thinks I would leave her but the reality is that it has been a part of her experience.
This morning I told her that today was her Gotcha Day. I told her about us going to China to become her mama and daddy and I grabbed her and gave her a big hug as I said, " I gotcha." She hugged me right back and said, "No, I got you!"


I don't think that adoption is part of God's perfect plan, but in this fallen world I do think it's a pretty special alternative to life in an orphanage.