WOW!

Well folks...the girls are with their parents and they are legally theirs! Yesterday was a long and emotional day. The Civil Affairs own a hotel in Nanning that they use 2 floors to hold and facilitate the adoption process. We go up to the 4th floor and wait in a room with a few toys in it. Down the hall in other rooms I can hear the children being brought in to their new families and the crying that ensued after they were brought in. My heart broke as each cry came down the hall. It is very surreal when you think about what is taking place in each room. You have parents that are looking forward to meeting the child that they have loved since they first saw their picture (and some longer than that); and children that are leaving everything that they have know and is familiar to them. Even though I know that the children will have better lives than that of being orphans, I can't help but be sad with them. It was finally our turn. In came the Tanskis little girl Danielle. She is beautiful and had grown so much since the pictures. She cried when the nanny and caretaker gave her the Tanskis. The Tanskis took her in their arms and loved her immediately. She cried on and off for a little while. Next came the Pinsons little girl Su Su. She is absolutely adorable. She also cried when the nanny and caretaker gave her to the Millers. Both girls had a hard time with it at first; and then families handled it beautifully. They hugged the and loved the girls. With the help of our guide Michael and Meg, they were able speak to the girls and try to console them; and let them know that they love them and that they are were going to be there for them through the grieving process. Both of the girls came from faster families that they were loved and well cared for. They had foster families that loved them dearly. To watch them grieve was unbearable at times. I can only imagine how the adoptive families felt as they held their daughters and begining the grieving process with them. This morning after the first night with their new families, the girls awoke handling the transition better than the day before. Su Su was bonding with her older brothers and sister. Danielle was still adjusting but doing really well. We got an early start today and headed out after breakfast to finalize the adoption. We went back to Civil Affairs, to the same room that we waited in the day before. All the emotions of the day before came back. But today there was less sadness. There were no cries coming up the hall and the children were happier in the rooms. As I went with each family into meet with the registrars, it became real, officail and final right before my eyes. As the registrar went through the formalities, and the adoptive parents signed and answered the appropriate questions, it was final. When the registrar said that, " I approve you as this child's new parents" it was final. Amazing! All the paper work, emailing, waiting and waiting; to hear " I now approve you.."---it's all worth it. Absolutely amazing! To hear the parents talk about how the new daughter have traits of their kids, and even themselves; I know that God's plan is truly perfect. As hard as it is to watch the children grieve for the life that they are leaving, it is really encouraging to know that the life that they are going to have will far exceed their desires and expectations. They have parents and siblings that love them; and opportunity to know the God that "...puts the lonely in families".