What a Difference a Few Months Makes!

I'm sitting here on a Sunday morning, laptop in hand, "Penguins of Madagascar" on tv. Six months ago, my Sunday mornings looked drastically different. We would have had breakfast with Nick's parents, had some coffee and gone to church. What's the difference, you ask? The addition of a child! All parents know the change that comes to a home when a newborn is added to the mix. Imagine adding a toddler! On January 30, Asher got placed with us. He was 19 months old. He had previously been in care with his maternal great-grandparents and had to be moved because of health reasons. He has now been in our home for longer than he had been with his grandparents! It's hard to believe. It's even hard to imagine our lives without him.

I'll never forget the excitement that ran through our family when we learned he'd be placed with us. We spent time wondering what he'd look like, what he'd act like, how well he'd adjust. Finally, when the day arrived and Ryan brought him to us, we couldn't wait to get to know him.

Of course, there were speed bumps. How do we get him to go to sleep on his own? Why won't he talk? How do we acclimate him to our busy schedules? How do we get him to form attachments with us? Considering his background, he adjusted remarkably well. Within a couple of weeks, he was going to sleep on his own. Within a month, he was adjusted to our schedules. Within a couple of months, he was talking up a storm and even the speech therapist was impressed! Over those first couple of months, he gradually became more and more a part of our family. Now, we can't even imagine a time without hearing a little voice yell "Mama!" or "Daddy!" in his crib every morning. The idea of not having to say "Don't sit on the kitty!" is completely foreign. The notion of not tripping over toys on the floor would never cross our minds. We have become parents...maybe not in the conventional way...but parents, nonetheless.

Six months ago, we were a young married couple with no kids. Today, we're parents to a (nearly) two-year-old, and we couldn't be happier!