Last night we had dinner with Val and her husband, Lewis, as well as Amber's cousin, Jacky. Jacky was with Amber when Abram was born, but we didn't get to meet her last time. She is really close to Amber so it was wonderful to get to meet her. Our time with them was such a blessing.
Val took Abram's socks off because she wanted to see his cute feet!
Abram ate at the beginning of our meal and was SO HAPPY the rest of the time. I loved that they got to see him so happy (which is usually how he is)!
At the end of the time, Abram got sleepy.
One last goodbye snuggle for Val.
And one last goodbye kiss from Jacky.
There were a few times last night when Val and Jacky were holding Abram that tears nearly started streaming down my face. As much as he is totally ours, he is still theirs also. (I made sure to tell them that last night.) Seeing Abram with them confirmed that reality. Seeing how much they love him and knowing that they have to say goodbye to him was hard. I walked out of the restaurant thinking, "This is the hard part of adoption."
But while it is hard, it is also at the same time so good. It will be so good for Abram someday to know and see how much they love him.
I also loved seeing Abram with Lewis, Val and Jacky because they are part of who he is. They represent his heritage. They are his family. It is similar to how when I go with Jason back to his home town, I feel like I get to know new aspects of Jason and more of who he is. That is how last night felt. We hope to be able to come back about every year, if we can. I look forward to Abram getting to learn more about his family and heritage as he grows up when we visit Lubbock each year.
It will come as no surprise that as soon as we got in the car, I completely lost it! It immediately reminded me of how much I cried the last time we were here and I'm glad I won't be crying that much again!
Overall, I just feel so incredibly blessed by God that He extended our family to include some wonderful people here in Lubbock.
And tonight will be no different. Yesterday Leti told us that Abram's half-sister here in Lubbock, who is 9 years old, really wants to see Abram for the first time. How sweet it that!? Oh, it almost makes me cry just thinking about it. So tonight, Leti is picking up Abram's sister and 3 year old brother and bringing them to our hotel to hang out. I even think Mimo might come, too. We are ordering pizza and they are going to swim in the pool at our hotel. How fun! I can't wait!
We met Abram's sister, Delilah, and brother, Christyan for the first time. They are technically Abram's half-sister and half-brother, but for the rest of Abram's life, they will be his sister and brother.
Abram is one loved and adored little guy with an amazing family in Lubbock. We can't wait to come visit again next year.
This whole experience of adoption . . . there just are not words in the English language that describe it. It is a beautiful miracle. Mimo and Leti told me that getting to see Abram and being able to sit around together felt like a dream. I couldn't agree more!
