I have been flooded with emotions and people congratulating us on this amazing, and LONG AWAITED event. I am truly humbled and amazed by the sheer amount of people that have followed Sofi's story and have helped in some way.
I was thinking about Sofi, and some of the common things that have been said...that we are amazing....that she is so lucky....etc.
We are not amazing, we are just a mom and a dad that believe that no child should be an orphan.
She is not lucky...she's a survivor....and we are the lucky ones.
Because of her, our eyes have been opened to the heartbreak of the plight of orphans... all over the world.
Because of her, we have a daughter. An amazing, beautiful, resilient daughter.
Because of her, the boys have a sister. A princess in a house full of boys.
We are the lucky ones.
And because of you we got this far.
Because of people literally all over the world an orphan has a family. She will be an orphan no more. Because you shared your love, our story, your prayers, your shoes, your faith, your dollars....our Sofi will come home. She won't be left in an orphanage. She won't die.
Now we are planning our pickup trip.
Now we are planning a changed life; A changed family.
We are so excited. So grateful.
We are looking to travel to pick her up on February 14 (where we would actually get her on Monday, February 17). We would be home again all together as a family on February 27th. And her fifth birthday, ten days later will be celebrated with a family.
No longer alone.
This road was long. There were many roadblocks.
All of those that have helped us tear down those road blocks...thank you.
We currently have two weeks left to collect as much used clothing, and shoes as possible to raise the money for her airfare, and her exit medicals. We are begging all of you to help us in the final stretch. If you have cleaned your closets, and you are in Southern California, we will come and get your stuff. If you are out of state, but you still want to contribute to bring our girl home, you can go on our GoFundMe account. There is no small amount.
There are no words...thank you is so insignificant.
A child in another country is now our daughter.
A child that was left abandoned.
A child that has had no voice for four years now has a mommy, daddy, and five big brothers.
Dear Life, Do you believe in miracles? I do. I have for years. First watching "Little" (Kumaka) as he navigates boy hood full force.
Remembering the baby years....the multiple shunt revisions...the casts for months on end (that lasted for years)...the surgery after surgery to correct feet....and then hips....and then broken bones....the ongoing infections. I never in a million years would have imagined Kumaka to be this active....this happy....this....BOY LIKE. There is not a "can't do" moment....it's a how can I attitude. The last few years have been truly miraculous to watch and given us much joy. Then, we embarked on the adoption journey. Did we have the necessary funding in our account just waiting? No. But Sofi was waiting. And we determined that she would wait no more for someone to be her family. We fell in love with her....and decided that we would do whatever it took to bring her home. And we did. Everything we could think of. Cupcake days, shoe drives, clothing drives, pizza days, jewelry giveaways, TV Raffles, Helmet Raffles, etc etc etc. We have driven to Los Angeles more times than we can count to get paperwork taken care of. We have cried, laughed, and prayed harder than ever. And then our court date happened. We didn't get a "Now she's yours moment". We got a continuance. We needed current fingerprint clearances from the FBI. At the time we needed them, our government was shut down. So we got state clearances and prayed they would work. They didn't. SO....the day we had court and didn't pass, Stuart and I rushed to the police station to get our fingerprints done. I then rushed to get money orders and had them sent next day to the FBI. When I knew the received them I called to beg for them to expedite. Normally fingerprint clearances take 6-8 weeks. I didn't have that kind of time. We begged, my agency begged, and we found someone to do them. They sent them out on December 24th. BUT they sent them to the wrong place. So yesterday and today we have been in a panic trying to figure what to do. Right when my head bowed, and my tears flowed, because Sofi's fate was to be put in the hands of the judge....again... God stepped in. The documents were found. My money orders were found. The State Department is helping us by expediting our paperwork. They will get there in time. By a hair. That's all we need. Yes, I believe in miracles. I believe in people. Because throughout this journey, I have witnessed the goodness of people all over this world. I am a better person because of this journey. Miracles are real. You just have to believe.
