Little By Little

Everyday with Francis in our family, things seem to "gel" a little more. Today was a really wonderful time for all of us. I got up very early and decided to take Ezekiel (our youngest) to hike at the lake near our house. It was H-O-T outside, even at 7am so I doubted I would have any "takers" when I went to wake the kids and ask if anyone wanted to come along. To my surprise, both Francis and Elliana agreed to join us.  The hike ended up with a huge water fight (ice cubes included) but the soaking was welcome after a hot couple of miles!
At 3pm, our 13 year old son, Lemuel, was to fly home from a trip to visit his best friend out in Michigan. The timing of the trip was stellar as Lemuel tends to require a lot more attention than the average 13 year old and my crew was jet lagging pretty hard since they got home last Thursday.  Lemuel had not met Francis in person until today. Francis and I went to the airport to greet him and the two hit it off quite well. They went to the YMCA together to play some basketball while their Dad worked out.
There have been lots of little "glimmers" of good things ahead and I continue to stand in awe of what the Lord is allowing us to be a part of.
This has been by far, the most emotionally taxing adoption of our four - having a child old enough to "choose you back" is extremely stressful and not for the faint of heart.   Adopting a child who was so deeply rooted in his former life is not for the thin skinned.   Despite the tough nature of this adoption, the transition has been the EASIEST of all of our adoptions.   There is clearly a willingness on both sides of this equation to make this work.  That goes a LOOOONG way. 
I feel very ashamed now of the doubts I had in the last couple of  months. They are almost comical when compared to the reality of the situation!
Please know, precious readers, that if this blog goes silent for a little while, it will only be for the good things going on over here crowding out my time to blog.   The same goes for my facebook.  As much as I relied on this computer to get me through  the last bit of this adoption and all of the travel, I feel like it will go by the wayside a bit.   If you're a parent, I know you'll understand.