Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Retrospective......

With Mothers' Day quickly approaching I am reminded of not only the many many amazing Moms I know & admire( I love you Mom....you are the very best!!) but also of the road to Motherhood. There was a time when I feared I would never hear a sweet tiny voice call out that most cherished of word.......Mama. And certainly when I think back on my path to Mama hood I understand how great the journey was & continues to be........ how immense both the challenges and rewards are...........

There was a time when I wondered if small arms would ever reach up to me for comfort or in joy. If a diminutive toothless grin would ever greet me in the morning from a cozy crib. If the pitter-patter of footsteps would alight our floors for more than a brief visit. If the Lord would grant my fervent wish. He did. He still does daily.

I believe with all of my heart that we were sent to Kazakhstan to bring home our beautiful daughter all those years ago. I believe just as strongly that we were sent to Taiwan to bring our beautiful baby boy home this past Spring. I could never have fully imagined the joys these two would bring us......the frustrations........ and the incredible laughs and lessons learned/earned along the way.

I am so fortunate to know so many phenomenal Moms both personally and through this media. Weekly I read posts of deep love, humor, devotion and tremendous hope from the blogs I follow along with. I respect and admire all of the Mothers in my life. I pray with all the Mamas still waiting to glimpse their babies faces for the first time(it will happen!!)........or who wait to hold their babes in their arms(agony!). I celebrate with all the new Mamas, whether they be Mamas of one, two, three or more! Just this week 2 Mamas on our board glimpsed their baby's faces for the first time and have been blessed beyond measure( Suzy!). Still another incredible Mama walks the halls at night, comforting her beautiful grieving baby just home from Taiwan.......... still other Mamas are finding their way with adorable toddler boys, home at last! Another Mama's dossier winds its way to Ethiopia...... It really is a dance.....a strange, wonderful and intricate dance, this groove of Motherhood. And how lucky we all are to be in it!

To all of you.......I appreciate each and every one of you. May all of your wishes be heard and granted........thank you for sharing this crazy ride with me!!

Oh, btw, our pesky computer is still not allowing us to download our newer pictures. Ack! So I dug around in the archives and fished out a few of my favorites. The photos of Lauren are from Mother's Day weekend last year. I had to catch my breath a moment when I looked....I mean really looked at 'em. I see in them so much change.....some of it subtle.... but still a reminder of how fleeting time is.

Happy Mama's Day to all the ladies in my life!

P.S. Carrie S.......hey lady, shoot me an email as time allows!! I miss you too!


My sweet girl..............brightening every day. Adding lots of giggles too!
My rare and precious flower.....................my Lauren

AND then he came along.......my goodness, was there ever a time he wasn't in our lives in some way?......in our dreams?...in our hearts and then home forever.


This photo was taken right after we picked up our precious boy in Taiwan. I see so much in those beautiful expressive eyes......and truly I see our circle completed.


14 comments:

Lisa said...

Happy mothers day to you too Lisa. Thanks for all your support.
LOL
Lisa

Tish said...

Happy Mama's Day to you, too, sweet mama! That last photo of T had me mesmerized!!!

PamFitz said...

Beautiful Mother's Day post! You are one thoughtful, caring, loving mama.
Pam - JOH

Terry said...

Happy Mother's Day too! Thank you for being so thoughtful and inspirational! Your kind words and support always mean sooo much.
I try to think of the road of adoption, with the twists, turns, traffic delays, 'are we there yet?' and bumps along the way as labor pains (with no meds LOL) all leading to the blessed joy of motherhood.
I wish you the VERY BEST for your Mother's Day!

PS Good luck with the computer! Hope you can correct the glitch soon.

Michele M said...

Happy Happy Mother's Day to one of the nicest most thoughtful and caring person I know. Your post was so beautiful and touching.

Have a great day my friend!
Love, M

momwithfaithandhope said...

Happy Mother's Day Lisa! What a wonderfully sweet post for all Moms. . .those waiting for arms to reach out to them, those of us who are juggling multiple arms and dirty diapers, and those who raised all of us!!! Enjoy your day with your beautiful flower Lauren, and that handsome little guy!

Anne Marie said...

Happy Mother's Day, Lisa! You and your incredible words are much, much, much appreciated by all of us too :)

rachel said...

lisa,
i posted a looong comment this afternoon and i don't see it for some reason! whaa???? that is really bizarre!

okay, so to re-type what i posted...

you have such a way with words and i am always so blessed by your posts. i love your enthusiasm for motherhood and the sheer joy you seem to take in parenting which shines through your posts each time. not only do you ADORE your kids, but you also seem to thoroughly ENJOY them. i get that from every post. it's amazing that you are so able to cherish each and every day with them...because it does go by so quickly.

your pics of your kids just made me well up with tears. you have a beautiful family and i am honored to be able to follow your journey!

happy mother's day, friend. you are an amazing woman and mother. may God richly bless you, now and always!

xo,
rachel

Carrie S. said...

Hi Lisa!!
Happy Mom's Day!! What lucky folks you all are! You the Mom to, 2 very special little ones, they lucky to have you!! LOL, Carrie S.

p.s. I did send you a email..

QingLu Mama said...

Lisa, another incredibly lovely post. You said it all so well, this path to Mama hood is such an incredible passage with so many twists, turns, bumps & slides... I really feel blessed to have a great friend like you to share it with.

And you listed all of the wonderful Mama's, but really you are a fabulous and amazing Mama yourself. The light in both Lauren & Tyler's eyes, the complete warmth and obvious love you all have for each other...you make that possible!
So Happy Mother's day to one fantastic Mom...you!

Nicole said...

Thank you for all the wonderful comments over the past months! You're a great blogger friend! :)

Happy Mom's Day to you as well-you definitely deserve it!!!
nicole

Shannon R said...

Happy belated Mother's Day to you too! What a lovely post too! Your little man is a cutie!!

R... said...

Wow, I love that you used photos from last Mother's Day. They are really beautiful as was this post! Happy Mother's Day!!

Jeff and Amy Bryant said...

Hi Lisa-
Thanks for your words of encouragment on our blog. We are so excited! Your kids are absolutely precious!