Home Sweet Home

We are still unpacking but are adjusted again to life at home. I think our sleep patterns are back to normal. But as a friend reminded me, just in time to adjust to Kazakh time again!
Including today, we are 3 days 10 hours away from the waiting period being over. We are starting to get excited about this part of this amazing trip being near completion.
We ate Kazakh tacos (kind of a weird mix of chicken soft tacos and stir fry vegetables with mayo and ketchup) which Shawn now loves too for dinner the other night. Target had the electric hot water kettle like we used in Kazakhstan. Who knew? If we had the steam heated towel rack in the bathroom, we'd almost be in Taldy.....
As we look around this messy house and see Shawn playing and just being the precious little boy he is, we are so very thankful and reflective.
There is never just the right words for people who helped in some of the most important moments of your life, but besides building statues of these people, it is all we have. Mike and I want to thank these people here though.
With a pregnancy and having a child via birth, you only have to have, parts from a man and parts from a woman. In adoption however, it is impossible to have a child without numerous parts and the people that supply these parts are never forgotten.
Starting with our daughter Lauren who has embraced having siblings even though she loved being the only child. She is a huge reason we brought Shawn and Dias to our hearts and home. We loved being her parents and life seemed too long ahead of us without more of that type of love again. She is now 23 and our friend as well as our only daughter.
Grandma Polly and Grandpa TC who number one, are awesome parents, then went on to love their first grandchild like she'd been there for always instead of appearing at age 10. Then to their surprise and joy, went on to have their first Grandson, Shawn, who is the reason they rise everyday. Now, they will have another grandson and could not have been more supportive in all ways including allowing Shawn to maintain some normalcy in his life while mom and dad had to be very far away. We love you so much and this would not have been as enjoyable without you. This is only one part of the dozens of ways you helped us, but the most important one of course.
Grammie and Gedo who are such good grandparents and love having the kids over. Who are a blended family by culture and marriage (a red headed Irish woman and an olive complexed Lebanese man) so seem to understand our blended family as well. Who always have encouragement and support as we all go through this long process. Who have sleepovers and pizza parties. Who had only one grandchild on Grammies side for so long and then embraced having 5 more in a short amount of time and later in life!
Mike and I are so blessed for parents who are healthy, involved in our lives and nearby.
We'd like to thank sisters, brothers, and the in-laws for their love,friendship,help and connections. Nieces and nephews who also made us want to be parents again and have been awesome cousins to Shawn.
Dias would not even be coming home if it weren't for one person. One person that walked her own path. One person that said no. One person that then said yes. One person can make a difference in this world. One person that stuck her neck out and said please let me help. Susan Cotten is our angel, our hero, our adoption auntie of our children and will forever be in our prayers of thanks. Thank you Susan from the bottom of our hearts forever.
Collene, Olga, and Regina with Journey Home Adoption. You have an amazing team and a wonderful agency. You took on a problem with our adoption but never once did we feel we were a problem. You embraced us, offered support when we needed it (daily) and were totally honest with us every step of the way. We will forever be in your debt and want to repay you and Susan by helping as many of your clients as possible and other adopting families in whatever way we can. Even if we live forever, it would never equal what we feel we owe you.
The Kazakh team of Tatyana, Gulnara, Inessa and Karim. All the people we met along the way in Kazakhstan and our adopted kin. We fell in love with Kazakhstan this adoption in a deeper and more permanent way because of them. The Kazakh government and it's officials. Thank you so much.
All our adoption sisters and brothers. Tracy(who led us to our first son and we will forever thank), Katrina, Temple(who opened the door to son number 2..thanks sweetheart), Ann, Kim, Maggie, Susan, Daphne, Jacqueline, Ros, and all spouses, significant others and their kiddos. Reed family, and all the beautiful friends we only know via email and blogs. How much have we laughed? And cried? How much have we shared the burdens and celebrated the joys? This journey would of been much less meaningful without you and certainly less fun. The ones that went before us paved the road and we followed their light which allowed us to do the same for others. We will all be family via adoption for ever. Our greatest hope is that one day we can share again as our children trek their beginnings together. Our friendships started because of adoption but are not limited to that connection. These are friends for life.
Our social worker Beverley who has been with us since early 2005 when we first met while adopting Shawn. She and her husband Peter-our rockin' notary-God love him, have gone WAY above and beyond. We never mind having to have our follow-up evals done because we get to visit and bask in her years of experience. She is totally supportive and always sees the good in a situation. She also was major support to Susan, which helped her help us. So thank you, thank you and thank you.
All our friends! The ones that said, you are what?????? Are you nuts???? and the ones that hugged us and said how wonderful. No matter which group they were in, every one of them has been nothing but supportive and loving and encouraging. Maybe our life stages veered a different route than most of our friends but wouldn't life be dull if we were all the same? (as my mom always says...)
To all people, known and unknown, that helped us. It amazed and touched us. People who heard about us, people who are themselves adopted, people who knew us and people we went to church with. People that are friends with our parents, people we work with. The list is long. So many beautiful people. Such a gift! Never have we seen the hand of a divine being so apparent as in adoption. We will never forget that or how close it made us feel to God. Even when we experienced sadness, God's love still touched us via His angels on earth. Everyday when we look at our children, we are reminded of this.
Our spouses....I am writing so I will go first. Mike has been such a good dad to my daughter. I never doubted he'd be an awesome dad to more kids. He placed Lauren before his own desires over and over. She calls him Mike but says he is her heart dad forever. He and I kinda agreed before we were married that yes, we'd both wanted larger (or any) families but it did not work out that way, so be it. When I changed the game plan in a major way by asking could we add to our family this dear man, after a few months of thinking as Mike never decides anything quick, agreed to think about it. Then he agreed to think about it harder. Then he was shown a photograph of a little boy 3 continents away in a country we'd never heard of and said he'd think about it. As I write this and we are competing our second adoption, he says he is still thinking about it. You get the picture.......I love you Mike and thank you for making one of my dreams (twice) come true. He is Shawn's best buddy and my best friend. Truly an honorable man in every sense.

If you are still with me, this is long but important for Dias. To have this as it is baby book of sorts starting with the time he became someones child forever.
Mike says just to put it in the record, that he is still thinking about it....and he would of nevered married me 12 years ago if he hadn't loved Lauren, and if he hadn't of thought I was a good mom. Plus, he seems to feel I would of divorced him and done it anyway...that's not true Mike. He says to put it down that his life is richer and fuller and crazier than he ever dreamed, and without the many toys he imagined at this stage in his life....overall, Mike does not need to say anything. All you have to do is see he and Lauren laughing, or he and Shawn hugging and teasing or Dias rubbing his beard and the sparkle in both of their eyes.
We were meant to have this family.
If you are still with me, I apologize for the length, but really this is for Dias anyway. This is his story....