...Well, at least local to this household!
This is David
As you all know, I like to follow blogs (yes, that's putting it mildly!) In all my research and searching other people's adoption blogs, David's blog was unique. Finding adoption blogs is easy. They seem to be a dime a dozen! But trying to find one about a boy is a bit more of a challenge. Likewise, finding a Waiting Child blog that actually talks about the specific medical conditions the family faces is also more difficult to track down.
Back in the beginning of this whole process, I had some trouble adjusting to the idea of being matched with a boy. I knew that we wouldn't turn away a child simply because he wasn't a girl, but I had that picture of a girl in my head. All the blogs I found were of adorable little Chinese girls, smiling with their families. It was like looking at a catalog of adorable options, but knowing that you don't actually get to order any of them. You just have to take what comes, and what comes might well be completely different from what you'd seen. I knew that whatever came, whomever God matched us would be wonderful and great, and the perfect match for our family, but it was just hard to visualize. Was there no one in the world with a boy? Are we the only ones in this boat? Why don't people with Waiting Children actually talk openly about their conditions?
... then I found The Maas Family!
Mara and Kevin were also expecting to be matched with a girl, but once they switched over to Waiting Child, they were matched with David, and the rest is history...
Their family is beautiful! They are a perfect fit! God clearly made David to be their son.
For me, finding their blog, seeing their pictures, and reading their story was the confirmation I needed that whomever would come would be just fine. It may sound silly or completely irrational, but for me personally, David is more than just another kid from a blog. Somehow, God used their blog to give me a complete peace about the whole thing. Once I saw them, I really knew it was all fine... whatever was to come, it was all just fine.
Of course, in my obsessive nuttiness, I couldn't just be content to follow the blog. Nope, I must make contact! I had so many questions, and I just had to let them know how I appreciated the existence of this blog! So I left a feedback comment and asked Mara if I could email her some questions. Thankfully, she seems to be far less paranoid about random strangers contacting her than me, and she was happy to answer all of my questions. Turns out, she's a pediatrician too, and so not only was she able to answer my questions from an adoptive mom's point of view, but she's been an invaluable resource in explaining the whole medical side of things too. What a blessing!
Then, I mention in passing "Hey, if you're ever in the Disney area, we'd love to meet up," again thinking that wouldn't really ever happen, probably. But lo and behold! They were planning a trip for David's "Gotcha Day" celebration this year! And she was willing to meet up. Hooray! I was so excited! So, we all drove out to Disney's All-Star Sports Resort to have dinner with the Maases and get to know each other a little.
David thinking "Who are these people, and why does that crazy lady keep looking at me like she's on the verge of tears?!"
After dinner, we tried to play on the playground, but 1. My time was just an endless string of potty emergency trips, 2. The playground was full of sand, and 3. There was something far more exciting in another part of the resort:
A giant tennis court with statues of Donald Duck and his three nephews, whose names I seem to be incapable of spelling...
The kids all took turns letting Donald eat their heads
... then chased each other a bit
This is one hard kid to photograph! He just doesn't hold still!
I like this picture because he looks like he's completely levitated off the ground!
David showing us his mad hoops skillz
Annie, so proud of her ability to balance on a line...
...a line the size of a turnpike lane!
Group shot!...
...well, minus Mr. Kevin who was behind the camera... maybe we should've thought that one through a little better... sorry about that!
So thank you, Maases, for meeting with us, and for enduring all the questions from this crazy blog lady! You guys are very special to our family and we look forward to more fun blog posts! :)
Connecting with other families who are adopting (or have adopted) and helping in whatever small way we can is one of the unexpected joys of this crazy process. It was great to meet you guys, and we can't wait to follow your blog all the way to China!
ReplyDeletehaha! you're so sweet ;)
ReplyDeleteLooks like you had a lot of fun! Awesome!