Random Thoughts at Two Weeks Down, Four To Go! - by McP

Alison and I had a nice thought tonight - the notion that we are now one-third of the way through this ordeal-of-sorts, and it seems to have gone by relatively quickly! All of your thoughts, prayers and supportive comments have helped us greatly.

And although I may seem the most paranoid parent, we are so happy that we brought Alina and Mac back to Kazakhstan to be with us as our family goes through the long and difficult labor together that has brought us little Cal. I cannot imagine if we had not brought them, and being so far away from them for this long.

We have adjusted well to our little apartment and our daily work, which for Alina and Mac includes school work, Justice League DVD's, exploring the local culture, Spongebob DVD's, investigating local foods, Pokemon DVD's, etc.

I am happy to report that Alina has become somewhat of a Yatzee phenomenon, and Mac has also learned to play it well. This is one of Alison's favorite games, so now she has two reliable opponents.

And Liza's presence has been a real blessing. I will be seeing her to the Almaty airport one week from tonight. She already has plans in New York the next day! Oh, to be young again.

We have learned that many people are quite blunt with their opinions when they learn that you became a family by international adoption. Sometimes they say "Why didn't you adopt in America?" Well, I guess the answer to that is that you go where you are led. Then I consider the delicate timing and set of circumstances that led to our referrals and travel times and to the day we first met Alina, then Mac, and now six years later, Cal. I shutter to think of how the most minor change in luck and timing could have kept us half a world away from each other, never knowing the joy that our children have brought to all who love them in our family and community.

Most if not all of you know Alina and Mac. Could there not have been a better fit than those two? And now, Cal...



This picture is my favorite of him over the two weeks we have known him and have grown to love him as our own. When he met Mac and Alina, to me it felt as if a giant piece of the puzzle was finally put into place.

That makes all of this worth it, let me tell you.

There is a poem we have heard many times, written from a mother's perspective, about adoption. I will try to print it accurately at the end of this entry. It sums up things pretty well, I think. - McP

The Adoption Creed
By Anonymous

Not flesh of my flesh
Nor bone of my bone,
But still miraculously my own.
Never forget for a single minute,
You didn't grow under my heart,
But in it.