As Maternity leave continues......

A visit to Gentle Hands .... a play date for Bea.... oh, yes ..... and me!!! :)

I shall let the pictures say a thousand words..... and they do!

Our newest little one .... 

Nursery 2 is so much fun.......

Gideon..... our little boy that had a cleft lip and palate repair.....
is such a cutie ... and has a forever family coming for him soon. Joy! 

Our sick little one.... another congenital heart defect that needs open heart surgery. 

Our two newborns  ..... abandoned ..... one found in a rubbish bin.....
.... now have the chance of a beautiful life.

Followed by a trip to the park.....

Yep, that's my girl in the front ..... with her tongue out!! What can I say :)

The grand procession........  27 littlies! 

Yum!! Hehehe.... 

And yes..... I had to end with my girl...... my delight!

Maternity leave!

Our first days together...

I did not dare imagine how it would be ... how our journey together would begin ... would there be tears ... fears ... meltdowns ... to be taken back 'home'!  After all, she is barely five and has never grown up outside Gentle Hands care ... and suddenly she is in a new home, with a new 'caregiver', a new routine ... and a new menu!!! .... with none of her ’siblings’, none of her usual comforts, none of the familiar noise and chaos ... I guess this is the fear of all foster/adoptive parents ... 

Yet, wow ... there were no tears, fears, nor meltdowns (from either of us haha). 

The ease at which this has happened ... completely astounds me ... although it should not ... Gentle Hands prepared her heart so very well(as they do with every child that leaves us) ... and many prayers went out for us! 

I am completely in love ... !! 

 

... I promise not to bombard you so much in future posts .... but for now, forgive my indulgence .... hehehe

Our journey 'home' ...... on her 5th birthday 

Arranging her new world....

The discovery. of 'selfies'..... oh dear!! It has begun!!! 

Our first dinner ......

Lola and Lolo .... Gran and Grandad..... after speaking on Skype...
remarkable resemblance I say :)

Bubbles in PJ's 

'Learning to Write' Apps..... loves them! 

Our first moped ride..... its a hit! 

Seems to have the remote control sorted!

Our first lunch out....... 

Making the most of her wanting to wash up....
although it takes infinitely longer!!

.... and wanting to mop...... 

..... and carry the shopping .......

Spelling the words in sign language ... learned at GH!!
She chose the words not me... I do try and stick to 3 letter words :)

As big as our swimming pool gets.....

Thank you so much to all of you for your love, your support, your beautiful words of encouragement... and for your prayers! 

I am forever grateful... xxx 

A daughter's tribute

There is no doubt ... I would not be doing what I am doing today if it were not for my parents ... their lessons in life; their words of wisdom; their unconditional love and support and encouragement ... it has shaped me and prepared me for the here and now ...

... and it continues to do so ... across our great divide.

Mum and Dad ... I thank you from the whole of my heart ... for showing me how to live and how to love ... how to persevere, to always keep growing... and to treasure life! 

I miss you. I will always miss you.  

Thank you for being my greatest friends ...

xx

Two sleeps!!

Oh my!!

My life is about to change in the most phenomenal sense! Two sleeps and she is in my arms. In my life... in my every thought, my every move, my every decision.  

I am so very excited ... and, forgive me, so very scared all of a sudden ... now that the time has arrived. I am no longer responsible for just I  .... I now have a little life to consider ...

... I know this is not news to the majority of you .... you, and trillions of others, have gone before me! 

But she has come from such an amazing place.... her life has been in the safety of Gentle Hands, in the loving care of her caregivers, in the company of her 'sisters' and 'brothers' ... it's all she has known... and she arrives to just me... I pray I can fill the loss of this. 

My girl.....
how can I possibly have fear in my heart when I have so much love in there!

Bea's room finally ready.....

Pictures at her bedside in Gentle Hands...... a reminder during her last week!

And so it is ...  on to this new season ..... may it bring me much growth ...  that will allow me to be the very best that I can be for Bea ... 

The time has arrived....

I have an official date that Bea comes to live with me... it is on her 5th birthday!! ... November 1st!!! A week 'n a bit... 

I have started taking her out on 'dates' ... she is so overwhelmed at first but, thank God ... it always ends up in joy and laughter!! :)

I acknowledge this is going to be a challenging journey ... she has never spent any part of her life outside Gentle Hands loving care ... she has never had a mother and I have never been a mother ... but since this door has opened up, I realise I have never wanted anything more in my life.  

I'm out with you ....
but I'm still not too sure about all this!

But I do like cupcakes, so you may be okay!!

Warming up to a friend ..... after an hour of softly softly!!

And then.... friends for life!!

Manila traffic..... means long long taxi rides to and from anywhere. 

I am going out with you... again.... but I'm still not so sure!

And I do not like elevators!!! 

My very first swim.... 

And no, no, no!!! I am not getting in!! However, fun you make it look!! 

Oh! It is fun!! 

At the end of the day...... I just pray I am good enough for her!