For just over two years we have had the honor of watching this precious little girl grow before our eyes. We (and our village) have fed her, hugged her, changed every diaper, and rocked her in the midnight hour. We've had a front row seat when she learned to crawl, took her first steps, started to giggle, and said her first words.
We didn't know how long we would have this privilege, so we savored it.
Perhaps some parts of this particular parenting journey have been more precious because we knew how uncertain our time with her would be. It has never been lost on me that I am sitting in a place where someone else, in a perfect world, should have been all along. I was holding and caring for someone else's baby.
I felt the weight of that....every ounce of it.
That certainly made this particular parenting journey more complicated and difficult as well. So, as we come to this juncture in our story I will say that foster care has magnified my need for grace to greater degrees than I've ever known. The depth of grace God has given me when I have not done
well on difficult days now adds to the magnitude of how incredible this
privilege is to be a part of her life.
This is her life and her story just as much as it ours and we get to be a part of it. I seriously cannot get over that. While I share my own part of the story here, someday she will be able to tell this from her own heart, in her own words. That is the story I long to hear one day.
My heart will always ache for what generational struggles and cycles of brokenness have destroyed in Leah's biological family tree. I grieve today for what I know they have lost forever and what I think they should feel, even if they don't. I want to see redemption and God's grace transform their lives, but Leah just couldn't keep waiting. She needed a forever family.
Every kid deserves permanency, consistent parents, selfless love, and the security those things bring. Limbo isn't a good place to grow up. I am so thankful that Leah hasn't realized her entire two years of life have been in this place of limbo, and I'm even more thankful that it's over. We have finally arrived at permanency.
What a long awaited glorious day.
After all of the uncertainty and lack of control over the outcome of this case, we know with certainty that
God has chosen me to be her mom and Jeff to be her dad.
Wow.
The circumstances that bring you to the place of becoming a parent through adoption feel just as miraculous as natural child birth. The number of people involved in making this decision, events that have to align, countless pieces of paper that have to be signed, court dates, and sheer amount of time it takes to get there is painful and long.
It feels like a sheer miracle to be here today. I'm undone with gratitude.
Some of you have only been able to watch her grow with sunglasses over her eyes in photos. You were clearly missing out. I cannot tell you how delighted I am to show you her whole beautiful face at last.
As of today, this little lady is no longer a ward of the state of Missouri. She has been ADOPTED. She no longer has a case number attached to her name. She is simply a daughter, sister, niece, cousin, granddaughter, and her own little person with an amazing story. I am overwhelmed with joy and pleased to introduce to you... Leah McKinley Carson.
Thank you for celebrating this day with us. Please enjoy a trip down memory lane with some of our favorite Leah photos over the last two years.
Thank you loving her and us over the last two years as we have walked this road. We couldn't have made it without the support of everyone around us. The way hundreds of you have shared in our joy today through Facebook and the way our tribe filled up that court room today is an overwhelming display of love for her and us. We love you all.
What an honor it has been to be a part of what God is doing in foster care, even if just for this one little girl. I don't know what God has for us in the future but I know there are more adventures ahead...and I'm so happy to be marching on as a family of six.
