One Year With Claire

One year ago today I experienced one of the most amazing moments of my life. James and I were leaving Beijing and flying to Guangzhou. We were told that as soon as we touched down that we would be heading to the Civil Affairs office to met our little girls. There were six non special needs families and ourselves who were all going to meet our daughters for the first time. All the excitement of being on our way to our children made the bus nearly float down the roads.

Once we were at the Civil Affairs office we learned that the babies were not there yet. Soon may nannies began to take six little girls into the room across the hall. James began to get video of all that he could see across the way. One little girl was in a walker, the other pulling herself up to the walker. They were all SO cute. One by one they were each brought into the room and one by one they melted our hearts. Soon each of the other waiting families had a little girl in their arms. They each signed papers, had their pictures taken and began their bonding process. One little girl was on the phone to her mommy who could not travel, another was crying every time she turned to look at her new mommy. It was amazing to watch, but I was ready to experience it!

James began to ask about Claire. They simply said she was not here yet. Of course minutes took forever and James began to loose hope. He said, "maybe today is just not our day." After that comment, I saw walk around the corner a freshly shaved little girl wearing a "famous MaoNan dress" and little sweater. They took her into the playroom across the hall. We were told that they took their temperatures before they brought them to us. I gave them adequate time to take care of that (in my mind) then let our guide know that she needed to go and get her!!!! Minutes later I could not contain my emotion but I sucked it up in order to not frighten our new little girl.

Elisabeth Claire Lou Mei walked into the room with bold confidence. She questioned the looks on our faces and I tried to give James a chance to hold her first. He was being a gentleman and trying to let her come to him. When that did not happen I just scooped her into my arms. She did not try to lift herself and she sat as a log in my arms. I remember the feeling of her little hand on my shoulder. She never cried but looked around to take it all in. I gave her a headband and her doll. There were many goodies packed into her little backpack but we did not have much time to go through them. The nannies took a minute to show us how to care for her special need, them it was off to the motel.

It was our first glance at the motel. We were given a large apartment with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a den. The kitchen was small but had everything we would need for the next two weeks. Claire stuck close to the front room until we gave her permission to explore. I changed her into a different dress so I could keep her dress from the orphanage as a keepsake. As I took off her shoes, she had a fit. It took me a minute or two to calm her down. I washed her body with a washcloth and replaced the sandals that she had on with a pair of socks and shoes. Then life was good once again!!

We realized that we were starving! We had seen a McDonald's across the street so we took off to there. Other families were waking out with their little girls and the place was packed. We passed on the green pea pies and stuck with chicken nuggets and fries. The fries were gone in a heart beat and Claire's personality began to shine through as we fed her. We were able to snap a few photos and finish our meal then it was back to the motel room.

We decided to give Claire a bath. We had been warned that the Chinese children are not put into water until they are much older and that she may be afraid of being in a bath. Nothing could have been further from the truth! She did not dance around playing but she relished each moment that she was in the water. She tested how her hand went from above the water to below. She moved the water around the tub and relaxed unlike I had ever witnessed a two year old relax.

I remember how I had taken for granite the children the Lord had already blessed me with. How I had not taken the time to enjoy these moments with them the way should. How blessed I was to be given this opportunity to enjoy being a mother to this amazing little girl and how excited I was to be back together with all our children to enjoy them even more from this moment forward.

The year has been intense. Surgeries and military deployments were our mountains to climb, but Claire faced each one with courage. Her confidence in who she is and where she fits in our family leaves me standing in awe. Oh, Lord how I prayed for this child that you have entrusted me with. Thank you for preparing her for us. I could not feel more blessed.