Two Years Ago Today....

Well, two years ago today we had the biggest and best surprise of our lives. The rumors had been floating around for weeks that CCAA was sending referrals up to July 20 LID. Since that was OUR LID we (and our agency) were unsure if we would be included in the batch of referrals or not. China had not been sending more than a months worth of LIDs so no one was really sure what was going to happen.

Around 10 am we received an email stating that our referral had, indeed, arrived. We were told to expect "the call" today!! WOW!!! We were going to learn about our little GIRL!! We had the room painted, clothes hanging in the closet, little dolls and more ready to go for Chloe. We waited all day for the phone to ring.

At 5:30 pm on March 9, 2004 our phone rang. On caller ID I could tell it was GWCA. I yelled for Jerry to come inside and answered the phone. I was a nervous WRECK! I was shaking and on the verge of tears. This was all so amazingly unreal. I sat down, paper and pen in hand ready to write EVERYTHING down. Who would have known I would never get all the information. Once I heard the words "It's a boy!!" I was too shocked to even write down one thing. I could NOT believe what I was hearing!!!!!

I finally scribbled down a few basics, name, age... didn't get province or really anything else at that point. Jerry, who at this point had NO idea what was going on was getting antsy. I finally turned to him and said "it's a boy". He shook his head no, thinking I was joking. After he really looked at my face he knew it was true.

What an unexpected and special surprise... Chloe was Yuan Dong Bao, a 26 month old boy in Nanning, Guangxi. God has a funny way of making things "right"

We went to the computer to open the email from GWCA with his picture and fell so deeply in love. I think on some levels he was the baby I lost in February 2002. Riley was born 3 weeks before my ectopic rupture. You see, now I know God needed me to lose that baby and not be willing to continue with fertility treatments since my baby was in China. I believe this with all of my heart. Riley has always been my baby. (Okay... he can be Jerry's too... but he is REALLY mine! haha I am not good at sharing.)

Now, as I reflect on this miracle I know that Chloe was never supposed to be... Riley was always the second son in our family. It is amazing how life has a way of balancing everything out so it is just as it should be.

March 9th will always be a very special day to us all. Riley will always be my baby.

We love you, RiRi... you are perfect!