Next week, we celebrate Ian being in our family for eight months, and it has been a beautiful journey powered by love. The only way I can describe the journey is living intensely from the heart- making it absolutely joyous while being incredibly exhausting. But now that I think about it, I guess that is how one could simply describe parenting.

For a person who loves the written word, I often find myself unable to write or speechless over these past eight months. I catch myself just standing still in awe watching Ian redefine what is possible for himself and anyone fortunate enough to witness how he takes on this new world. For his peers, he does this in school when he bravely shares stories about his life in China during class discussion. For his teammates, he does this on the baseball diamond when he plays second base, fields the ball and throws a player out on first Jim Abbott-style. For me, he does it everywhere we go. I mean everywhere- at the grocery store, the doctor’s office, the YMCA…everywhere.

When I do force myself to take a moment to breathe deep and observe Ian with his siblings, my eyes well up with tears. Literally strangers only 240 days ago from vastly different cultures and life experiences, they now cuddle on the couch in their pajamas, fight in the car on the way to school and tease each other over dinner. They are your typically troublesome trio and when they team up, watch out! With their creativity, energy, and perseverance, there is nothing that will stop them…well, except maybe bedtime.

These eight months have been the greatest gift that I have ever received, and I will share a few of the moments with you here in pictures. I hope these photos fill your heart with love and joy. I hope they make you believe in the possible. 

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