This has been a week that has continually affirmed God's plan and his hand on our lives. It all started last week when we went to the Royals game with D & S. On the way, S (baby's birthfather) asked what we had been learning about in church that day. I replied that we were studying Matthew 7 in our class. He responded that there was a verse in Matthew 7 that he really liked, "Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall be opened." Brandon and I were a bit taken aback and replied with a bit of awe that this was the very verse we had been discussing that morning. I felt like the Lord was telling us, "I'm here and I'm in this with you."
On Friday, I had the pleasure of spending the evening at the mall with D. We talked about so many things both related and unrelated to the adoption. I learned about her love of candles and her favorite scent at Bath & Body Works, her childhood pets, her favorite Disney movie, the things that she enjoys cooking, etc., etc. It was such a special time for me to continue to build relationship with this woman who is carrying the child she intends for us to raise. When we took a moment to sit, I mentioned how this weekend presented a unique holiday experience for the two of us. She agreed and said, "You must be so excited!" It allowed me to further realize that perhaps maybe I could be. We also talked about how she planned to handle naming the baby, to which she replied "I thought you would probably name him - he's yours"!
Today is the first time I have attended a Mother's Day church service in at least two years. The first one I attended after we realized we were having difficulty getting pregnant blind-sided me, and I felt I needed to avoid them out of self-preservation after that. This year, we are the closest we have ever been to our dream of being parents and for today, I'm going to allow myself to enjoy it. D even called this morning to leave me a message and started with "Happy Mother's Day! Well, almost anyway . . . " Yes, she's right. It is a happy mother's day.