Mom and Becky dropped us off at the curb then went to park while we checked in for our flight. The first American Airlines worker we came to was a sign of things to come...we had wonderful service during each of our flights to India! (On our way back? That was another story....see Episode LXXVIII or so.) We told her that we were beginning our adoption journey, and we didn't know it at the time, but she gave us bulkhead seats, which was much appreciated later. So much more room to stretch out!
After checking in, me already having counted our bags and made sure we had our boarding passes, tickets, and passports multiple times, we sat down for a last snuggle with our girlie. It wasn't really the quiet, memorable moment I was hoping for, as she was squirmy, and the rest of the crew was eager to get going. I, on the other hand, was dreading leaving my sweet Beth. But it was almost time...
(I would like to say right off the bat that I realize that the background we chose for our attempt at a photo shoot was a terrible one. Thank goodness that the travelers' upper body clothing was awash in color; otherwise, we would have all disappeared right into the wall.)
So typical...a precious, quiet moment with Mama, hands on my face and around my neck...
...and a silly, giggly moment with Daddy. I was too somber to even attempt a giggle (which I rarely get anyway--that's Daddy's job!), so I was glad that we got some smiles on camera so I could take them with me!
We then moved on to the security checkpoint, and the real goodbyes began. I was so happy to be leaving, so glad to be getting on with this journey--finally!--and yet leaving my girl was not easy. Thankfully, she was super brave and somehow seemed to understand pretty well what was happening. She didn't cry at all, and so we didn't either...much. We hugged, we kissed, we prayed, we hugged and kissed some more, and then we walked, looking back for a last glimpse, only to see our happy, big girl waiting and waving with Grandma and Aunt Becky. She was going to be just fine!
And she really was....the whole time we were gone. God was so gracious in answering our prayers about both Beth and Neil...they had a wonderful time with our friends and family, and reports were that neither of them were afraid or homesick. They knew that we were coming back, and they knew that their little brother would be with us! Praise God!
Untitled from Sarah Hoffman on Vimeo.
No comments:
Post a Comment