Gotcha Day! {One Year Ago}

One year ago we met our precious little boy all the way across the world in China! This year has been full of so many changes for all of us. We’ve gone through difficult seasons and times of unbelievable joy.

Here are two photos from the first few minutes that we met him one year ago. In a lot of ways, it is difficult to look at these photos. He had bruises on the side of his face, he wore ill-fitting clothing, had a cleft lip and palate, and he showed no emotion toward us. But, oh how we loved him because he belonged to us. I literally couldn’t take my eyes off him and could not stop smiling.

This week after his speech therapy appointment, I took him out to the backyard and had a fun little photo shoot with him. It is unbelievable how much he has changed in the past year! He was beautiful then, and he is beautiful now.

Sawyer has made our family complete. He has the most awesome personality and is full of life. His ability to adapt and his resiliency has made the adjustment for him and us fairly easy. When you go into an adoption, the hardest thing is not knowing what to expect. Not knowing what kind of child will become part of your family, what their personality will be like, what kind of special needs they might have.

Honestly, we had very low expectations and tried to be very realistic with what we might be facing when we brought him home. But he has been an absolute joy. And I’m not just saying that to make it sound good or that every adoption is easy.

He really is a joy.

There were times of frustration and difficulty (there still are), but overall it has gone so much better than we ever hoped. He has had two cleft lip and palate surgeries that have gone well, and he is currently in speech therapy to help him learn to speak more clearly. His doctors are all very pleased with his progress.

As you can tell from the pictures, he is a HAM!

He is such a natural part of our family now. It of course takes time until it feels that way, but after a year, he just fits right in. I cannot wait to see how he channels his energy in the future, and what he will do with his life. I have a feeling God has some really BIG plans for him, and I will always be honored to be a part of his life!