No Time for Goodbyes - So Long to Life as We Know It

We were sitting in the restaurant. Munching on chips. Chatting with Poppa and Lewis. Wishing we didn't have to go. The drive home is always so hard. So far away. Sometimes 5 hours can seem like an eternity. But not this time. The Hubs' phone call during lunch changed everything. We were chomping at the bit. The closer we got, the closer we were to our new forever. It was surreal. How do you wrap your mind around such craziness? The simple answer is : You can't. No matter how many times I tried. I just couldn't believe that our lives had so suddenly changed. Monday was a flurry. A crazy, wonderful, unbelievable flurry.
Tuesday we started with details. What did this really mean? The questions poured out. Not every answer was great. And we weren't sure what it would look like. There is some risk. It isn't all crisp and clean. Life is messy. We just jumped into the thick of it. And a plan was created to meet them!
Wednesday came. Not soon enough. And the day dragged. Then finally we were there. The unfriendly square green building, now the best place on earth. And we asked more questions. Lots and lots of questions. What exactly are the risks? What is the timeline? And on and on and on. The door cracked open...They are here. I would have jumped and run but I didn't want to worry the people who were planning on placing these children in our care. So we walked. Barely. They sat out in the yellow room. So small and shy. So beautiful. We said hi. The awkwardness filled the room. No one knew what to say. Yet, we struggled through a herky jerky conversation.
How could we say no? Simple answer: We couldn't. Our hearts were not our own. An appointment was made - Friday @ 2. Ready or not. Here they come!
Five days from the phone call. Five days! And we have a 19 month old. His screams and squeals fill our house. His little toddling feet pitter patter down the hall and then back again. He is home. And on Saturday our daughter comes. Her chatter is constant. Advice flows freely. Tentative hugs and smiles. And she is home.
There was no time to blink. There was no time to say goodbye. As yesterday passed. And life became something different altogether. Exhaustion sweeps in. But it is sweet. It has never been better. Three is now five. And we dive in. Not admitting to loudly that we are clueless. That The Hubs has never changed a diaper. That we don't know how to forge the swamp of technology and friends and pre-teen hormones. But we know our hearts have stretched and can never be unshrunk. We know that it will be hard. That we will make mistakes. More than we want to. That we can love while we cry. We can succeed. Because this is what we were meant to do.
So goodbye three. Hello five!