Umph

Here's my response to October's Adoption Love Link-Up question:

How did you/will you chose to tell your child they are adopted, and how do you/will you celebrate this blessing with them? Or if you're a birth-parent, how would you hope to be included? 
No one had to tell me I was born, it just...is. It will be the same for Squeaks. The knowledge of her spectacular entrance into our family is no less worthy than any other birth story. This is not to say being adopted should not be celebrated. Being born is celebrated. You celebrate the blessings in your life and the people who helped bring those blessings about. As I've said before, anyone can be born, but adoption adds a special flourish, pizzazz, gilding, loveliness....umph to entering a family. 

As far as tangible ways we will literaly celebrate, I have a few plans. 

First, we will celebrate her birthday and then six days later we'll celebrate the day she came home. I don't see us yearly celebrating the day we finalize in court. We'll definitely celebrate the day we actually do finalize (maybe someday I'll share why it's taking so long), but as far as a yearly to-do, not so much. After the six days CPS chose to keep Squeaks from us, the court telling us "she's ours" feels kinda like "Ya. I know. You don't have to tell me." So we'll save our to-do for six days after her birthday to commemorate what we (us and her birth family) already knew. She's ours.

Second, I have a very special...nay, awesome photo book in the works. It's chock full of pictures from the time we spent in the hospital with Squeaks birth parents, screen shots of text messages from her birth mom, and pictures from the day she came home. I plan on reading it to her as often as she wants. I probably won't ever even put it away. I'll just carry it from room to room. Cause it's that great.

Third, we'll just talk about it. When you're happy about something, love it, proud of it, you

talk about it! We can have lots of mini celebrations, possibly daily, basking in the amazing love of adoption. Being adopted is just one part of who Squeaks is. She's this little ball of love. It's been fed into her, cultivated, encouraged, and given freely from the second she existed. She's sweet, funny, happy, independent, strong, delicate, beautiful, and so many other wonderful things all rolled into one gorgeous little girl. Inside and out. Everything about her is worth celebrating.

I can't answer for Squeaks birth family, but I hope someday they will also be part of our celebrations. Mini and otherwise.