Friday, July 29, 2011

It's official!

Samantha Leah officially became ours on July 8. Of course she was already ours in every sense of the word, but now it's legal and nobody can take her away from us--a fear I lived with every day.

Our moment at court was exactly that: "a moment." We got all dressed up for our court date, nervous and excited for the process to be finalized at last. We waited for a little while before Steven, Sami and I, and our attorney, were invited into the judge's chambers. I honestly do not think the judge even looked at us. We were asked a few very quick questions, and he pounded his gavel and it was done. The whole thing took less than five minutes. Our attorney explained to us afterward that by the time it gets to the judge, all the work has been done, and it's just a formality for him to finalize the adoption. But I still feel that judge should understand what a big moment it is for people like us, and show a little emotion.

Anyway, we didn't let it ruin our day. After court, Steven, Sami and I went out to lunch near the beach to celebrate together. Steven apologized to Sami for giving her a last name she will be forever spelling to people. And as for me, well I just couldn't stop hugging and kissing Sami all day long.

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Dear Time: Please Slow Down!!






It's been a while since I've written, but not because there hasn't been anything to write about! So much has happened in the past couple of weeks.

What I am most excited about is that we finally have a date for the adoption finalization. On Friday, July 8, Steven, Sami and I, along with our attorney, will be going in front of a judge to officially welcome Sami as our own. Of course, she is already ours, in every sense of the word. But now it will be legal!! It's such a relief, and I can't wait until the judge makes it official!

This week also brought two teeth for Sami! The first one broke through her gums on Wednesday, and the second one on Friday. They aren't much more than sharp white dots, but they're there!

And of course, two weeks ago, Sami had her baby-naming ceremony in the synagogue. I am so happy that all of her aunts and uncles, and most of her cousins, in addition to three grandparents, a great-grandmother and several of our friends were here to share it with us. The weekend couldn't have been better. The only bad part of the weekend was saying goodbye to her aunts, uncles and cousins who do not live nearby.

As for the naming itself, it was very emotional to hear Sami being named after my father, and I hope he was there in spirit at temple with us. I hope he is proud, and I hope Sami one day understands what a great man she is named after. Time goes by so quickly, and it's hard to believe that Sami will be 8 months old on Monday. There are so many moments when I say that I wish I could freeze time, and just hold onto that moment forever.