Good things come to those who wait

So after dinner with my family Saturday night my dad convinced me and Critt to go to the boat with him.  He was meeting some co-workers for a birthday.  This is not a place Critt and I frequent but what the heck...living on the edge.  I agreed to drive and stay an hour.  Well the hour quickly passed and I thought I would try the ole only child beg and ask for some gambling change from my daddy.  I succeeded with a $100...cha ching.  I should try this more.  Anywho..I made a pit stop by the ladies room before boarding and found on the floor an id and credit card.  I promptly turned it in to security. So I felt on top of my game before entering because of my good deed.  Critt and I navigated the 3 smoky floors and found a corner where we thought we could breathe and actually get oxygen.  To our luck when we sat down my slot machine had 8 credits.  And I won $180 on my last credit.  So we walked out with $180 and didn't spend a dime and did it all in under 20 minutes.  Can't say that often.  I was also able to be a good daughter and give my pops his money back too:)  So the moral to my story I got this weekend is doing the right thing and being in the right place at the right time makes all the difference in life.  When you are adopting this is part of the battle.  Having patience while waiting for the right time....but good things come to those who wait!

I also wanted to share this poem I got from one of Critt's co-workers (Suzanne).  She sent me alot of thoughtful things when we started this journey.  I have passed it on several times and look at it often when I get aggravated or discouraged.  I thought it is great to share so others who may need a little lift on their journey to parenthood.

There are women who become mothers without effort,
without thought,
without patience or loss,
and though they are good mothers and love their children,
I know that I will be better.

I will be better not because of genetics or money or because I have read more books,
but because I have struggled and toiled for this child.

I have longed and waited.
I have cried and prayed.
I have endured and planned over and over again.

Like most things in life, the people who truly have appreciation are those who have struggled to attain their dreams.

I will notice everything about my child.
I will take time to watch my child sleep,
explore,
and discover.
I will marvel at this miracle every day for the rest of my life.

I will be happy when I wake in the middle of the night to the sound of my child, knowing that I can comfort, hold, and feed him and that I am not waking to take another temperature, pop another pill, take another shot or cry tears of a broken dream.
My dream will be crying for me.

I count myself lucky in this sense; that God has given me this insight, this special vision with which I will look upon my child.

Whether I parent a child I actually give birth to or a child that God leads me to, I will not be careless with my love.

I will be a better mother for all that I have endured. I am a better wife, a better aunt, a better daughter, neighbor, friend, and sister because I have known pain.

I know disillusionment, as I have been betrayed by my own body. I have been tried by fire and hell that many never face, yet given time, I stood tall.

I have prevailed.
I have succeeded.
I have won.

So now, when others hurt around me, I do not run from their pain in order to save myself discomfort. I see it, mourn it, and join them in theirs.
I listen.
And even though I cannot make it better, I can make it less lonely.

I have learned the immense power of another hand holding tight to mine, of other eyes that moisten as they learn to accept the harsh truth when life is beyond hard.

I have learned a compassion that only comes by walking in those shoes. I have learned to appreciate life.

Yes, I will be a wonderful mother.