Gotcha Day!

Got our little red bird!!! Love her to pieces, but this has not been the "warm fuzzies" type gotcha day that I had hoped to report. I felt strongly that it would be tough, if in fact she had lived her entire life with one family and then came straight to us, and that is how it was. Not only had she lived with one family, but the foster mom came with the orphanage director to give her to us. I will never witness a sadder day in my whole life. Many times the children are returned for a short stay at the orphanage that has jurisdiction over them, this is to help the child be ready to accept new parents. I am not sure if that is so good in the long run, but it does make the temporary turn over much easier. This baby girl went straight from her "MaMa's" arms to mine. Make no doubt about it, she wasn't interested in trading in her China "MaMa" for the likes of me. Brighton loves her "MaMa" and her "MaMa" loves her. I felt like a criminal taking this baby from her foster mom. The lady tried to tell her that I was her new mama and it touched me that she really tried, but it is not Brighton's reality. Brighton screamed from the deepest place a human can go, pure agony for her "MaMa". It never stopped. For hours it lasted. She would wear out and sleep some, which is what she is doing now so I am able to finally post. I know the Lord had prepared us for this day, I have seen this happen many times to others and I can honestly say it is going to be ok. I am so sad for her, but she will come to accept us as her family sooner or later (let's pray for sooner). It is the foster mom who may not recover from this for years. I fostered a new born for one week, and when her adoptive parents came to get her I thought my heart would burst from grief. I had only had her a week, Brighton's "MaMa" has had her for almost 2 years. She has stood by her side during her heart surgery, she has slept with her every night of her life, she has fed her, potty trained her and above all loved her. Because of this woman, Brighton will have a better ability to bond with us, we are so thankful for her. In fact, I think loving Brighton was a family affair. They were over an hour late bringing her to us at the Civil affairs office, because they made a bus stop on the way for relatives who were waiting to tell her good bye. She was loved! Because they were so late, all the other families that had the same 2 o'clock appointment had come and gone. We had the joy and blessing of watching several other families from different countries unite with their children. It was like a precious privilege to watch such an event that is sure to make the angels sing, and we had front row seats. Also it was a blessing they had all left before our little one arrived, because no one would have been able to have a conversation with their child's orphanage director because her wails were so loud.
When we returned to the room, baby still screaming, I had to bathe her and treat her for a dermatological condition. I hated to do it, but it was absolutely necessary, she needs to see a Dr. today, so that is one of the things on our agenda. There are some positives in all this, for one, she lets me hold her and feed her some. She has slept in my lap until I slipped out to type this. She waved at Baylee over skype, she settled at times and would interactively play with me with cups and a few toys we got her. At times she would just hum a little tune, and every few minutes ask me where her "MaMa" was. To that, I just don't know how to reply. Mike and Nathan have been able to have some interaction, but not much. Our goal is to get her accepting and trusting of me, and then the fellows. Also, she has a skin situation that is contagious, nothing that the proper cream wont cure, but I will say she is covered from head to toe with it. How do I know that I love her??? Because the minute I got her home and saw the condition(which they had told us about, but we had no idea as to the extent) my mommy mode kicked in and I rubbed every area down with my own hands because my baby needed help!!! Brighton's former "MaMa" loved her and now I have picked up the baton and her new "MaMa" is taking it from here. Please pray for Brighton and her foster "MaMa". May the Holy Spirit bring comfort. I will post some pictures of our day. Hopefully as the days progress, so will the smiles.
God Bless,
Tammy