Alaina's 5th Gotcha Day Anniversary

May 23, we celebrated Alaina's 5th Gotcha Day! It's almost like it was just yesterday that we held her for the first time.

We have never had a big party on our kiddos' Gotcha Days (their birthdays are always a BIG deal) but we talk about that special day. This year, I mentioned it to Alaina and she got so excited. She asked if we could celebrate. I asked her how she wanted to celebrate and she said she wanted brownies and balloons. I thought that sounded easy enough.

Well, we had a busy day that day and actually Joel was out of town with Joel B. playing soccer. We had to make a trip to the mall to buy some things for Alexis and Alaina's upcoming dance recital. Alaina had the happiest day ever. She was so proud that it was her Gotcha Day. She shared the news with everybody we knew and especially with everybody we didn't know.

Every store owner, restaurant and all mall employees.

Every customer in the entire mall now knows that May 23 is Alaina's Gotcha Day.

She would tell them it's her Gotcha Day and they would normally respond with 'awwww.' Then she would asked them if they knew what a Gotcha Day was...and almost all of them said they didn't know. So funny that they acted like they did at first. She then preceded to tell them all about it and how we went to China to get her. She was so proud. I'm happy that she was so happy and has a healthy image of her adoption...and her heritage.

It was a very special day for all three of us. We had so much fun having a girls day out and enjoying Alaina's fun personality and her love for life.

And remembering that special day in Nanchang China... 5 years ago.

Taken from Alaina's Travel Journal 2004:

The Miracle of Gotcha Day

Our miraculous Gotcha Day was May 23, 2004. Our itinerary was scheduled for our Gotcha Day to be May 24 so when we landed at the airport in Nanchang, James, our CCAI representative surprised us with the news. We were to get the babies in a few short hours. Incredible excitement and nervousness filled the airport as our travel group #608, 12 families hurried to the bus. While walking out to the bus, we were surrounded by small children begging with their hands reaching out to us. Their ages were probably 8 to 12 years old. Debbie had heard about this happening so she brought candy to give them. We were already emotional just hearing our news that we were going to get the babies. Seeing these children broke our hearts.

We had a long ride, or what felt like a long ride to our hotel. After carrying our luggage into the hotel and had our group meeting, we were off to get the babies. We can't explain the emotions at this point. After giving birth three times and knowing what that is like, this was an incredible experience that is beyond a miracle. Half of the couples had biological children and half of the couples were experiencing the "birth" of their first child. We had waited so many years for this moment, and within minutes, our Alaina would be in our arms.

We stood around in a small room waiting and watching as each family's name was called. It wasn't long before it was our turn. We walked to the front of the room and the sweet Chinese nanny released Alaina as I reached for her. We walked to the back of the room, holding tight to our precious Alaina. She was ours!!! Almost all of the other babies were screaming. These precious little ones had never seen people that looked like these Americans. They had been loved and cared for by loving foster families all their lives. Alaina was strong and tried not to cry. She was scared with tears in her eyes and her little chest was pounding. What a precious little face, and little hair that stood straight up on top. She was beautiful! Holding her close, we decided that maybe Cheerios could help the moment. She ate her first Cheerio that day and continues to love them even now.

Within 24 hours, she wouldn't let me go. She cried instantly when I would leave the room. The Snuggly was a blessing. Within 24 hours, she said "Mama" and looked for "Da da" but didn't want him to hold her, not yet anyway. Within 48 hours, she could blow a kiss. We learned quickly, her most favorite time of the day is after dinner. She entertained in China with all our friends and she continues to entertain her brothers and sister at the dinner table every night. She has an amazing smile that melts our hearts. It didn't take long for her to sound out, "Daddy, Daddy" when Joel enters the door at the end of the day. Within a month, she had an amazing comprehension of everything that was said. It wasn't long that she was saying everything she heard.

Alaina is incredibly smart and continually amazes us. She is such a joy in our lives. It feels like she has always been with us. We believe God created her for us and us for her. He knew before the creation of the world that Alaina would be in our family forever.

Adoption Day May 24, 2004...

We love you sweet girl, Alaina. How did you get so big so fast?



To read all the details of our trip to China and Alaina's Travel Journal, click on our website then click on Meet Alaina then Travel Journal to Alaina.