6 Months! But Sick:(

Today, Bethany Jilma Solange Mikolo Gilbarte is

6 months old!

That is quite a long name for such a little girl!

 

I hoped it would be a nice, fun day for everybody,

but Bethany is sick.

so pitiful!

 

Last Thursday she started to get sick, and by Sunday night she was really, really bad.

She was coughing, wheezing, and had trouble breathing.

The doctor said she had a respiratory sickness,

one that couple last up to six weeks, and is very contagious.

It is so hard when she is feeling rotten, and you can do nothing about it.   Please pray for her healing.

But thankfully, she is doing a little better, and even gave us one of her smiles.

Sickness aside, here is the post I hoped I would be able to write:

 

Bethany.

I remember the day we saw her for the first time so clearly...

That morning my dad told me that a new orphanage had just received a two and 1/2 old little boy, (actully he is 3 1/2), who was adoptable.  That was a Monday, and I was on my way to co-op classes, and didn't get many details.  Afterwards, I had to go to swim team practice and didn't hear anything more about it until about 5:30pm, at my brothers baseball practice.

I was swinging, and saw my dad's car pull up.

I walked over to say hello,

"Huge news,"  my dad said.

My mom was with us, and my dad started taking out his smart phone.

"The little boy has a younger sibling?"  My mom guessed.  Adoption was on everyones mind.

"No."  more fiddling with the phone.

"Dad, what is it?"  I asked.

"There's a baby girl at the orphanage,"  my dad started,

"Six months old?"  asked my mom

"Less." 

at this point I literally started shaking.  I remember clenching my fingers into a fist, trying to stand still.

And then I saw the picture.

Above is the picture we saw of her first. 

Below is a picture of when she was about 2 weeks old.

The email was very short.

Baby girl. Email says 4 days old. Looks a little older...  I will send you another picture shortly.

I didn't need any more information.  That was my baby.  That was my sister.  We also saw a picture of Kadi that day, and accept them both.

At that point I was still very sad about loosing Chance and Benjamin, and God really comforted me during that time.  It was so hard to accept, and so hard to realize.   But I was praying very hard for another referral.

God does amazing things.  He simply blows my mind with his power and amazing love for us.

On the night after the day that Bethany was born, I had a dream of a baby. 

 I didn't know what it meant, and I didn't know she had been born until a little over a week later. 

 But I believe that God gave me that dream.  Just as a reminder of his power.

 

Over the months that followed, we didn't get pictures on a regular basis.  Months went by, and we memorized every detail of the three photos we had.  

And when we did get more pictures, it was better than Christmas.  Seeing her grow up without us was so hard.  But we knew that the Lord would bring her and Kadi home at the right time.  (although I forgot that alot, and often wanted my way instead of waiting for God's timing.)

She was about 2/3 months old here, and laying snugly on a pile of clothes!

three months and sleepy!

two ish months old

2 months

two months and smiling!

 

And then, she turned four months old and met her Daddy for the first time!

And then at almost 5 months, met her Mommy!



 

 

 And now she is 6 months, and such a cutie! 

We all love her so. much.