They say the sense of smell is the strongest of the five senses tied to memory. With that in mind, my adoption agency suggested that I give my son a stuffed animal rolled in my scent, so that I would be somewhat familiar to him when I picked him up from the orphanage on his Gotcha Day!
So I traveled 5,105 miles from Peoria, IL to Moscow, Russia in July of 2010 with a little blue bear tucked under my arm to deliver to my son. I slept with that bear for a week straight. It sat in my lap on every flight connection we took, every hotel room we stayed in, every nap on the couch I attempted.
The first day we met Hayes, I was in such a frenzy, I forgot the bear in our hotel room. The second day we saw our son, I was thrilled to give him his very first present. I saved this bear in hopes that he'd have a keepsake of that special year we met him. These pictures were taken exactly one year apart--July 23, 2010/2011. Same bear. Same dress. Same little boy. But now I'm officially his mom. And that is the sweetest gift I've ever been given. I'm thankful every day that the Lord chose to complete our family through the miracle of adoption. I'm humbled to be entrusted with the task of raising such a precious life. My son is the great love of my life. My greatest wish for him is that he knows the love of the One who created him...and that he lives out of the confidence and abundance of that love.
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