Welcome 2008

Today starts a new year. Last year was hard. It started off with major layoffs at my company. The proverbial rug was pulled out form under our feet and we have struggled mightily to find a new normal. None of us will ever again have the level of comfort we enjoyed prior to that day and that is the kind of uneasiness that wears on you, day after day. Then came the night of Katie's car accident. The sound of the life flight helicopter is seared in my brain. Again, my level of comfort as a parent will never be the same. As an adult, I know that bad things can happen in the blink of an eye, but the reality of that is so much more intense and unsettling than I ever imagined. 

There was the arrest and filing of federal racketeering charges against Agency #1, leaving us to wonder how we would be able to complete Ahren's adoption without an agency. (Turns out it is pretty much the same, just no middleman in the communications and money) Then knock-out after knockout on PBJ's case. The final blow was when we found out we had been sent to Minor's court for an investigation because they had flagged the case as fraudulent. The black-hole of investigations. Geez. There is no telling how long or if forever the case will be stuck there. 

Then in October, we get the call that PBJ is deathly ill and may not make it. I flew to guat to discover the horrible truth of her condition. A fractured skull, brain damage, life-threatening seizures, swelling and fluid surrounding her brain. It felt like a dream, a bad dream. I did what I had to do, leaving only when I was sure she was in capable hands and with the thought I would be back within days to bring her home. 

Now 2008 is dawning, bright and shiny, full of hope and dreams. We are starting it off with a bang of good news, with Ahren's pre-approval. Two years to get that step accomplished! Each milestone we pass is so much sweeter since we have waited for so long.  Even after all this time, hope flares with each bit of news. My heart swells with the feeling that we are getting closer, ever so slowly, inch by inch.