Of Mice And Mine

One of the words Bridget has learned from being in nursery is "mine." Sort of. She has been saying "mice" a lot lately and it's usually in a pretty forceful tone. I figured out the other day that she thinks she is saying "mine" when she says "mice." Tee he he.

Yesterday was Bridget's 2nd birthday! Two years ago we got a call from our case worker that Bridget had come into the world three weeks early. It was a Sunday afternoon. Bridget's birth mother invited us to visit them in the hospital the next evening. We held Bridget and talked with her birth mother and birth grandmother for a little while. Seeing Brian holding a sweet little baby and looking so confident helped me give in to feeling hope for the first time in a lot of years.

Bridget didn't come home with us until June 28th, 2006. We sat in a room (just the two of us and sometimes our case worker) for almost three hours that evening while her birth mother tried to say good bye. What a strange combination of emotions we felt then (and now thinking about it). The most surprising was guilt. When Bridget's birth mother put Bridget in my arms and had to walk out of the room, it was like watching someone rip out her own heart and hand it to me because I needed it. Brian, Bridget and I had our first family hug that night. Now Bridget asks for family hugs when Daddy gets home from work.
So here we are, two years later! (Here she is contemplating her cake with Clara. We celebrated by going to the park last night with Clara, Kristi, and Dan. Thanks for joining us, guys!) Bridget is our sweet little treasure. She does something every day that fills me up. Sometimes she fills me with pride (folding her arms during the prayers at church), sometimes with fear (climbing tall, unstable things), always with love. Lately in the morning Bridget comes into our room while Daddy is getting ready for work and climbs into bed with me. She gives me big hugs and exclaims, "I LOVE MOMMY!" During one of the hugs she says into my ear, "I watch Elmo." Beautiful.
Daddy and I love our Sweet Sweet Bridgie. (By the way, Daddy had a birthday last week that I keep thinking I will commemorate on the blog. It's going to happen. Just as soon as I scan all those deliciously awful junior high pictures.)