Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Happy Birthday Ruby!

Happy Birthday Ruby!  Today she is one year old.  I remember the joy and anxiety of her actual birth day.  She was about an hour old when we got to the hospital, and we were in time to see her get her first bath (which she did not like), and placed under the heating lamp (which she loved).

We spent two full days getting to know her birth mom, and getting to know Ruby.  The hospital was gracious to give us our own room during that time, and we spent the hours passing Ruby back and forth between our rooms, and visiting each other.  Anyone who has experienced an infant adoption knows the uncertainty, fear, anxiety, hopefulness and utter lack of control that surrounds the situation.  We relied on the Lord for every second of those days.

I continually had to remind myself that while Ruby's adoption day was one of the best days of my life, it had the potential of being one of the worst days of her birth mom's life, and we wanted no part in making it any harder on her.  So we prayed over her, and we prayed over Ruby.  We had family and friends praying.  Our whole church prayed.  Not only did we pray, but we reached out to Ruby's birth mom.  We met with her and talked for hours.  We encouraged her, answered her questions, and hopefully eased some of her fears.  We may not have made that day better for her, but I believe with all my heart that God met her in that difficult place, and gave her peace, and assurance, and hope.

And in this past year, not a single day has gone by that I haven't thought of her, and prayed for her.  I can't look at our little Ruby without thinking of her, and her amazing choice.  She blessed my life beyond all imagination when she entrusted her baby to me, and placed Ruby in my arms.  It is with all the love I possess in my heart, that I say thank you to Nicole today and we celebrate Ruby.

On a lighter note, we had Ruby dedicated on Sunday by our wonderful Pastor Wayne Taylor.  He has been my pastor since I was a little girl about Sammie's age.  After the dedication, we had a BBQ Birthday Party for Ru (and of course Dave made an incredible spread!).  Here are some of the highlights of the day:

the dedication:


Ru and Great Grandma Joyce

Ru and Grandma Leslie


Sissy loves cake!

obligatory baby cake pictures:

"this whole piece is for me???"

Daddy's girl

Digging in


"Num num num" (as Ru likes to say)

The final outcome of Ru vs. Cake.  Ru won!  (and no, we didn't let her eat the whole thing!)

16 comments:

Alanna said...

Happy birthday to Ruby and how sweet of you to think of the birth mother's pain. You know I know that there is a lot of pain and sadness involved. Although also a lot of joy knowing that you've found a loving family.

I'm so happy for your family that Ruby found your way to you.

Vicki Wizniuk said...

Happy Birthday, Ruby! Give her hugs from me. :)

Shan said...

Happy Birthday Ruby! She is just beyond cute, both of your girls are. I'm so glad you posted about your experience. We've been trying to decide if adoption is for us. I'm so glad everything worked out and you got your lil Ru! Best Wishes to all of you!

Jessica said...

Beautiful words and pictures! Happy Birthday to Ruby.

Lori said...

Your post has me all choked up. What a wonderful day for your family and Ruby. So happy for all of you. Happy Birthday Ruby!!!

Cheryl Even said...

Happy birthday, Ruby! It's been great seeing you grow via your mommy's posts. Nona, as the mother of 2 adopted children myself, thanks for the reminder about praying for the birth mom. Although I can never fully understand how hard it is to give up a child for adoption, I will always be grateful for the 2 wonderful women who made that difficult choice in my life.

Daydream Believer said...

Such an amazing story Nona. Thank you so much for sharing it. HAPPY BIRTHDAY RUBY!! :)

Lisadwb said...

I can not believe it has been a year already!! What an amazing journey it has been. God has blessed each of you as only He can.
God bless!!

Christa said...

Happy Birthday RUBY!!!! Nona you also had me choked up. I know you have gone through your difficult times and God has truly blessed you and your family w/ Ruby. I hope Nicole knows in her heart she gave a great gift. It was very thoughtful of you to remember her feelings on that difficult day for her. Blessing to all!

Sarah said...

happy Birthday Ruby! Nona, I have been following your blog since your album won at convention 2years ago, and I have to say that you are so inspiring! You have made me laugh, cry, and smile for your family and I am so happy that little Ruby has such a wonderful family. I hope to meet you at next year's convention!

Roberta Dermody said...

I have tears in my eyes as I write this because you are such an amazing and loving family. Happy Birthday Ruby you are so loved in your journey through life.

Sharli Schaitberger said...

Happy Birthday Ruby!!! You are one lucky little girl - having a birth Mom who loved you SO much to let you go to this amazing family who love you SO much that it's impossible to define. You are really something special.

Hugs!

Sherette* said...

Happy Birthday Ruby! What a precious gift you've all been given - God is good!

Jeanne said...

Happy belated birthday to your little love. What a wonderful year you have all had. Thanks for sharing a piece of it with us. What a remarkable gift you've been given!

NancyK said...

Happy Belated Bday to Ruby and happiness to you all as a family. I have tears of joy in my eyes for you! Thanks for sharing Ruby's first year with us!

bren said...

Ohhhhh Happy Belated birthday to your darling Ruby-gee Nona, you are one busy gal!!! Love all the knitting and patterns!