Meeting Anya Rashi

As I write this, Anya Rashi is sleeping on the bed. This has been an amazing day, when our family of four officially became a family of five! Our lives will never be the same, and we are so grateful God created our daughter and joined our lives together through adoption.

This morning, we made arrangements to meet Ms. Roy, the orphanage director, at 2:oo. I have to admit, I was a nervous wreck! Not sure why -- I thought I'd just be over the moon and excited, but Peter said I deserved a free pass for however I felt, since I was in "labor" this morning!

We spent the rest of the morning bagging up our donations for the children -- many thanks to all of you who contributed! We also wrapped our presents for the ayahs (nannies), although the gifts seemed so small in comparison with the jobs these women do every day. Then, we went shopping! We found some Indian clothes for Anya Rashi to grow into, and a few other gifts for family and friends.

Then, we were off to Matri Sneha (Mother's Love) baby home! We met with Ms. Roy and signed Anya Rashi's paperwork. Ms. Roy is an amazing, caring, thoughtful woman. She answered all our questions, and was so humble and kind. Next, we were in for a great surprise: they had compiled a baby book including Anya Rashi's newborn picture, her favorite foods, and a description of her personality: calm, quiet, cheerful, playful. Of course, I cried. :o)

Then, it was time to meet Anya Rashi. When we went into the room where she was waiting with all her baby friends, I was immediately struck by how happy, healthy, and content they all were. Then, we saw her . . . she was so dear and beautiful. She was a little apprehensive about being picked up, so we took it slowly. There were a few whimpers and cries, but she did all right as we carried her down to the car.

We also got to see the other facility, where the newborns and special needs children live. A note for some other waiting families: we saw Luke Swarnadip -- he has loads of personality and seemed very outgoing! He was such a lively cutie! We also saw Prasun, who had a completely endearing (and quick) smile. He is a charming little man! Elizabeth's family will be glad to know that she was playing fun with her friends, and seemed healthy, happy, and full of fun.

After seeing all the children, we brought Anya Rashi back to the hotel. She was tuckered out, and fell asleep on the ride back. The deep breathing of a sleep-heavy baby is so sweet . . .

This first night, Anya Rashi was pretty bewildered. She woke up after her nap in a strange place, with pasty pale people! She stuck to me and Peter like glue. As the night went on, she relaxed a little, laughing when Nancy kissed her tummy, when Peter made funny noises, and when Aunt Alicia kissed her hands. When our dinner was delivered, the two men spoke Bengali to her and she lit up! It was so good to see.

We can't begin to tell you how much joy we feel tonight. The only thing that would've made this day better would be having Anya Rashi's big brothers here too. Aaron and Nathan, we can't wait for her to meet the two best boys in the world!