As we sat around my house earlier this month celebrating Mother’s Day (my 8th, whoa!) with family, I took a moment to meditate on the blessing of motherhood.  Sometimes I cannot believe that God trusts me to raise these three precious beings whom I have the privilege of calling “mine.”  All three of them are so special and unique, and I love each of them in different ways for the little people they are.  They all bring such joy to my life.  Angel is my little “mama in the making,” exploding with such compassion and love.  Lovebug is my court jester, with a heart of gold that he uses to love and feel so deeply.  And Sunshine is my fierce warrior, so strong and courageous, overflowing with love and hope.  I see Jesus working through their young lives all the time.  I am a better person because of them and my faith has been strengthened because of what they’ve shown me about unconditional love, grace, and life.  I celebrate how much more my children have given me than I could ever possibly give to them.

While thinking about this on Mother’s Day, I couldn’t help but notice something God-breathed and simply beautiful.  It was the way Sunshine was so comfortably a part of everything, as if she had just always been.  She was happily climbing all over my dad as any grandchild would do.  She was interacting with her 93-year-old great-grandma in a way that no one else could.  She ran to each of her grandparents effortlessly, squealing their names with delight.  She played with and chased around her brother and sister as any sibling would.  She wrapped her little arms around her daddy’s neck so sweetly as he carried her around.  And she laid with me on the sofa with such trust and security and love, as if I had always been her mama.  It was the way it’s supposed to be.  It was breathtaking.

Almost two years ago, we brought her home to us forever.  At the six-month mark, I thought things were good.  At the one-year mark, I thought things were great.  But almost two years home, oh my it just keeps getting better and better.  The love that I have in my heart for this precious child has grown so big, it’s overwhelming at times.  It definitely had to grow and be nurtured, but it’s very real and it is fierce.  She is mine and that is amazing.  This plan that God has for Sunshine and for our family is pretty awesome.  And watching it unfold right before my eyes is truly remarkable.

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Nicole is a child of God and a wife to an amazing man.  She is a classical homeschooling mama to three (two homegrown, one who came to them through the beautiful gift of international adoption).  She is also a part-time newborn photographer, founder and adoption photographer at Red Thread Sessions, a contributing blogger at No Hands But Ours and an advocate of orphan care and adoption. She loves to blog and learn new things.  She strives to live her life to glorify our Heavenly Father. With His love, all things are possible.