Counting Down

Tomorrow marks one week until Gabe's first birthday. I put together a couple of photos to show just how much he's grown in a year:

The adorable little newborn outfit you see here was what he wore the day he came home from the hospital, to the adoption agency, and then to our house. That outfit swam on him. He looked so tiny:

He was just so tiny! It's amazing how much he's grown. Here is a picture of his shoes then and now:

How precious... his tiny little feet! Look at the clompers to the right! These pictures are making me tear up. I just can't believe my little baby is now a toddler. He is walking so much right now. I went through a lot of his baby clothes and keepsakes trying to get more organized today. So many memories came back. I remember when we brought him home, Greg and I didn't talk much in the car. We were just blown away by all of the events that day - the anxiety of waiting while Gabe's birthmom took him home for a few hours, the empty stomachs and full plates of food in front of us at Logans, Grant taking Greg (& me along) to buy cigars, the raw emotion experienced in the adoption agency office, the painful goodbyes, the wonderful joy of holding our son, and the immediate love for this child who was placed in our care.

The little t-shirt he wore while in the hospital was among the keepsakes. I carefully unfolded it, looked at it, and smelled it, and I didn't smell baby. As I folded it back up and carefully placed it back in with his keepsakes from that day, it reminded me that the baby is gone and a child is now here. A toddler is here. My little guy is here. He's ours for good and I'm so happy.

Gabe, Mommy & Daddy can't wait to celebrate your 1st birthday with you. Speaking of Daddy, we're so glad he's back!