A Very Special Visit

We recently had a visit from a very special little guest.  If you have been following our blog since we were matched with Hannah, you may remember seeing the first picture below in a post we made on April 21, 2010.  

This is a picture of Hannah with her friend Kerry.  Right after we were first matched with Hannah, we joined a Yahoo group for families that have adopted from the orphanage where Hannah spent her first two years, and through this group, we connected with a family that had already adopted Kerry from that same orphanage.  They had sent a disposable camera to the orphanage in early 2009 and the nannies took pictures that included Kerry and Hannah when they were about a year old.  The pictures seemed to show that Kerry and Hannah had been really close friends.  Kerry came to live with her new family in June of 2009; so, she and Hannah had not seen each other for almost two years.  After months of trying to arrange a reunion, Kerry and Hannah got to meet again a few weeks ago as Kerry was traveling through Atlanta with her Mom and grandmother.  We had a great time visiting with all three of them. 

I cannot express to you how blessed we feel to know Kerry and her family.  When Hannah became a part of our family, she had to leave behind everything she had known the first two years of her life.  Her country of birth, her language, her home at the orphanage, her caretakers, and her friends.  We're so glad that Hannah now can keep a connection with Kerry and three other little girls we know from the orphanage.  The book of James says, "Every good and perfect gift is from above," and we believe this is a special gift from God for these girls.
Do they really remember each other?  After all, they were only a year old the last time they saw each other.  I can't say for sure, but I can say that Hannah intereacted with her in a way I haven't seen her interact with other children she meets for the first time.  That night after playing for several hours, Hannah told me, "I want to put it there."  When I asked her what she wanted to put where, she said, "I want to put my bed there" (beside Kerry's bed).  Does she remember that she used to have a bed near Kerry's bed?  I don't know, but I'm really glad that they have a chance know each other and become friends now. 

As you can see from the pictures, they had a really good time playing together. 

They stayed up later playing with each other the first night...

And continued playing and having fun the next day.

There was a lot of laughing,

a lot of sharing,

and a lot of fun!

Getting ready for a good-bye hug.

Thank you for coming to see us, Kerry.  Thank you for bringing your mama and grandma with you.  We had a great time and hope that you'll come back again.  We hope this will be the first of many reunions.