Adoption Creates Families: We Did It

Monday, June 15, 2015

We Did It

Well folks, school is out for the summer and our oldest child has graduated from highschool...

Even saying that feels so strange.

How at 36 years old, am I old enough to have a child going into college?!!

But, it is true.

Family came in town and we had a big crowd to celebrate our boy:

I had to create a memory board for him to display with the 33 other seniors boards. It was a lot of work for my Mom and I.

But it turned out really nice:

The next day we had a delicious brunch at our house for our closest friends and family.

Then Billy and I exhaled.

It occured to us that for 3 years since the summer Keishun came home at the age of 15, we have held our breath.

We held our breath through every beautiful bonding moment, every bad grade, every confrontation, every trip to the school for disciplinary action, every football and basketball game, every tear, every belly laugh, every time we checked his text log...or made phone calls to check his story on events. We held our breath through every holiday and vacation not knowing what mood he would be in. We held our breath when he got a new job, when he made a new friend, when he went to a school function, when he came home to tell us all about it.

We held our breath when he raged.

We held our breath when he grieved.

We held our breath for 2 years and 11 months.

Because at any time, for any reason...the ball could drop.

And it did.

A lot.

It was devastating.

The smiling polite boy that the world sees, is the not the person we have lived with. At all.

If you are living in a family like that, you know EXACTLY what I am talking about.

If you do not, I will not enlighten you.

Because, through it all we have learned many, many things.

One very important one is that people just do not understand.

Teachers, friends, family, coaches.

Sometimes they don't even believe us.

So...we don't share the gritty details with everyone.

And out of privacy for my kids stories, the older they get...the less I will share in a public format like this. They are no longer cute little babies who do funny things. These are their lives.

And I take that very seriously.

What I will share, are some highlight photos of his senior year, because he had a blast.

I won't share the private pain I had to endure over events that transpired before and after these pictures were taken.

If you too are parenting in a difficult season...you know the stories that the photos don't tell.

Today, however, I will choose JOY.

Keishun moves away to college next month.

We did it. We survived the teen years.

We parented him in a very difficult place in his life and we have come out the other end. He has a highschool diploma. We are all moving forward in the right direction, despite the many speed bumps we have endured and will continue to endure.

He had a Senior Year that kids dream of having.

He loved every minute of it. I am so happy for him.