My Birthday, October 14th

I don't usually say, "Hey, it's my Birthday!", but I will this year. I cannot say that this has been an easy year, or that - at times - I haven't been tested to my limits. However, I can say that I feel very blessed for the family and friends that I have in my life.
Always a child at heart, I cannot go a Birthday without making a Birthday Wish. Last year, on my birthday, I had been waiting over 4 years for a daughter that I started to believe I might never know. Yet, in my heart I felt that she was out there waiting for us. On my birthday last year, I made one wish: that I would finally meet her. I was on the verge on giving up the adoption paperchase entirely, until a unique twist of fate led us to Jiliang's photo a mere 23 days later. Blessed and thankful doesn't even do my Birthday wish justice. Now, as the clock shifts on past midnight, and I reflect on my past Birthday with my new daughter fast asleep next to me, I am reminded of my own Birth Day. I will leave you with a bit of comic humor and thankfulness as I tell you about the day that I was born:

My father has just gotten a job at Ford Motor Company in Ypsilanti. My mom was VERY pregnant with me. He was praying that my mom would NOT go into labor BEFORE he got his 90 days in, because that was when his health insurance took effect. (If you know how EXTREMELY organized and well-planned my dad is, then you may find this surreal.) Meanwhile, he had a bad case of appendicitis. Our family doctor advised him to have surgery right away, but he refused, because he was days away from having insurance coverage. On his 90th day at Ypsi Ford's, he went in to have his appendix removed. The doctor said that he was moments away from it rupturing. Thankful, Yes!
Meanwhile, my mom came to visit him in the hospital. Of course, he was heavily drugged from surgery. My mom sat on the bed and her water broke on Day 90 as well! Of course, my dad, being heavily sedated, thought, "Why did my wife walk off crying? And why did she wet the bed?" After some of the sedation wore off, he found out that I was born. At that time, men were not allowed into the delivery rooms anyways. He tried to come see me several times after my birth. Of course, a nurse monitoring the maternity floor sent him back down in the elevator several times, thinking he was a wandering patient. Finally, the elevator opened the last time, and there was our family physician, Dr. Helzerman, saying, "There you are Jim! I've been looking all over for you." Then, he was ushered forward to meet his new baby girl: me!

Lesson: All in God's Perfect Timing!

Blessings!! I will have a new post tomorrow, with the latest update that I am most excited about sharing.