Jorge's 2nd birthday is coming up which is one year since we met him. He came home just before his 20 month date. This weekend as he was laughing and being so cute I was vividly reminded of how sweet and little he was at our first meeting (at age 1) and how he had that same smile and twinkle then; and then I thought of the hundreds of days that we didn't get to spend together and I was so sad for that time. I'm forever grateful that he had a wonderful life with his foster family and that we still have frequent (weekly) contact with them so we have a window into that time; but I wish there was a way to have had both.
And, yes, he wouldn't be who he is without that time with them, but he'd still be pretty darn wonderful I suspect. And I can't help thinking maybe he would have learned to eat a single vegetable of any kind...
But we're together now and as Clare'sMom said, we have the whole future.
And, yes, we do have a bio DD so I know how precious and wonderful that whole baby stage is and wish we could have experienced that with Jorge or at least had it all on video or something.... I absolutely adored that stage with DD (every beautiful nightmare day) and our nursing relationship until she was 18 mos and I had hoped to nurse Jorge if he'd come home before a year, but he came home at 19 mos which seemed awfully late to start that.