Happy Family Day

January 23rd, 2008 marked 2 years since we were blessed with our sweet baby boy. This year, I really wanted to begin a tradition of celebrating this life-changing milestone by doing something fun as a family. My plan is to celebrate the day every year on or near the anniversary of the first time we held him in our arms and assumed the name of "family." In adoption circles, this special day is often referred to as "Gotcha Day", a phrase I have never been fond of.  It conjures up in my mind images of those ugly trolls of fairy-tale lore who hide under bridges and snatch unsuspecting children as they walk by. Perhaps a bit melodramatic, I know, but nonetheless, every time I hear that off-putting phrase I think that there must be a better term for it. I mean after all, isn't "gotcha" synonymous with tricking someone or pulling off a prank or catching a person in the act of some salacious, unsavory deed? Doesn't it sort of ring of material possession in a way? None of these things is what I want to associate with the happiest day of my life. I've also heard some people call it "adoption day". Certainly, better than "gotcha" but still didn't seem appropriate. To me, the actual act of adoption was a means to an end, a mere moment in the timeline of the rest of our lives together. How we came to be a family is so insignificant to the beautiful fact that we are a family-- forever. So after much pondering and reflection, I have decided that January 23rd will henceforth be known as "Family Day" in my house because that is really the essence of the whole thing-- family. That is what I want to celebrate-- the coming-together against seemingly impossible odds of three hearts, separated in space by oceans and continents, but in soul always connected. It was the day that we came together as one, in body and spirit, and would from that day forward be forever changed. I want Family Day to be about the three of us enjoying one another's company, about making new memories, about celebrating the joy of being together.  There are no rules about what we do, where we go, or how we commemorate the day except it must be something we do as a family. Who knows how this tradition will take shape over the years. But this year, we decided to take a trip to San Diego so that Quentin could enjoy going to the zoo and Lego Land and we could enjoy watching Quentin. We had a great time-- Quentin was such a good boy and seemed to have fun. We even got to see "Goo-goo" and "Tio" (Brian's sister and her husband) which was an unexpected and pleasant surprise. Quentin just adores Goo-goo and talks about her all the time. It was nice to see them again and I think it fit in perfectly with the idea of celebrating family.