Sheila's Adoption

Yesterday I had the special privilege of going on another adoption. Sheila, who arrived at Lighthouse as a newborn and who just turned 2 years old in July, was finally adopted by a couple from Holland. This time Sophie, the Children's Coordinator for Lighthouse, got to be the one to actually hand her over because she has become very close to Sheila.

When we arrived in Pretoria, Sophie fed Sheila a quick snack, and then we met with Eva the social worker at Abba Adoptions. She asked a few questions about Sheila, particularly how well we thought she would handle being left with new people. She also told us that Thabo's new family made it safely back to Denmark last week and that they are all doing very well.

We drove over to the same guest house where Thabo's family stayed, and it just so happened that Sheila's new mom and dad were staying in the exact same room as Thabo's family! Sheila's parents were waiting outside when we parked and introduced themselves to us as soon as we stepped out of the car. They were obviously excited and very anxious to meet Sheila in person!

We walked back to their room and saw that they had decorated it with brightly colored balloons and streamers. Sophie and I sat on the couch, and Sheila sat on the floor by our feet. Her new parents also sat on the floor facing her so that they could interact with her.

Just like before, Eva asked us lots of questions about Sheila's personality and her schedule and her likes and dislikes so that the parents could learn more about her. Eva had their video camera running the whole time so that they can go back and hear our answers to questions again. Lorinda took lots of pictures with my camera and the parents' camera.

I absolutely loved Sheila's new family and cannot believe what a perfect match they are for her. For example, Eva had told them how much Sheila loves the color pink and that practically everything she wears is pink. So her mom was wearing a black, white, and hot pink dress, and her dad was wearing a light pink dress shirt. It was so cute.

Sheila also loves music and clapping out a rhythm and will sometimes even break out into song. And it just so happens that her new mom loves singing and is very involved in church choir. She was so excited when I told her about Sheila's love for music.

After about an hour, Eva told us to say our goodbyes. I gave Sheila a kiss on the cheek and told her to be good for her new mommy and daddy. Then Sophie picked her up and gave her a big hug and said her goodbyes. Sheila's new mom held her as we walked out and started to tear up as she seemed to realize that Sheila was finally theirs to keep. It was such a beautiful picture seeing their new family standing in the doorway waving goodbye.

Sheila was very serious through the whole placement and never laughed or even smiled. But I'm sure that she was confused about what was taking place. She never appeared to be upset and seemed to become more and more comfortable with her mom and dad.

Please keep Sheila and her new family in your prayers as they get to know each other and adjust to their new family of 3.