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The Easy Way Out on Thanksgiving

Mmhmm, it’s a thankful post. And this being the adoption blog, it has an adoption spin.

Obviously, as I’m pretty upfront about my healing journey, I have some regrets. However, I’m not a total Negative Nancy. I am well-aware of the positives within our situation that make it what it is and today, I’m going to take a moment to acknowledge them for what they are to me. I don’t always talk about the positives because they’re positives and, as such, I don’t need help from readers and others to process them (most of the time).

I am thankful for a beautiful Munchkin. I am thankful that she knows my name, that she grew within my womb and that she thinks she left something in there. I am thankful that she refers to her brother as, simply, her brother. I am thankful that I can be there for her, even when it’s kind of hard on my end. I am thankful for her amazing presence in my life for it has shaped so much of who I am today.

I am thankful for her Mom. I am thankful for her ability to be point blank with me when necessary. I am thankful for her ability to laugh with me. I am thankful that she values me as much as I value her. I am thankful for her parenting skill. I am thankful for the love she has for the Munchkin.

I am thankful for her Dad. I am thankful for his ability to step back from situations and help us through them. I am thankful for his ability to make me laugh. I am thankful that he values me as much as I value him. I am thankful for his parenting skill. I am thankful for the love he has for the Munchkin.

I am thankful for the fact that we, as a group, have gone above and beyond what the adoption community sees as a “normal” open adoption. I am thankful for that openness. I am thankful for our trust in one another. I am thankful for our research. I am thankful for the help that has been provided to us and the help we have provided to others. I am thankful that we weren’t satisfied with the norm. I am thankful that we have developed our own relationships. I am thankful we didn’t listen to the agency.

I am thankful for my birth mother friends. I am thankful for what they have taught me. I can’t go on enough about them. I love each of them in their own way.

I am thankful for a Husband who loves my daughter more than he or I can put into words. I am thankful that he refers to the Munchkin as our son’s sister. I am thankful for his overwhelming capacity to love.

I am thankful for the reform work taking place. I am thankful for adoptees that have taught me what my agency didn’t want me to know. I am thankful for the candor that exists on the internet.

I am thankful. Our family is blessed. I acknowledge that we are luckier than most will ever be. I am thankful.