Christmas Gifts

Over the next few weeks, she spent hours on the internet, looking at adoption resources and the things they would need to get ready with. They needed a social worker to do a home study and she joyously called a friend from church to help with the process.

"That's fantastic news, Joy," said Alexandra Johnson, after Joy had barraged her with the news. "I'll get started on your home study right away. Do you have an age in mind already?"

Joy paused and thought about this for a moment. She had always imagined adopting an infant, but she knew there were older children that also needed "forever families". "I'll have to ask David," she answered thoughtfully.

"Or you could always adopt siblings," Alexandra responded. That was something Joy had never even considered, but something that would need to be talked about. If David had room in his heart, why couldn't they adopt more than one child? After setting up an appointment to meet with Alexandra, she hung up and continued her internet activities.

David wasn't home from work yet, so she had plenty of time to surf around the lists of 'waiting children'. Instead of just clicking on the pictures of infants, she now scrolled the entire list, including children as old as 13. Page after page came up on her screen, hundreds of children who had no home and needed to be loved. She began to feel a little sad; amazed by the number of children who were alone.

The 19th page stopped her dead in her tracks. A picture of three children called her attention and she clicked on it, waiting for the description page to load. A baby boy, a little girl, and an older boy stared at her and she found herself unable to break her gaze at the picture. Something about the children's eyes called to her and she suddenly was hit with a sense of "this is it". She tore her eyes away from the picture long enough to read about the three siblings.

"Maikel (12), Isabella (5), and Ismael (9 months), at an orphanage in Colombia. These three siblings are looking for their forever family to adopt and love them. All three children are in good health, with no signs of mental or physical problems. All three have their abandonment papers and the Colombian government has released them for adoption. If interested in these children please contact:

Sunshine Adoption Agency

413 Main St.

Allanville, CA

95832

(869)555-0134"

Joy's heart sickened at the word abandonment, and only further assured her that these three children were meant for her and David. Joy's paternal grandfather was Cuban and had taught her Spanish; David had taken it in school and still remembered a fair bit. The kids would fit in perfect," Joy thought excitedly.

She shut off her computer monitor, leaving the picture and description on the screen so she could show David when he came home. He would be home soon, and she had nearly forgotten about dinner. She threw a quick meal together and waited for the noodles to soften.

David breezed through the door 20 minutes later, smiling happily and greeted her with a kiss. "Smells good, darling," he said, his eyes twinkling merrily as he took his coat off and washed his hands.

"Baby, I wanted to talk to you."

David looked up at her with a concerned look on his face, obviously thinking something was wrong. "What's up?"

"Well I talked to Alexandra Johnson today about the home study that we need to get done, and she's more than happy to do it. But she also talked to me about adopting an older child, or a sibling group...and I was wondering what you thought about it," she took a deep breath, hoping and praying that all her hopes weren't about to be dashed.

David sat down at the kitchen table and looked at her seriously for a moment. "From the way you're looking at me, I'll guess that you already found something."

Joy nodded at him sheepishly and he let out a deep sigh. "How many and how old?"

"Well there's a baby, a five-year-old, and a 12-year-old." She paused as David's face took on a look of shock. "Come see their picture, please! I know if you see them you'll feel just as I do," she pleaded.

David was oddly calm as he rose from his seat and followed Joy into the office. "If you think it's a bad idea...well...I'll understand," she said sadly. She was already getting "no" vibes from him and she didn't like it. She pushed the monitor button and the screen flicked on. Maikel, Isabella, and Ismael smiled out at them, and Joy again felt as if these were the ones.

David collapsed into the computer chair, his eyes glued to the screen. She saw them jump as he read the description. Still, his face gave no hint as to his answer. "So have you called them?" he asked, motioning to the phone number listed for the adoption agency.

"Not yet," Joy said softly. She held her breath, awaiting his answer of 'yay' or 'nay'.

"So what are you waiting for?" David smiled up at her and checked his watched. "It's only 2:00 on the west coast, they should still be open."

Joy's eyes widened. "So that was a yes?" David nodded at her and once again she released her barely contained happiness by showering him with kisses. "They're so perfect! You're so perfect," she said giddily as she planted a firm kiss on his lips. "I love you!"

"I love you, too," David responded with a large grin. "Now hurry up and call them."

Joy spent the next couple of hours on the phone with the Sunshine Adoption Agency. The social worker with whom she spoke was pleased of their decision and informed them that the three children in question had been waiting for some time. Joy knew that her heart had made the correct choice when the social worker told her of the awful conditions the children had lived under.

Months passed. David and Joy were on their way to Colombia to visit the children before the adoption was completed, and they couldn't have been happier. Their time with the three kids was short, but both of them left Colombia with a smile, knowing that soon they would be a family.

Time flew by, and after several difficult tries to get the paperwork processed by the Colombian government, Alexandra called to tell them that they could go pick up the children on December 14th. Joy made a calendar and counted down the days until they would finally bring their children home. She was saddened every day that she was not able to be with them, but David comforted her and reminded her that there were only a few weeks left.

December 13th arrived. David and Joy made their finally journey to Colombia. They signed all the paperwork and drove to the orphanage to get the kids. Little Ismael was now almost 2 years old, Isabella was six, and Maikel was already almost 14. The three siblings were waiting outside the orphanage with their caretakers as David and Joy pulled up.

Tears flowed freely as Joy and David hugged the children, the caretakers, and each other. Ismael was still a little shy around the couple, but they knew it was only a matter of time until he warmed up to them.

Maikel approached Joy and hugged her around the middle. "Thank you," he whispered in Spanish. Joy looked down at him happily. "Thank you for choosing us." Fresh tears sprang to her eyes and she hugged him closer, emotion choked her and she was unable to say anything.

Hours later, all five of them were on a plane back to the US; Isabella and Maikel stayed awake, amazed by the huge plane. Joy held a sleeping Ismael snugly against her body, watching his eyelids flutter as he dreamt. Every now and then, David's hand squeezed hers, letting her know that he was just as happy as she was.

The drive from the airport to the Skreenes' house was almost two hours, and all three children slept as David drove ever closer to home. Christmas carols sounded from the car stereo and Joy beamed at David as he drove; she felt as if she would burst from the happiness welling within her.

It was nearly morning when the pulled into the long circular drive. David parked in front of the door and turned off the car, twisting in his seat to see the sleeping children. Maikel stirred as Joy opened her door to get out and soon he was awake. He looked at the house and his eyes widened; he began to shake his sister, waking her as well.

"Wow!" he shouted as David opened the car door for him and he leapt to the ground. "You have a big house!" Joy laughed as she plucked Ismael from the infant seat. She had never considered their home big, but she looked at it through Mikael's eyes and realized it must have been gigantic.

"Let's get out of the snow, shall we?" asked David and the three of them walked to the front door. Joy followed behind closely, still cradling the sleeping toddler in her arms. David unlocked the door and the five of them stepped over the threshold together. A feeling of magic and of warmth shot through her body as she realized, "We're finally here; we've crossed the finish line!"

David and Joy exchanged looks as the two older kids crept slowly into the living room, fascinated by the huge Christmas tree set up there. They gasped as they saw the boxes with their names already on them. Isabella reached for a present.

"No, no sweetie," Joy said with a chuckle. "You have to wait till Christmas. Then you can open them all." Isabella looked at her sadly before asking, "All of them with my name on them?" Joy nodded happily at her and the little girl's eyes shone with glee.

Joy sat next to David on the couch as their new children explored the house. They had done it, completed a dream together, and just in time for Christmas. The children and David were the only gifts she could have ever wanted. Joy sighed contentedly as she snuggled closer to David, at peace at last.