Are We There Yet?

Tonight We Met Celebrities!

We received a gift card to a local restaurant a while back and decided to use it tonight to go out to dinner with the kids. We loaded everybody up, got to the restaurant, headed to the front doors...and found out there was a 45 minute wait. (Of course there was...it is a Friday night during prime Christmas shopping season.)

Figuring the Littles would NEVER tolerate a 45 minute wait for dinner, we looked across the parking lot and saw a Panera. We decided that was a better option and headed over. It was packed...so packed, in fact, that we couldn't even all fit at the same table.

After eating, we decided to walk out by the front door to put our coats on so other people waiting for tables could have a seat. As we were getting Molly and Carson into their coats, hats, and gloves, a woman came over to tell me how cute they were. She asked if they were from China and apologized for bothering me. I told her I would rather people directly ask me questions than stare from across the room. She laughed and agreed, telling me she and her husband have 17 children -- 13 of them adopted!

As we continued to talk while her husband waited in line to get their coffees (she was very sweet and it felt like I was talking to an old friend, even though I didn't even know her name at the time), it occurred to me that I know of a semi-famous local family that has a lot of adopted children and thought it an odd coincidence that there were TWO such families in our area. When she told me she and her husband run a non-profit organization that supports special needs adoptions, my jaw dropped.

Say, what?!

There was no coincidence. I was meeting the parents of that semi-famous family, Kathy and Scott, who run The Shepherd's Crook!! I couldn't believe it!! (Carson and Molly are both on their web site thanks to my chance meeting and instant connection with The Shepherd's Crook's China Coordinator, Micheline -- making our family part of The Shepherd's Crook family!) Kathy and I were so excited to put faces with names and ended up hugging and laughing. Amazing!

While Kathy and Scott may not be considered celebrities in the typical sense of the word, to me they are amazing people and I was giddy with excitement getting to meet them. (I even told Kathy I was going straight home to blog about it!) They have devoted their lives to the cause of special needs adoptions and are such an inspiration to me! I admitted to Kathy that their wonderful example makes me second-guess my feeling that our family is complete.

I thought I said we were done adopting...