What makes you family?

I was just sitting here cruising through some of my friend Jess' pictures. Her and her husband are in the process of adopting from China and my brain just got to thinking.....

What makes you family?

There's no denying when you look at pictures of Jess and her daughter Jordan, they are mother and daughter. I think that about Cameron and Wayne. Without a doubt, you know Cam is a Wagner. What about the way we act? My cousins Verna and Vonda both said that Anna acts a lot like I used to. Well, Anna is my daughter and of course she will have some of the traits that make her like me. But what about Julia? Who does she look like? Does she laugh more like her mom or her dad? What about her goofy looks she gives me when I do something to annoy her? LOL! These are things that we will never know. But are those the things that make us family?

I believe what makes us family is our desire to love, be loved and feel secure within a group of people who feel the same way. Julia didn't to choose her family, much like my own children didn't get to pick their parents. However, we did pick Julia. Well, maybe we didn't...God did. God had a plan for the tiny baby with the little ear. He knew that she would eventually make her way to us. I'm still amazed at how she's turned out.

As we go back to Jess and Tim and their family. They also have 2 kiddos who act and look much like them, and in God's time they will have a little one who giggle, smile and laugh like 2 people they will never know. I do know that they will be just as grateful as we are to be given the chance to be the parents of one great kid from China. ;-)