Twenty years later and I am more grateful than ever....

Many years ago, my parents decided to adopt Regina. When they went to pick her up, she refused to leave my side.  So since no one else was wanting me, I got to go with her.   It took a lot of time for it to become official, but twenty years ago today, we were officially the Sweeney girls.!!!!  Twenty years ago, James and Sheryl decided that they wanted to raise us, love us, and take care of us.  Most parents just get to deal with the kids they get... Momma and Daddy got to pick  and they CHOSE us....  How special is that?  They gave us the life we have now.  Opportunities that we would never have had before were presented to us.  Every year we had a special dinner to commemorate the special day in our family.  Every year we would get phone calls from our grandparents and godparents.  Since we were in college, we haven't had the family dinners, but the phone calls and emails we still got.  This year though, we won't get a call from MawMaw.  We are 12 days away from one whole year without her.  I wish we could have had the dinner in this special year, but we can't do that seeing as though I am an hour and a half away.  Family has always been a special thing to me because of this day.  Because of someone saying they actually wanted us.  People who are born into a family don't have to ask for love.  They are blessed to have it from the beginning.  Regina and I were lucky, we were CHOSEN to be loved.  I know the rest of the family didn't always seem like they loved us.  Sometimes we felt like outsiders in the beginning.  Sometimes still I feel like an outsider.  But I know they love us.  We were given a special gift.  We were taken out of a horrid situation and put into one that was easily a billion times better.   We were abused in many ways.  Food/ mealtimes weren't fun.  food wasn't always around.  We were forced to eat whatever was on our plate.  If it fell on the floor, we had to eat it.  Bugs were everywhere.  The house was a mess.  Things were so bad, I have a mental block on things.  We were forced to beg for money (Momma and Daddy found this out by how we acted when we went in a mall with them.  We begged people for food and money)  We knew all the hiding places in the mall as well.  But that ended fast.  We didn't need to do all that!  We had good parents.  But that time I think still impacts our lives.  I think that the fear of not being loved sometimes still reveals itself.  But we won't go into that today... for today is a happy day.  Today is the 20th FAMILY DAY.  So, now that we are both married and have families of our own now, Family day takes on a new meaning.  We wouldn't have our family and kids if it weren't for James and Sheryl.  We now have more than just Momma and Daddy's family, we now have our own kids and our inlaws to share family day with....

SO::

HAPPY FAMILY DAY TO ALL MY FAMILY!!!  I LOVE YOU ALL!

~LIZ