"Is that your kid?"

You have to love the honesty of children, it really makes you realize how quickly we lose that innocence and ability to speak whatever is on our mind...today I was picking up one of my children from school and there were two boys waiting for a ride home..Nora was busy toddling around the school and not being very cooperative with leaving...I could tell that one of the boys was staring at Nora and then back at me and finally when he couldn't hold it in anymore he asked.."hey, is that your kid?" So, my first thought, being an adul,t was that he was commenting on the fact that it looked like I was wrestling with her while trying to put her winter hat on...but then it hit me that most likely his comment had more to do with the fact that we looked different, very different and he was trying to put all the pieces of the puzzle together.

My reply came quickly, "yes this is my little girl" and I could tell there were more questions in his mind but his ride came and he ran off and part of me was relieved...it was really one of the first times (and there will be many) that I was confronted so honestly and openly about Nora looking different than me and I was questioned by a child which makes it even more complicated sometimes...I feel an amazing and at times daunting respsonsibility to be prepared to answer the questions not only for myself but for Nora as she grows older. In our preadoptive classes we took classes, role played, did online seminars but no one can truly prepare you for the candidness of the situations that you will be put in. Even though I look at Nora and see my daughter, I also see a child who doesn't have my eyes, or my skin tone or my haircolor...and I wonder how I am going to answer the tough questions from HER in the future...so I am thankful for that little first grade boy today who decided it was time I was faced with one of the toughest questions...but the answer came so easily for me...Yes, this is my child.

K