Many Answered Prayers

We left Tuesday, and since Ben and I had free vouchers from our trip last May, we ended up flying separate from James and Brianna. It was a little crazy.

James and Brianna's flight ended up being cancelled, so they booked them on a direct flight. What a blessing. Brianna did sooooo well on the flight. She was such a good girl for her Daddy.

Unfortunately, Ben and I flew to one busy airport where we were stuck for about 14 hours, due to bad weather. Finally, they flew us to another airport where we slept that night. We flew the rest of the way the next morning. It was long and exhausting, but Ben did great as well. He was so good, even though he was so tired. He told James later, "It was so comfy sleeping on the floor of the airport. I didn't mind it at all." (I have a bit of a different take on that, . . . just ask.)

When we were, at last, all reunited, Brianna greeted me with a look that seemed to say, "Nice of you to make it." Then, she turned to Ben, squealed with delight and leaned over to hug him.

Brianna had been getting into the stranger anxiety stage before we left, but the separation from me for a day and a half seemed to exacerbate it. If anyone even looked at her (no exaggeration) she would burst into tears. If anyone tried to pick her up, she would start screaming, arch her back and turn purple she was so upset. Needless to say, we did a lot of holding of Brianna on our trip.

We were pretty concerned about how she was going to do at the temple. I asked Ben to try to help her in the waiting room, but assured him that if she insisted on crying that it was o.k. I didn't want him to feel responsible if she was having a rough time. We prayed and prayed that she would feel safe, that there would be angels present to help her, and that she would be able to enjoy (rather than be traumatized by) the sealing.

It was a total miracle in answer to those prayers. She was not only calm, but she looked like an angel. She just took it all in. She didn't even try to come to us when they brought her into the room. Ben looked so handsome, and was allowed to be there to witness. Then, James and I knelt and they brought Brianna over. They sat her right by us, and held her hand on ours. She looked at her Daddy with the most intent, serene face. It was as if she understood the sacredness of the occasion, and was soaking it up.

Afterward, when everyone was hugging us, she didn't get upset at all. She cried for a minute when they took her back to the children's waiting room, but calmed down quickly. When we came to get her, she was so happy.



Outside the temple, she seemed to understand that she was the star of the show. She was all smiles for the cameras -- and there were a LOT of cameras. (I suddenly understood what it must be like to face the paparazzi). She even let other people hold her. In fact, she did really well with other people for the rest of the day. The next day, she was back to her 'stranger anxious' self.



Our hearts are so full of thanksgiving for our beautiful daughter, and for the sacrifice of her wonderful birth mother. We are so grateful for our Savior who made it possible for us to be sealed to her for eternity. It was a beautiful experience which I will treasure up in my heart forever.