Today our sweet baby girl would have been one year old. Sometimes it is hard to believe that time has continued to march on even without her smiling, beautiful face in the world. It is even harder to believe that she has been gone for more than 8 months because it seems like just yesterday that we were standing in the lobby of the Grand Tikal holding her in our arms for the very first time. She stared at us with such curiosity for about two minutes, then let loose one of those precious, beautiful smiles while looking right into my eyes. It is a moment I will carry with me forever in my heart.
Today is a bittersweet day for our family. Sweet because we are so very grateful for the time we had with Ariana. Bitter because we weep with sadness that Ben will never know his sister and the world will never know our beautiful daughter.
Today is also a day filled with hope, for we know that one day we will be reunited with our sweet baby when we all get to heaven. Someone once told me that "nothing is lost if you know where it is." I cling to that thought daily. Ariana is not lost, just waiting for us in heaven.
