For parents of internationally adopted children, it's very common to not know the exact birth date of your child. In Ethiopia specifically, birthdays are not culturally significant like they are here, so it is not uncommon for even non-orphans to not know their birthday.
We had to choose a birthdate for Yosef and Biniam, because the one that AAI assigned them was clearly wrong. When the boys' birth mom relinquished them in December of 2004, she put on the form that they were one month and 15 days old. So we decided to just count back from the date the form was dated, which put the boys' birthday at October 28, 2004.
We had initially hoped to give them a birthdate that was significant somehow--but had a hard time finding something, which I felt disappointed about. The other day though I resumed my quest to find something special about October 28, and lo and behold discovered that on October 28, 1886, the Statue of Liberty was dedicated in New York Harbor by President Cleveland. Pretty amazing, huh? I think October 28 is the perfect day to celebrate the birth and gift of our sons Yosef and Biniam.
(They also share a birthday with Bill Gates.)
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
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6 comments:
So, does this mean you have THREE two-year-olds right now? You deserve a Mommy award, sweetheart. :)
Three two year olds it is! (It is really weird to think about it that way...no wonder I'm so beat by the end of the day! :) )
i know you were searching for a significance of Oct 28, but i think it's very significant that you chose to try to estimate the date their birth mother gave. it may not be exact but it is a connection to their birth family, and i think that's great.
of my two adopted korean cousins, the younger one doesn't seem much bothered by not knowing her real birthdate/age, but the older one has always had issues with it. she has many identity problems. she also is the one with attachment disorder, so that must all go together. i guess what i'm trying to say is it great that you are able to have a pretty good approximate date for the boys. i think that will be good for them.
and i love that they are all two now!
kristen borland
that is great! maybe bill gates can hook you up....
we are still deciding on bens, seeing how 'young' the judge will let us make him. i am hoping we can make it july 11, the day we met them! glad you are writing again, you must be exhausted. your 3 2 year olds beat my clan anyday!!!
You know, 3 to 1 is the state approved ratio for child care in California for children three and under. I hope you don't get arrested when the new baby comes :) How will you ever go shopping again?
What a great birthday! Not only did nothing happen on my birthday (Aug. 8) but there is no real holiday in my birth month, either!
Happy belated birthday, Yoseph and Biniam!
But wow, three two-year-olds...sounds crazy but fun!
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