Chosen

This morning Dylan and I are running in the Chosen for Adoption half marathon.  We have gotten into running and enjoy it a lot.  We started running in preparation for going for our black belts in karate and it has stuck as a sport of interest on its own.  I always enjoyed it when I was younger and Dylan is a natural at it (and a lot faster than I....).  We like running in the races you find almost any weekend (we pace ourselves on how many we run....).  This morning up dark and early for the Chosen for Adoption race.  We'll be running the half marathon in support of Team Sims, some dear friends we met through adoption (they adopted one of Kayleigh's friends from the same orphanage in Zhytomr, Ukraine....).  Last year we raced to raise support for our adoption of Kayleigh and Michael.  This race and all the people who put it together, along with the support and association of Abba Fund, were the financial catalysts for us to be able to go to Ukraine and bring our two kids home.  Without it we would have taken a lot longer to financially prepare and be able to do it, and Kayleigh would have aged out of their adoption system and been on her own at the age of 15.  Having gotten to know her over the 5 months they've been here, I know she would have never made it.  So every day with her is a day of having love and life and a future that would have not been.  That's why every day with them is special.  That's why we run.