The Dreaded Baby Picture Request

All adoption books warn you that at some point, your child will be given some school assignment that will painfully confront the child, the parent, or both of the sad fact that, well, we don't have all the facts.  Perhaps the child will be asked to create a family tree, trace back their ancestors to the date they immigrated to this country, supply genetic information in order to figure out the origin of their eye color or blood type.  Or they will be asked to bring a baby picture to class.  The teacher innocently assumes that everyone has a baby picture.  Why wouldn't we all, in this digital age?  You can snap a photo with your phone, for crying out loud.

For foster kids, though, this is a different story.  As is common for many foster kids, the first fifteen months of Valentino's life are a mystery.  We don't know where he lived, who took care of him, whether or not he received vaccinations, what he liked to eat as a baby, the date of his first smile, crawl, or step, or what his first word was.  There is no photographic evidence to record those precious months of infancy.

So when I saw the cheerful sign next to the parent sign-in book at preschool, instructing me to "Please bring in a baby picture of your child no later than December 16th," my heart sank.  I knew this was coming- I just wasn't expecting it yet.

Thankfully, I do have a photo of him from October 12, 2008, four days after he came into foster care.  He was fifteen months old.  To me, he looks beautiful and sad.  Bless M, Valentino's first foster mom, who gave me this precious memento, probably the youngest picture of my son that he or I will ever have.  This is the photo that Tino will bring to school to share with his classmates.  I hope that it fits in with the photos the other children bring.