Sisters

As any adoptive mother knows, as soon as you receive the photo, you hold onto it with with everything you have got. The photo is the one piece of your child that is tangible for you. So, copies are hung up all over the house (next to your bed, on the fridge, in the living room, on the mirror, etc), a copy is placed in your purse, one possibly in your car, and of course there is a copy at work, which you can gaze upon all day while working. I am no exception to this rule. I did this with our first adoption before we brought home the Ladybug, and I have yet again found myself falling in love with a single image.

What I have done differently this time through the process is that I find myself looking at the photo of our new little Butterfly and comparing it to the photos of our Ladybug. I keep looking for similarities between the two girls, knowing full-well that they are not biological sisters, but sisters indeed. What I discovered in all of my looking is that these two little girls do like similar to each other. They have similar facial features, and in the photo below, they even have the same furrowed brow.


The Ladybug is so excited to become a big sister, to help take care of her, and love her with all her heart. I cannot wait to bring our little Butterfly home as well. She is already a member of our family, and we don't even have her yet to hold. In the mean time I will continue to gaze upon the photo, holding it close to my heart, hoping for a quick process and speedy travel. We love you baby Butterfly and we will be there as soon as we can.

~~Aloha!

Care Package

Now that the little Butterfly is on her way to becoming our daughter we are allowed to send her a little something from us. We are limited in what we can send because of shipping and import issues, so we kept it very simple. We also kept in mind that our Butterfly is only 9 1/2 months old right now. We included a small, baby photo album with photos of her new family, a nice teething toy (a dragonfly of course!), and a letter which explains who we are and that we will be there to bring her home soon. As you can imagine, the Ladybug is so excited, as are we all. The Bug's adorable face is the common thread through the photo album, and my favorite photo is shown below. The Ladybug, proudly holding the referral photo of her baby sister.


Here is the letter that we composed to our little Butterfly, half-way around the world, in China. We love you little girl!

Dearest Little Butterfly,

Welcome to our family! We are so excited for you to be our daughter and for you to join our family. We are looking forward to traveling to Guizhou to bring you home to the United States.

We are a family of three, your daddy, your mommy, and your big sister. Your parents are both teachers and enjoy working with kids every day. Your sister, the Ladybug, is almost 4 years old, and very excited to meet you. We live in the state of "Middle America," which is sunny and warm in the summer and cold and snowy in the winter, and very beautiful all year long. We love living here and cannot wait to bring you home.

We are all so excited for you to be our daughter. Your daddy cannot wait to give you lots of hugs and lots of tickles. Your mommy is looking forward to singing songs to you. Your big sister wants to play with you and give you lots of kisses. We think you two will be best friends.

You and your big sister have a lot in common. She is Chinese, just like you. She was born in Guizhou Province, just like you. We adopted her into our family, just like you. She is beautiful, smart, and fun, just like you. She is so excited to be your big sister. She wants to share her toys with you, go on walks with you, and teach you how to dress up like a princess. She talks about you all the time!

We love you little Butterfly, and dream about you always. We will be there as soon as we can so that we may be a forever family. Until then, look at these photos and know that you are loved.


Love Always from your family,

Daddy, Mommy, and your Big Sister Ladybug


~~Aloha!

Flashback Friday

I looked through old photos of the Ladybug, and by old I mean anything within the last three years! I found these cute photos of her, wearing a "Smart Little Chick" t-shirt. I like these photos for a couple reasons.

First, she is definitely living up to the t-shirt's message. She is a smart little girl who keeps us on our toes all the time. She surprises us with her intelligent witticisms on a daily basis. For example, our little 3-3/4 year old girl was talking with her Nana S. last night on the phone when she asked, very articulately, "Nana, are you planning on traveling with us to China to bring the baby home?" Both my husband and I looked at each other in awe. She didn't ask, "Nana, you go China with me?" (The exact kind of inarticulate, choppy language I have heard from numerous children her age at school). No, instead she used a very mature, articulate question that surprised both of us. Way to go girl!

Second, you can see the Ladybug's personality seething through these photos. She is being so silly and giggly, two things about her that I love. There is not a day that goes by where our house isn't filled with joy and silliness. She knows how to brighten our days with her smile and laughter. She is a funny, affectionate, silly, loving, goofy, and amazing little girl with a heart of gold. I love you little girl!

~~Aloha!

Wordless Wednesday, Mmmmm Frosting!