Our Little Ladybug Turns 2

Lia Katherine had a fun, little ladybug party with a few friends on her birthday a few weeks ago!




And her mama had lots of fun with the ladybug theme...


From ladybug cookies...




...to ladybug cupcakes...




... to her little ladybug party dress ...


... I had fun throwing a party with all the ladybug items I was able to find ...


And this little ladybug loved having her friends over to celebrate her day...




We made these cute little bug jars...






We sang to the birthday girl...


...which she loved!




We ate cupcakes...


And the birthday girl opened some sweet gifts ...


And this is how she looked by the end of the party...



Happy 2nd Birthday, baby girl! Here's to many, many more...

Flashback to 08.08.08

I was thinking as I was heading to Spin class dark & early this morning ... thinking back two years ago when the Olympics in Beijing had just started. Britton turned 7 months old that day -- 08.08.08. And we had friends over that night to eat Chinese food and watch the very impressive Opening Ceremonies. I made fresh dumplings just like my Chinese friend Linling taught me to. And we watched and were awed by the amazing Chinese drummers ...


In my mind then, I thought how awesome it was going to be to have a daughter from China. Because it would have been so cool to share that moment with her. At that point we had been logged-in to China's adoption system for about 7 months and thought we were years and years away from actually getting our child. What we had no idea of knowing was that our daughter had just been born ... she was days old at the time and probably still living with her birth parents. It would be three days after the Opening Ceremonies that police would find her at the Nursing School, and take her to the orphanage where she would be given the name Lian Jia Jing (Jing being short for Beijing, in honor of the Olympics). I can't wait to watch those Opening Ceremonies with Lia Kate one day and tell her the story of her Chinese name and let her know how expected, longed-for and loved she was even before we knew about her.


Okay, seeing my baby boy this small puts into perspective how close he and Lia Kate are in age! This is how little he was when she was born.

Two Years Ago Today...

"The daughters of China, they fly across the seas,
Off to unseen places and possibilities.
They are gifts to those who cherish them.
By those who just could not.
Acts of hope and faith and love.
We never will forget."
-- Tim Chauvin

Two years ago today, a woman in China made (what I'm guessing was) the most difficult decision of her life. She wrapped her tiny newborn baby up in blankets, walked down this road...


... and laid her baby down in front of these gates ...


... and walked away.

And in that act, that little 5 pound baby began a journey that would eventually end in our arms.

Our daughter's story will always begin with her birth mother ... the woman who chose life for her and set her on the path to find her forever family. Lia Kate came into this world and (most likely) spent her first 12 or so days with her birth parents, she then spent 16 months in an orphanage, and, now, a lifetime with us. It is truly a broken road that has led our family to this place of joy.

I don't know the circumstances of Lia Kate's Chinese mother, and I don't want to romanticize her story. But I do believe she was doing the only thing she could to give her daughter a hope and a future. I have found comfort in the fact that Lia Kate was found abandoned at the Nursing School ... a sign to me that her birth parents did not have the means to treat Lia Kate's medical needs.

So, on today, I am thinking of a woman in China who gave us one of the greatest gifts of our lives. I hope she has peace in her heart today. I just wish she could glimpse what an amazing little person her girl is turning out to be.

Like Gotcha Day Videos?

Be sure to check out my friend Kelley's adoption video of Virginia Grace's Gotcha Day!

Our Birthday Girl

My little girl is growing up! She is two today! So hard for me to believe she has only been in our lives for six months. It feels like she's been with us forever ... but I guess that's what happens when you are where you belong. Lia Katherine has turned our world upside down and filled my life with more joy than I thought imaginable. It's hard to fathom loving anyone as fiercely as you love your first child, but Lia Kate has shown us that your heart just grows bigger when there is another little one to love. I mean, how can your heart not melt when she gives you her sweet kisses and "i love you"s. Pure joy this girl is. I can't believe how blessed we've been to add her to our family. So, so thankful to be celebrating her 2nd first birthday with her.

Happy Birthday, baby girl! Here's to many more ...

What are the chances?

Last Fall, when we first decided to start looking for a waiting child in China, the thought popped into my head "how cool would it be if our child and I had the same birthday?" Because ... um ... what are the chances of that?! My sister and I -- born nine years apart -- share a birthday, so the sharing-a-birthday-thing was on my radar, and Danny and I were looking for a child in the age range that would fall with a summer birthday. But, really, what were the chances of that happening? Imagine my surprise when I checked my email the morning of October 21, 2009, and saw an email titled "Referral -- Lian Jia Jing" ... as I anxiously opened the file, the first thing I saw was, "Date of Birth: July 31" -- my birthday. My mouth hit the floor. I couldn't believe what I was seeing ... I may have even let a curse word fly. I mean what are the chances??? I knew she was our daughter. I didn't even know how serious her medical needs were, but I knew she was ours. We accepted her file that day, and have never looked back.

And this weekend, we get to celebrate our first triple joint birthday -- me (turning 34), my sister (turning 25), and my daughter (turning TWO!). Now seriously, what are the chances of that?

We will be living it up with Lia Kate this weekend because technically it's her FIRST birthday. I'm thinking no one was celebrating her birthday last year in the orphanage, so we'll just make up for lost time, starting this morning with a little ladybug party with friends. Then on Saturday we'll celebrate all three July 31 birthdays with some family, and then next weekend with more family.

Lia Katherine, I am so thrilled to share a birthday with you. You were so meant to be a part of this family! Happy 2nd first birthday!!!

Baby Love

Here are some sweet pictures of my babies loving on a little babe. They have never paid attention to babies, but they both loved looking at this little guy -- Will Garrison -- who went to the beach with us. Love these pics...