the most amazing little girl was place in our arms! I am still in awe of the fact that we get to be her Mama and Daddy. I cannot explain the ways she has changed our lives and how much we love her. She is such a happy loving child and we are eternally grateful to everyone who made it possible for her to be in our lives.
I wanted to spend the day doing things she loves so our plan was the mall and then the pool! It was sunny and 70 this morning but now it is thundering so the pool will wait until tomorrow.
Of course we hit the carousel at the mall. There are many animals to choose from on this one but she always rides the blue horse! We also have to kiss about a hundred times as she goes around and she laughs out loud when I 'miss' b/c her horse goes up or down. When it stops she yells 'more' to the guy running it and he just laughs :)
This is not the same mall as yesterday but yes, Santa was there too. She ran right up and had a seat on his lap this time. I was trying to 'sneak' candids so it is blurry b/c I didn't have the flash on.
I thought she would enjoy a trip to Build a Be*ar but I didn't want another stuffed animal. Then I remembered that we had two animals that Daddy and I gave to each other while we were dating. ...and they needed new clothes. We went in and she loved bathing them (from the looks of the first pic they must have been stinky) and then picking out clothes for them. At first the bear was going to be Ar*iel but then she decided he was a boy so he got Spidey PJs and Gabby, the black lab was to be Tink!!
No trip to the mall is complete without the train in the bookstore
I didn't forget her ice cream.....she wouldn't let me : )
Like I said, this was a different mall and they said "sure, take all the pictures you want" I wish I had known that sooner but I did ask her to go give him a hug for one pic. Santa even got down for Annslee to hug him. I told them that I would definitely be back to do our pictures here : )
Here she is hugging someone last year on our family day!
I thought I would add one pic from two years ago : ) Yeah, not really a hug but I love that little face she is making...kinda like "hmm., so this is who I was told about"
Here is what I wrote last year:
We walked into a room with ten other families and our lives were changed forever. I remember waiting for Jia Na to be called out and then we stepped forward and the orphanage director handed us a precious gift..our daughter. I held her and at that moment I thanked God for every moment in my life that had led to this. I had dreamed of being a mommy and it was finally a reality. There really are no words to adequately describe holding your child for the first time while ten other families are doing the same thing. It was a crazy, loud, chaotic and wonderful delivery room experience. Our lives are forever tied to the other families we shared this with.
You could ask me years from now about the room and I think I could describe every inch of it. I could recall the rain outside and the nervous excitement in the air. I would be able to see the words "Thank you for all of your love pouring on the children" written in English and Mandarin on the wall behind us. I would remember she was holding tightly to a green veggie stick and wearing Spider Man shoes. I would still see the sweet smile she flashed at Mr. Chen (the orphanage director) right before he handed her to me and then the look of confusion as she turned to us. I would still be able to feel the weight of her in my arms for the first time and the ultimate unconditional love we felt for her at that moment.
You can go here to read more about last year and see those pics : ) There will be more Family Day activities and of course more pics to come.
I can't believe how much she has grown but I also know she is still a baby. For all of you waiting families out there...it does happen and it is so remarkable!
