I wonder

Lately, several times a day I find myself saying " I wonder where she gets that from?"

I wonder where she gets her love of reading from - her biological mom or her real mom - who can read a book in an hour or two if left alone to my own devices.

I wonder if her biological parents even know how to swim or did she develop her love of water from her brother & sister and from hours at the pool and the beach.

I wonder if she has her bio mom's or dad's eyes? Who gave her those cow licks and those sweet cheeks?

I wonder if her love of music something her real dad taught her or was she born with it? Does she have music in her genes or in her heart?

For an parent of a China child, we will never know what genes our child inherited from the parents that gave them life. We can't distinguish between genetic behavior and learned behavior. We wonder about their medical history and the circumstances that led them to the SWI. There is a gap in their history that will always be unknown and we, along with our children, will wonder about it from time to time.

What I know is that I am not an adoptive mom, I am a real mom. I do not wonder who will comfort my child when she needs it, who will celebrate her victories and mourn her losses with her, or where her security will come from. I do not wonder about the depth of our love for her, or those around her. I do not wonder if she will ever be alone again - I know she will not.

I also do not wonder if any of this matters - I know it does not. Her heavenly Father knows the answers to all these questions - and that is enough for me. If we do our job as her real parents well, she too will know that and it will be enough for her.

The invasion of the Ladybugs

It's been a week filled with ladybug sightings!! It all started on Sunday afternoon, with a birthday party for Becky's friend, Gracie. Gracie loves ladybugs, so hers was a ladybug party - and it was a great party!

Becky wore her ladybug dress, and spent a lot of time in the bouncer. It was nice because the only two "big" kids there were siblings of a little one, so we didn't have to worry about the toddlers getting bounced around too hard! I actually forgot for a moment that I had surgery 4 days before hand, and took Becky in the bounce house initially (bad move!).

There was a very cool craft of painting & decorating a rock into a ladybug; Becky takes her craft making very seriously

so is this the coolest cake ever??????

Then - as the grande finale to an already great party, there was a ladybug release. Can you tell who is the most excited here?

Not the most flattering picture of anyone - but we did get a picture with all the kids which is a feat in & of itself!

The next ladybug sighting came yesterday at a very fun halloween party hosted by our good friend Ryan (actually - by his mommy!). Ladybugs - as well as pirates, fairies, princesses and bees, were in attendance.

In the middle of all the guests, Becky decided it is time to try riding a tricycle. She has never been on one, and I was inside when I glanced out on the patio & she had climbed on & was trying to gain forward momentum. Of all the times - she picks the most crowded place - on an incline - to get adventurous! She did pretty well, and spent a fair amount of time on the trike - so I am suspecting there's a radio flyer in her future...Christmas is coming....

The third ladybug sighting was today - at a Halloween festival and classical concert. The Cerritos Performing Arts Center had a kids concert and carnival, so we all headed over to have some fun. Becky was totally enthralled by the violin players - and I couldn't take pictures inside, but during the concert every time the violins were featured in a piece, she would turn & say "violins, mommy, violins" and get really excited.

how cute is my little girl bug???

bugs and bees....

For those not familiar with China adoption rhetoric, the ladybug is the symbol that has been unofficially adopted by the chinese adoptive parents community as the mark of good luck and good news in the adoption world. We have not heard anything from China on Katie's adoption paperwork yet - but I like to think that all the sightings of her sister as a ladybug have to be pointing towards something good!

Wordless Wednesday

The very unexpected

As evident from these photos, I had an unexpected visit to our local medical center this week. Tuesday night, I started experiencing severe abdominal pains. By Wednesday morning, it was apparent that I should see a doctor. Long story very short - they took out my toxic appendix on Wednesday night and I got to have a delightful 3 day "vacation" at St. Jude Heritage Hospital. Becky did great staying with daddy - and a HUGE thanks to those who stopped by the house to help with her or the hospital to visit with me!

It's a party world for our party girl

This weekend was party time in little Miss Becky's world!

On Friday night, the Lucky Mommy's braved the crowds to kick off the Halloween season at Mickey's Trick or Treat Party. California Adventure park was shut down, and for a paltry $30 (yes - $30 per person!!!) we got the privilege of joining several thousand other parents and their costumed offspring to collect $5 worth of candy at trick or treat stations! The park was decked out for the occasion - and so were the Lucky Mommy kids!

Even this Lucky Mommy got into the spirit - Becky was girl bug & mommy was a ladybug! I need to pause here a moment & tell you that I am not - nor have I ever been - a fan of this particular season. When I revealed this fun fact about myself to a couple of friends (whom I won't name - but they know who they are!!) - they were confused; it had never occurred to them that someone could not like Halloween. So- in a spirit of newfound flexibility~I am trying to change my perspective!

Becky very quickly got into the spirit of trick or treating - she had an absolute ball!

Poor Kailee - she just couldn't stay awake for the final photo opportunity (actually - she rallied right after this & Becky melted down - I had to carry her from the park to the car - about 1/2 mile!)

Saturday, we all slept in! That afternoon, we headed up to Malibu for a very special wedding. Our dear friend Ann married off her little boy Dan to a wonderful girl (who happens to make amazing jewelry - you must check it out here). It was Becky's first wedding, and it was held at a camp up in the Malibu Hills - but even though it was in the woods, they asked us to dress to the nines - so we did!

She loves her daddy - he's definitely her best man :)

No matter how dressed up...snack is still snack!

One of the coolest things about the wedding was that Ann had so many dear friends there - in this pictures of 7 friends are hundreds of combined years of friendship! It was awesome for us to meet the people that Ann holds dear.

So - it was a festive filled weekend for hte party girl - who wanted to know today "party?"! We may have started something here!

It's all in the family

Family can be defined a lot of ways - there's family by blood, family through Christ and people who you just plain love like they are family.

Don and his bride Roni are people who we love like they are family. We met them through business, but the bond has transcended the beer world. Last Sunday, they happened to be on the correct coast - and we got to spend a little time with them. Actually - Becky got to spend some time with them :)

Sometimes your family members carry more than their weight!

Sometimes you acquire family members by marriage - like Uncle Mike

Uncle Ken is blood - and Tia Annie has been in my life for so long she is "grandfathered" as family -

Grandma's are the best kind of family

There's also family that is generational - Doug' Aunt Doris is his mom's sister, so being with her & Uncle Chuck is like being with a part of grandma Margy

Family is so many thing - some good, some not as pleasant. There's all the good stuff, all the bad stuff and all the unspoken stuff - but it's all yours. At the end of the day, it's part of who you are and where you've been.