One Year Later {Seeing her face}

On September 27th, 2011, I was trying not to be sad that another month had passed without being matched with our baby in China.  The monthly shared list had been released the night before and we hadn't received "the call."  I was making dinner when my phone buzzed, letting me know a new email had arrived in my "adoption only" email account.  I opened the email on my phone and it literally changed my world...

In a matter of seconds, my mind was processing what I was seeing...a September baby with a heart defect...and when I saw her... I started sweating and almost hyperventilating!

I knew right then I had seen my daughter's face.

I can't even explain how it felt. She was so far away and I basically knew nothing about her except for one thing- that she was meant to be in our family. It felt as certain as if God audibly said, "This is the one. This is the daughter I chose for your family before the world began." 

I called the agency, told them I knew she was ours, and evidently God told them she was ours too. :)  We were not the first family to inquire about her but we were the first family to receive her file and they "locked" her file for us even though we weren't logged in with them.  (I actually asked them to lock her file for us before we even saw her medical file because I knew with this unexplainable certainty that she was our daughter!)

We stared at her photos and tried to soak in every little detail we had about her. We were over the moon in love with a little girl half way around the world!

The very first picture we ever saw of our Fu Xin Meng. She was 9 months old in the photo.
We laughed about how her pants were pulled up high like Brynna wears hers. I imagined how tiny those wrists must feel in person. I loved that someone put her on a plastic sack so her bottom didn't get wet/dirty. She had perfect little lips and big eyes-- with a definite sparkle in them. We were in love.

Prior to that day, I had always assumed we would be matched, get pre-approval from China, and THEN tell our girls (and family & friends) the big news.  Considering we were 13 weeks pregnant with Braylee before spilling the beans, we can keep secrets, but let me tell you... I couldn't keep this one! The girls had been praying daily for years (literally) for a new sibling so we had to tell them! :)

Mommy with all 3 of her girls!

I can't believe it's been a year! We are so thankful to have her home in her forever family!

Here's my POST from last year about that special day!!

Happy #8, Braylee!! {9.22.12}

September 22nd, Braylee turned 8! She is our spunky, talkative little girl!  She looks and acts a lot like her momma- which is good and bad! She has only one volume (loud) and is go, go, go most of the time! She brings us so much laughter with her quirky sayings and silly stories. 



She has been in love with Brielle since the moment she saw her picture.
 

Braylee is very nurturing. She cannot stand to hear Brielle cry (and Brielle knows it and will ask for Braybray when she thinks she is being treated unfairly!). She is so sweet to her sisters. One of the things I love most about Braylee is her willingness to compromise... picking out where to eat, what movie to watch, who gets to go first, etc... she has an opinion but most often lets the other person choose.  She's very "go with the flow" in those areas. I think this is one reason why she has so many friends.

Snuggling Miles

Braylee requires very little sleep. She goes to bed late, wakes up early, and gets up multiple times during the night.  We've tried just about everything to get the girl to sleep all night long but it rarely happens. 

First time staying overnight at Camp Illiana

With Aunt Trista at the hair salon



Little Miss 2012

Some of Braylee's favorite things: her bunny, watching TV (more than she should!), playing Barbies, snuggling with mommy, writing songs, Just Dance on the Wii, chips & dip (She is her mother's child!), Sydney, vacationing, waking up at wee hours of the night, reading devotions with Daddy, tacos and apples.

We had Brynna's friend party on Braylee's actual birthday, but it was still Braylee's special day.  She woke up to a sweet treat, candles, singing, and a gift as is our tradition. In the afternoon, we reminisced about her arrival 8 years ago- including the knee brace she had to wear for her first 2 months. (She had a rough start with a hole in her heart, sepsis with apnea, a cephalohematoma, and a hyperextended right knee. Poor girl had to stay in NICU and then came home with a brace and an apnea monitor. You would never know it now!) In the afternoon, we went for ice cream and played at the park. Then we surprised Braylee with a sleepover at Sydney's house and a trip to her favorite restaurant!

Braylee & Sydney- celebrating at school

 

Happy 8th Birthday, Braylee!

Look how much she has grown!

Trying her brace on one of her dolls

Little sister enjoyed the park too!

My 3 favorite girls!

Finding out about their sleepover!

 

Braylee Annelise~

You are beautiful inside and out! You are so incredibly kind and full of giggles! We are so thankful God has chosen us to parent you! Love you sweetheart!!

 

More pictures here.

Happy #6, Annabelle! {9.20.12}

Our sweet little Brynna Annabelle isn't so little anymore! She is a big kindergartner and seemingly-overnight became a 6 year old! I must admit that I tried to keep her a baby as long as I could. I wasn't sure if or when God would bless us with another baby so I tried to savor the moments of toddlerhood with her.  She is a snuggle bug but also very independent. She has always been our brave girl...when getting shots, stitches, or trying new things. Brynna is opinionated (She planned all of the details of her party.) and determined (When I picked a game for her party, she said she wasn't going to play it and she didn't!). She loves art...drawing, painting, sculpting, dancing, and music. She recently has become quite the little reader! She loved being able to read some of her bday cards all by herself!

Last Fall at Spring Mill

January 2012

Camping over 4th of July at Shakamak 2012

The good witch Glinda- Halloween 2011

Chopped off that gorgeous hair to send to Locks of Love- January 2012

Practicing her chopstick skills to be like her little sister- December 2011

Brynna is often found playing by herself. She has a huge imagination and big dreams. She still loves helping mommy around the house, especially in the kitchen (specifically if it involves baking!). She rocks at being a big sister!!  She is sweet as sugar and continues to be our icing in the middle!

Pre-School Christmas Program

Christmas Recital

Here are some of her favorites:  PINK & purple, mac & cheese, cupcakes, oatmeal, drawing/writing, using tape/scissors/stickers/glue/ribbon/paint to create her artwork, playing music (She LOVES her new drums!), DANCING, and playing with Addison & Emma.

Learning to roller skate in mommy's old skates!- March 2012

First year of softball- May 2012

Pre-School graduation with her teacher- May 2012

Always dressing up!

Such a good big sister!

She is 100% girly girl. She isn't a huge fan of recess (because kids run and get sweaty!) and loves shoes. She recently talked this momma into buying her some high heels. The first night, she wanted to sleep in them! She's always toting lipgloss, fashion glasses, a purse, or some other type of accessory. :)

Celebrating at school. She got to choose 6 "candles" to stand around her as they sang Happy Birthday.
You will notice she chose 5 girls and 1 boy. ;)
(She celebrated at school on the 19th so mommy & Brielle could be there!)

When the song was over, she got to "blow out" her candles. Very cute!

Her birthday- Bright and early before school!

Ready for school as a 6 yr old! 9.20.12

After school, we had pizza and more cake at Gramma's house.

Brynna Annabelle~
We love your squeaky little voice and precious heart! You crack us up and melt our hearts- often at the same time.  We are so thankful for 6 fabulous years with you, fancy girl!!
We Love you!!

More pictures here.

Pool Party

Braylee and her best friend/cousin share the exact same birthday (super special if you ask me!).  This year, they decided to have a pool party! It was fun, easy, and the girls loved it! Braylee said it might just be her favorite party yet! (Mommy is still partial to the lollipop party they had a couple of years ago.)

 

Best Friends & Birthday Girls

Braylee & Emma

Little Sisters

Oh this girl! She was in her hyper mode that day.

 

 

After the party, Sydney & Addison came home with us for a little bit. We have a huge yard and yet the girls almost always find their way out by the golf course to play by the trees.  They were playing "spies."

My tough girls! ;)  Brynna has on "x-ray glasses to see inside buildings" and Braylee has on a magic watch that "says how far away the bad guys are."  Brynna had all kinds of "spy stuff" in her backpack- like a journal to keep track of clues in and a flashlight.

 

Two more parties to go! More Pool Party pictures HERE.