We were so excited to celebrate Emma's 3rd birthday - her first with our family.
Last year we celebrated her second birthday half a world apart and about 6 weeks from meeting her. We'd been hopeful that we'd arrive in China before her birthday and we could celebrate together, but the delay we experienced with transferring agencies prevented us from traveling until April. We celebrated as a family of 4 with Krispy Kreme Doughnuts and a candle the boys blew out as we sang happy birthday to Emma. We sent a birthday cake to Emma at her orphanage - wow, what a cake! She was able to eat cake and celebrate her special day with her nannies and friends.
Before we traveled, we supplied the orphanage with a flash drive, and they filled it with photos they'd taken of Emma every month she was in their care. What a blessing to have these photos - a glimpse into her life from about 6 weeks old until 2 years, 6 weeks old.
Here's Emma celebrating her first birthday - not quite the extravagant cake our courier delivered for birthday #2, but a kind gesture by the nannies and orphanage to take time to celebrate her first birthday. It looks like baby girl has ALWAYS loved frosting!
Some days I'm sad to think that I'll never be able to tell Emma her birth story like I can Ian and Aidan - about how we arrived at the hospital at crazy o'clock in the morning, being prepped for a c-section and seeing her the moment she took her first breath. We don't know any of those details. We don't know her birth weight, height or time of birth. We know she was born Tuesday, February 28, 2012 and was abandoned March 28, 2012 and arrived at the orphanage about 2 weeks later.
What I know about that time in February, March and April 2012 is that we had countless appointments, tests and procedures with specialists trying to conceive our 3rd child. It was a heartbreaking time in our life. We had no idea that our baby had been born oceans away and had arrived at her temporary home just as we began exploring the possibility of international adoption in April 2012. God's timing is impeccable. During the 2011-2012 school year, I'd been helping with preschool choir each week. On occasion my partner in crime our other leader Ellen had to travel for work. Each time she was absent, she'd ask her friend Angie to fill in for her. I recognized Angie from church - but we are members of a large church with two Sunday morning services and I didn't really know her. So from time to time, I had the opportunity to chat with Angie during her substitute choir helper nights and I learned they were well into the process of adopting their daughter from China. Being able to hear their experience really encouraged us along our journey to Emma. Make no mistake - God's timing is perfect and I will always be thankful for the broken time in our lives and the people God placed in our path because it led us to Emma.
This photo is my favorite - it's the first photo of Emma we have. By the file date, it appears it was taken 2 years exactly to our Gotcha Day. She was 6 weeks old, had just arrived at the orphanage and that's the sweet nanny who loved Emma for 2 years.
Y'all - isn't she beautiful?? Our tiny little princess was a beautiful baby - chunky cheeks, rosey lips and looks just like our sweet girl now.
So we were beyond excited to finally be able to celebrate a special day with our amazing little girl!
It's a Small World After All - the perfect party theme for our Chinese princess. I might enjoy planning a party. Here's our hot air balloon photo area and Emma's 3rd birthday chalkboard.
We had a craft table where the children created a Chinese lantern. They did a great job - they were so colorful and creative! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for assisting with the craft table.
Keeping with the It's a Small World theme, we had hot air balloons as decorations throughout the house. Thanks Mimi for the tedious help in assembling all the lantern balloons and holding the ladder while I hung them.
We had a dessert buffet and invited guests to stop by during the afternoon so Emma wouldn't be overwhelmed with too many guests at one time.
Thanks Mimi for cutting out ALL the adorable It's a Small World characters to make picks for the cupcakes.
We had a photo area with a child size hot air balloon.
And it didn't take long for Emma to figure out opening birthday gifts - there were lots of "oohs" and smiles! I can't rightly say, but on Monday following her party she might have said when she woke up and came downstairs, "Emma party? Emma open presents?" I think she knows about birthday parties now! And we've overheard a time or ten her singing Happy Birthday to Emma over the baby monitor before she falls asleep.
And she very quickly learned to say, "Chris, open" - and her uncle Chris would take the new toy out of the packaging.
And a big brother or two enjoyed her party as well!
Emma was a tired girl when the party over - but she had a fantastic time celebrating her first birthday in the US with family and friends.
Our party guests left with yummy white chocolate candy bars and the younger guests left with a special "where in the world" map puzzle.
