A Few Firsts

Well I just couldn't go to bed without showing you guys a few of the pre-digital pics that actually figured out how to scan into my computer. The dog got to the vet, the outfits got finished and mailed, bread was made, but the laundry is well......waiting for me to stop living in avoidance mode! Instead of multi-tasking and running loads while I scanned the photos I just walked down memory lane. There are thousands more to scan so I wonder just how long I can go before the underwear and socks are all dirty???

This is the picture that changed our lives forever! Little did Patrick know how his simple act of opening an e-mail would send us down the road of international adoption and thus parenthood. This picture of 16 mos old Mari is the first one we have of her.

The first clear picture we had of Julia! She looks so "normal" in this view but as a preemie who didn't even tip the scales at 5lbs she was the tiniest baby we had ever held!

The first minutes after becoming a citizen!! Yes, that is the lad who was eager to see her "turn white" which is what he thought would happen once she became an "American girl".

The first picture of the sisters! Notice Mari's big smile? That was because she had not yet figured out that Julia was going to be around for a while...a long while....a very, very long while.

The first picture of our whole family! I love that Julia was already smiling for pictures at only 6 weeks old!!!!!

The first time the "gang" met Mari. This was taken moments after we got off the plane as we walked to the luggage area. I had one of those jolts today when I looked at this picture!! In my memory of the moment I recall Mari immediately taking to her cousins and I always tell people how easily she transitioned.....but looking at this record of the moment her blank stare is jumping out at me!!! How did I miss her obvious state of apprehension?? I could just cry for her when I think about how utterly confusing this moment must have been...like being plopped onto the surface of the moon!!!! Though the white lines you see are the strings of balloons which they brought to celebrate the occasion and she did REALLY enjoy that since hers had Barney. This made me feel better though!! Taken the next morning as she explored her new bedroom she is clearly a happy girl!

This is Julia's first birthday! We kept waiting to get the obligatory icing on face shot but noooooo our little birthday girl would only dip her two fingers in the icing and daintily licked them clean. This shot was taken as Mari came to 'encourage' Julia to get dirty :) Really need to find some willpower and get to bed so I have enough energy to spend another day avoiding the laundry room.