Celebrating Her Special day(Sunday Snapshot)

 

Grace turned 11 in early August.
 That month for us was a crazy busy one with our vacation,
a trip into Chicago, me making a brief trip to Florida to see a friend
 and getting ready for school so

we elected to have her party last weekend.

We had it at a 'Kid Spa' in Madison
where the girls were pampered with manicures,
a glittery faux tattoo, and their choice of a little bit of
makeup to wear.

  

 

 

Oh and their choice of flavor of ice cream.

You can tell by the big smiles all around that they all had a GREAT time!

I love every single one of Grace's sweet friends

and we cherish their friendships.

 

 At an age where Grace still loves to play with her American Girl dolls
but would like to start wearing a little makeup,
she is definitely a tween.
And I'm taking in every moment of this time in her life.

 

She is Eleven

And then my soul saw you and kind of went,
"Oh there you are. I've been looking for you."
~ Iain Thomas

I sometimes wonder if I'm supposed to love her as much as I do.
She is my muse, my inspiration (many times) with
photography, my heart and my daughter.
I will protect her fiercely until the day I die.

We know nothing about the circumstances of her birth or her birth parents.
But maybe we do know some about them through Grace.
Most likely they are soft spoken, kind hearted, sensitive,
artistic and striking in appearance.

What we do know is that the names she has been given fit her.
In China, she was named Fu Lan Li which means 'beautiful orchid' -
and then we named her Grace which couldn't be a more perfect name for her.
Orchids are sturdy flowers that need the right environment to grow and thrive.
When she came to us, she was just 12 mos. old - not talking or walking yet.
Now 10 years later at age 11, she has blossomed into a young lady who carries

herself with grace.

Yes she is beautiful but it goes much much deeper than the surface.
Grace is a kind and thoughtful person.
She is loving, creative and turns simple things into
works of art and beauty.
Recently on our vacation I found three long scraggly roots on
the beach and braided them to make a rope.
Grace turned it into a beautiful crown decorated with flowers and leaves.
She didn't say a word about it.
She just made it, put it on her head and acted like it
was supposed to be that way.

Every day she makes us smile.
Laughter comes easily and often to her and it puts a smile on my heart.
Her hugs and kisses warm my soul.
I can't imagine our lives without her or how diminished the world would
be if her light didn't shine.
Thank you God for the delightful gift you have given us.
We are blessed beyond our dreams.

May all your hopes and dreams come true,
Happy Birthday, Grace!

Taken about two weeks ago before sunset
in the beautiful fields of Southern Wisconsin.
 

Birthday Girl (Sunday Snapshot)

{Grace and friends celebrating her 10th} 

I've been a mom for a very long time and I always try to make each of my children's birthday celebrations special. They have input about what they'd like to have for a party.
Some years the parties are family ones, some years they celebrate with friends.

Most of the time if the request is reasonable we can find a way to do it.

Grace (my little artist) loves to draw, paint and create. 

When she mentioned she'd like to have a party where she and her friends could get together and make something, I had the perfect place in mind... 

Located in Middleton, WI....Confectionique is a French inspired vintage craft market that sells the most beautiful things. One of the owners, Jessica(in the photos) teaches all kinds of classes.
May I add that Jessica is as sweet as a person can possibly be. 

The girls made little pink and white cakes out of Sculpey clay that they cut and rolled out that eventually were decorated and baked.

And of course they had to celebrate with cupcakes all around!

 

This was a treat for me because I thoroughly enjoyed myself just watching the girls interact, create and help my daughter celebrate her special day. I loved capturing Grace and her friends and some of the details of this adorable shop. 

The first image was taken with my Nikon d700.

35mm 1.4 lens

f/2

ISO 800

1/160 sec.

All were quickly edited in Photoshop with Florabella's

Classic Workflow actions. I used Classic Color,

with Ivory Boost and 1968.

She is 10 (Sunday Snapshot)

Dear Grace,

 Happy Birthday! Today you turn 10 years old...wow... We can't help but think back to the little baby we brought home nearly 9 years ago. So sweet and innocent...not much has changed in that department. You have grown so much - physically, mentally and emotionally. Though you are still a girl, we can see the beginnings of the young woman you will become. 

When you have children of your own one day (through biology or adoption), you'll find that you never know what you're going to get. Everyone is different and all have their strengths and weaknesses. We've been blessed to have you - which is where we got your name in the first place...By the Grace of God. your name couldn't be more appropriate. You're full of grace, carry yourself with grace...and we delight in being a part of your life because you brighten ours so much. 

There are so many things that you'll learn over the next 10 years that we can't begin to tell you everything. Instead, we'll give you some advice gathered through our own life experiences.

 1) Be happy. This is easily said but requires work every day. Every day of life is full of good and bad things; winning, losing, happiness, sadness, hard work, pain, good luck, bad luck, accomplishments and failures. It's all there and we all control how we respond to it. Focus on the good, fun and enjoyable things in life. There are so many. Get through the hard times...."Hit, lift and drive," as Grandpa likes to say. Bad times will happen but once they're in the past, they don't seem that bad. 

2) Let your light shine. You've always been a happy, joyful person who loves to laugh and smile. You can brighten a gloomy night and bring a smile to sad faces. Share your joy and love of life. Don't be afraid to take risks or be yourself. There will be mean unhappy people in the world who will be jealous of your happiness. Ignore them and don't let them steal your smile or joy. 

3) Challenge yourself. Set your own goals and don't take the easy road. We grow by stretching ourselves out of our comfort zone; by trying and learning new things. Self confidence comes from achieving what we set out to do. If we let others set goals for us, we'll always be trying to live up to someone else's standard. Set your own course and enjoy the ride.

4) Lastly, be strong. You don't need to be told this but it's good to remind yourself from time to time. Whether you realize it or not, you have overcome tremendous obstacles and challenges in your short life. There will be more but you have a strong spirit and your inner strength will carry you the rest of your life.

 It is a gift from God.

 Never let it go.

Grace, you're a wonderful daughter, a great sister and a beautiful person - inside and out.
We thank God every day that you're a part of our lives.
Happy Birthday darling.











I chose the first image as my favorite because of Grace's expression.
The last one makes me cry every time I look at it, I imagine
she looks very much like her birth mother.
A woman who I honor and pray for especially on this day.

Nikon d700
35mm 1.4 lens
f/2.5
ISO 200
1/640 sec.

The location was the Wisconsin Historical Society Building
on the UW Madison campus.
The stone on the steps and walkway were a natural reflector.

I wanted to do something special for her 10 year old portraits
and that's why we chose the silver embellished crown.
It's handmade by Kelly of the Love Crush Bowtique.
You can find her here and here.

Sunday Snapshot - A Merry (Birthday) Christmas

Guess who's 6 years old?

Will!

His birthday is Christmas Day but we celebrate it
a little early. Otherwise there's just
too much going on and his birthday gets lost
in the day.

At age 6, Will is:

confident,

handsome,

smart,

athletic (he may be teaching his hip hop class pretty soon),

funny,

a love bug,

loves Kindergarten, his teacher,

and his family.

He's grown more emotionally in the last year
than in the previous 2 years combined.
When I look at these pictures, I see a very happy little boy.
We've come a long way
and I'm happy we've made the journey!

a sweet celebration

Last week Grace celebrated her 9th birthday with 7 of her friends
at the Bloom Bake Shop in Middleton.
Occupying an absolutely precious space in the downtown area,
the bakery has definitely found it's niche.

Annemarie, the owner can really throw a party!
The girls got a full tour of the shop,
learned how to make a batch of yummy chocolate chip cookies (which they each took home later),
and played a game of 'Pin the candle on the cupcake.'

After choosing a name for the bakery's newest  bright green Kitchen Aid mixer...

they decided on the name 'Clover,'

(which we thought was perfect...)

The girls then made a little craft project (a pin)
and learned the proper way to frost a cupcake.
It has to have the perfect swirl and Annmarie made it look much easier than it is to do.
After singing Happy Birthday to Grace,
the cupcakes were eaten immediately and declared delicious.

Grace and her friends (love those beautiful smiles on the girls).
What a fun way to celebrate age 9!!

32/52 - birthday girls

They were nursery mates in their orphanage in China and share the same birthday.

We first met Julia's parents in our pre- travel to China group meetings almost exactly 8 years ago.

During the Summer they see each other frequently and Julia's mom and I make sure it's a priority to 

get these best friends together.

These were taken on their birthday at Julia's house. 

Their personalities compliment each other perfectly...we're so happy that the girls have each other!

Grace is 9

On the other side of the world does she remember and wonder?
 We share a daughter.


I think of your birth mother often but especially on this day...the day of your birth.

I know very little about her except that

she tried for a while to keep you, Grace.

And I believe she loved you very much.

I wish I could meet this woman some day and tell her what you're like.

I know she'd be incredibly proud...

Could she have ever dreamed that her beautiful baby girl would become

a sensitive, thoughtful, smart, joyful, compassionate and funny 9 year old?

Who loves to laugh, play games, dance, draw and create.

Grace is a wonderful friend and sister, daughter and Granddaughter.

Those who meet her, never forget her.

Happy Birthday!
You are 9.

May all your hopes and dreams come true on this special day...my sweet, sweet Grace.
As we celebrate your day of birth I also honor this woman who gave you life 9 years ago in China,
and say thank you...