a Pretty Pink Princess Party...

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!
Princesses, Princes, Knights & Jesters
Her Royal Highness,
Princess "Little Miss",
is turning three years old!

In celebration of this joyous occasion,
The King and Queen request
the honour of your presence at a royal soiree.
Come One, Come All,
in your finest royal PINK attire
for an afternoon of dainty delicacies
Princess "Little Miss" and her Royal Court
will be eagerly awaiting your arrival!

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{spoken in the Queen Mum's best British accent}

Fourteen members of the Royal Family accepted the invitation to a royal soiree honoring Princess "Little Miss". A "Pretty Pink Princess Party" was her hearts desire and that is, indeed, what she was bestowed. At her request, the castle was decorated in the pinkest of the pink. The Princess and the Queen Mum could not have been more pleased...
The royal menu of dainty delicacies was quite superb. Many of the Princesses pink favorites were served: strawberries filled with pink icing, pink butter cookies, watermelon, royal pink fruit dip, ham party spirals, strawberry ice cream and Pinkity Pink Punch. The fairest of all delicacies was the beautiful castle cake made by none other than Queen Rebekah (one of the Queen Mum's besties). It was a table fit for royalty.Both the Princess in real life and the mini-Princess gazing from the turret window had smiles upon their faces. Everyone in the land was filled with joy at the mere sight of her happiness. The Princess smiled shyly as her party guests sang a lovely rendition of Happy Birthday...
She had a tiny bit of trouble blowing out the trio of candles but with several huffs and puffs she was able to snuff them out. The Prince was quite proud of her great accomplishment...After devouring many dainty delicacies it was time to open gifts. The Princess received many wonderful packages of pink. It is quite obvious she is loved immensely by those in the Royal Family. The King suggested she was channelling her inner "Punky Brewster" in this photograph. Indeed...
After a lovely afternoon it was time to say goodbye to her royal guests. "What? They must leave? But why?" she asked.
All pretty pink princess parties must come to an end Princess "Little Miss". However, it was agreed unanimously by all members of the Royal Family that a lovely time was had by all.

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Little Miss,

We hope your day was special and everything you dreamed a Pretty Pink Princess Party would entail. You bring so much joy to those who know you. Your sweet smile, contagious laugh and fascination with anything that sparkles make our hearts swell with love for the little girl you are becoming. We love you all the way to the moon and back again.

Love,
King Chief, Queen Mum,
Prince Wild Man and the Royal Family

Now you see it--Now you don't...

I knew our Letter of Seeking Confirmation was due to arrive today. We stalked the front door all morning waiting for Mr. Express Mail to ring the bell. By noon I realized Mr. Express Mail must have forgotten Websters definition of "express". What's a few more hours when you've waited this long, right? Finally, at 2 pm Mrs. Postal Mail shows up.When I opened the door I audibly gasped at the sight of the stack of mail she was handing me. There she stood holding one of the most important envelopes ever delivered to this address along with our regular mail--here's the kicker--FOLDED and RUBBER BANDED together. Do you know what I'm talking about? Like when you receive one too many catalogs or magazines in your mailbox? They fold the catalogs in half, stick the mail in the middle and strap a fat rubber band around the stack holding it all together? I have issues with paper...I know...I know... I flattened it out as best I could and dove head first into another frantic paperwork party. After a very hectic 3 hours and 41 minutes, our I800 petition was signed, sealed and delivered to FedEx with 4 minutes to spare. How's that for cutting it close? It is currently winging it's way to Chicago along with 1/2 inch of supporting documentation (I wonder how many trees we have destroyed in this process?).

The document itself is the first official document linking our family to MeiMei... The Chief signing his name on the dotted line. The next time we sign an official document with her name on it we'll be holding her in our arms!!Our envelope should arrive in Chicago tomorrow morning before 10 AM. We should know in 2-3 weeks if we've been approved. For now, I bet you will never guess what we have to do. That's right. We wait...

GUESS WHAT ARRIVED TODAY!!!!!!!

WOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! WE ARE OFFICIALLY OFFICIALLY APPROVED!!!!!! Day 84!!!!!!!! The call came at 3:01 pm. I'm about to burst with joy! We are going to relish in it before we even think about moving on to the I800 process. Our package will be overnighted to us on Monday. We should receive it on Tuesday and send it out to Chicago Lockbox ASAP. In the meantime, we're off to celebrate...

Celebrating the Birthday Girl...

This week is VBS and Little Miss happens to be in a class with many of her church and MDO pals. In her honor I made cupcakes to celebrate and left my camera with her teachers. Here are a few from the party on her real birthday.
After VBS and a good nap, the birthday girl chose Mexican for dinner. She enjoyed her favorite Mexican specialties (plain taco and rice). When the servers came out to sing Feliz Cumpleanos (Happy Birthday in Spanish) she was shocked. She was even more dumbfounded when our server painted her face with whipped cream...
but when they all walked away she thought it was hysterical...
Our aspiring photographer was gifted her very own camera so she will stop stealing mine so she can perfect the art of a great capture. She could not have been more excited! Can you tell?
Gifts from the Wild Man...
I can't believe she is already THREE! It seems like yesterday I was praying for a healthy happy well rounded little girl to join our family--dreaming about what she would look like--wondering who she would become. He has answered every prayer ten fold. Happy Birthday Little Miss. I love you.

Let Her Eat Cake (for breakfast)...

It's one day a year. Everyone should eat cupcakes for breakfast on their birthday! It's a fun tradition. Happy Happy Birthday Little Miss!

Cute as cute can possibly be---Little Miss is turning THREE!

She's a bundle of sweetness, brightness & fun

The beauty of springtime, the warmth of the sun

She's Innocence covered with mud, sand, & soot

She's Motherhood dragging a doll by the foot...

She's a composite picture of giggles & tears

Of tantrums, excitement, amusement & fears

A bundle of mischief and often a tease

A creature of moods not easy to please...

Who'll capture your heart with her pixie-like grin

Or chatter and beg till your patience wears thin

But obedient, naughty, mischievous or coy
She's Mom's little Darling & Dad's Pride & Joy.

Happy 3rd Birthday Little Miss. We love you all the way to the moon and back again.

What Is a Little Girl (author unknown) -- photos captured Aug 2008 to June 2009