| "Little" Sisters |
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Andy and I adopted our daughter, Abby, from Fuling in December 2005. We always knew that we did not want an only child. We had a wonderful experience with our first trip to China that we knew we would adopt another child from China. We began our paperwork for our second adoption.
We could emotionally, financially, and medically care for a special needs child. I called and talked to Karla and Dena and they helped us switch to the special needs program. We began planning for our child and looking at our insurance to make sure a variety of conditions would be covered. Karla called and asked if I was sitting down and proceeded to tell me that there was a little girl in Xining, China waiting for us. She was missing the tips of two fingers on her left hand. I woke Andy up and gave him the news and we checked the email photos that Karla sent. Our only concern was that she was only four months younger than Abby.
We discussed the pros and cons of having tw two year olds and decided to accept our beautiful Lin Jia Yuan. We could not believe how fast our referral came and that there were no medical or surgical needs. I had her medical information reviewed and one of the plastic surgeons I work with reviewed her information and photos and did not see the need for any surgery. We scrambled and completed our paperwork and began preparing Abby for becoming a somewhat big sister.
We got several updated photos and measurements during our wait to travel and they were priceless. We had a log in date of April 5, 2007 and we were given approval to travel in August. We left for China on August 30 to bring our Sophie home. We traveled with one other family also from Ohio. We were able to see the Great Wall, Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square and Olympic Stadium. We were again reminded of China’s amazing history and beauty. We traveled to Xining and we had Sophie! She was beautiful and so strong! She was a little unsure at first but within a couple of hours, she was laughing and playing with us. She ate almost anything and was completely potty trained.
We were able to visit the orphanage and meet Sophie’s foster mom. Her foster mom was an amazing woman! We had sent a care package and she took several photos of Sophie with her foster family. It was obvious that she was loved and cared for. Sophie was able to speak to her foster dad and brother on the phone. Then we were able to tour the orphanage. It was for children with special needs. They had physical therapy and rehab rooms and a teacher from America. Sophie was able to visit her friends and show us her bed. All of the children were smiling and happy. It was amazing!
Now that we are home, Sophie continues to flourish. She is picking up English pretty quickly and eats and sleeps well. Abby is adjusting to being a big sister and Sophie is the perfect fit for our family. We had a wonderful second trip to China and enjoyed spending time with Zhou. He once again kept things running smoothly with going back to China for another child with special needs. Each day, we can see them getting closer and know that they will be the best of friends someday. We are truly blessed to have our girls!
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