A Smile and a Little Bit of Love go a LONG Way!

We got photos today from Lena's birthday celebration
thanks to Kelly and Angela with Lady Bugs N Love!!!!

And we have a precious smile!!! Yay for a smile and for the nanny in the picture who appears quite smitten with our sweet girl. I am guessing that may be the deaf nanny I have heard about- I will have to look into that. It sure gives me relief after some of the things I have heard about the orphanage. It may be hard for Lena to leave her special nanny, but we know from past experience that if a child has a special bond and has attached to someone in their life that they are way more likely to bond with us and attach. I am praying this will be true for Lena!
And here is what you really came to see! :)

Preparing the cake!

WOW that flame is huge...is that a firework or something? I love her facial expression here!

Trying to show that she is TWO years old!

I love this one because after all the not so good things I heard about this place, it makes me think there is someone there who has a special place in their heart for our little girl. Maybe this is the deaf nanny that I heard about! Precious!

Blowing out the candles!Cakes are a big deal in China! Every child's I have seen has been just as fancy. This cake is beautiful! It is also a tradition to smear frosting on the child's cheeks! Too cute! :)

This is your last birthday without your family!

Celebrating with friends-so glad to see everyone getting a special treat! And from the looks of it, she seems to be the only girl. SO many boys in need of a family....LOVE our sweet boys so my heart just aches for them!

Personalized Name Magnets to Help Bring Lena Home

I have been making personalized name magnets on the side for awhile now, selling them on Etsy. I can basically make anything- I have made some I heart volleyball with stickers for the heart and volleyball, seasonal or holiday sets, cupcakes, you name it! If you are interested in purchasing a set, put a message in the comments section or send me an email to el_lauren@yahoo.com with the name (s) you would like or if you have a personal request. If you are local, I will get them to you. If not, I usually send them via priority mail so be sure to leave me your address. Shipping is $4.95 regardless of the number of sets you buy!

Remember- I can make just about anything- so if you are looking for something in particular, just ask!

You can get any name or initial set as well. These are great for showcasing a child's school work or photos on the fridge or on a filing cabinet at work. I am working on learning how to set-up a chip-in on the blog, but I do have a pay pal account you can send the payment to...open to suggestions, as I am learning! :) My pay pal account is listed as: Brooke Henningfeld and the email listed is the one above.


PERSONALIZED NAMES OR INITIALS- $1 per letter plus a one-time $4.95 priority mail shipping charge no matter how many sets you order! I don't have a whole lot of choice in the color of the letters, but I do try to choose background paper that goes well with the sticker color and that is fitting for the child's gender. Be sure to tell me if it is for a boy or girl if it is a name that is gender neutral or if it is a 2 or 3 letter initial set (all a little bigger than a quarter in size).

2 letters= $2 plus shipping
3 letters= $3 plus shipping
4 letters= $4 plus shipping
5 letters= $5 plus shipping
6 letters= $6 plus shipping
7 letters= $7 plus shipping
8 letters= $8 plus shipping

Fingerprints update and a VERY Happy Birthday to our little girl!

A quick update on the fingerprint appointment. Our appointment date was for Dec. 5th but we decided to try and walk in a few days early (this does not speed up the process) so that our boys would not have to miss a morning of school. We went on Wed. Nov. 31st and were successful! :)
Now to wait for the actual approval....USCIS (immigration) has up to 90 days from our receipt date (Oct. 26th) to approve them. We are on day 46 today, I believe. Current statistics are showing 65-75 days which puts us right around the week between Christmas and New Years, so I am going to take a stab in the dark and guess we will be on the longer end- I think 75 days would be Jan. 9th so I am thinking it will be that week. 90 days would be Jan.. 24th and that is getting too close for comfort since our 6 month deadline China gives us from our pre-approval to get our dossier to China (DTC) is Feb. 1st!! I would rather have a little extra time than be pushing it, if you know what I mean! So we continue to wait!

On a totally different note....December 12th is our little Lena's 2nd birthday! You might be thinking...Brooke, it is Dec. 11th....you are right- it is the 11th here, but it is already the morning of the 12th in China! HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY, LENA GRACE YUJIE! It is bittersweet to be celebrating a birthday of one of your precious children, but to not be able to celebrate together as a family. So we will do the best we can- we will celebrate her birthday tonight as a family- we have a cake with her name on it. We also ordered another care package 2 weeks ago. We sent her a cake, a doll, a few books, another camera for her nannies to get more pictures of her for us, and some candy/nuts for the nannies and possibly for the other children in care there. Here are pictures of that. We cannot wait for the day we get some pictures of our sweetheart with her cake....how exciting it will be to get those! Praying our little love has a wonderful day and rejoicing that it will be her last birthday without her family!

Our family celebrating Lena's 2nd Birthday- her last one without her family!

Nana and Grandpa JP too!

Our boys celebrating their sister's 2nd Birthday!

The cake we got to celebrate, along with Lena's picture and a doll my
mom and step-dad bought for her.

Care package we sent Lena minus the cake!