Growth, patriotism and....candy!

So, this past week, we've done some growing. On Tuesday, Kevin and I went out to dinner. Alone. This is the first time we have gotten a sitter (she is fabulous!) and gone out without Joy. She did beautifully! Yay! When we came home, I noticed how happy she was to see us and how she ran past Daddy and headed for me. Huh. She's a Daddy's girl. So, I got to thinking...uh oh. When Kevin isn't home, Joy always asks me when Daddy will be home. When I go out, she asks if I'm coming back. Huh. Somehow, I kind of thought that a bus went around to all the foster families' homes and picked up the girls and brought them to us. Why I thought that, I have no idea. But, what if the foster mother dropped her off at the orphanage and left? So, I mentioned it to my friend Susan (Hi Susan!- Who's sailing about the Atlantic and hasn't emailed in a week.....sob!) and she said that the foster moms bring the girls to the orphanage every month and leave them for the day. A week before we arrived in China, they brought them to the orphanage and left them for good. Light bulb. No wonder she is concerned when I go out without her. Sniffle....

Like every other family, we hit the 4th of July festivities this weekend! We went to a parade in Shabbona, which is a tiny town just West of us. They have a lovely, smalltown parade. There were fireman shooting the kids with water, water balloons, horses, old fire engines and, the most important part......candy! Joy can work a crowd, and placed her little chair right on the street and started waving. She is too little to understand patriotism, but her mother isn't. I may have swallowed and sniffled a bit as I watched my little girl smile and wave to the soldiers, who paused to smile back. We went to see the fireworks at the state park in Shabbona, and that was beautiful! Probably the best display I've seen and such a perfect setting. Joy sat on my lap and sang Twinkle, twinkle little star and then said, "Mommy, I'm so happy!" I think we all were! Kevin's parents were here for the weekend and his brother and sister in law came and we just had a nice time visiting and eating. Boy! Did we eat!