YEAR OF THE DOG...

Happy Chinese New Year!! Yesterday we attended our adoption agency's Chinese New Year Celebration at the Valley Forge Convention Center. They had so many fun activities for the kids. There were puppeteers, clowns, face painting, Chinese dance lessons, hula hoop contest, a "year of the dog" craft project, ice cream sundae bar, a buffet of Chinese and American food, family portraits, a raffle to help raise funds for a new orphanage, a handprint quilt project, Chinese craft vendors and a vendor selling books on adoption and the Chinese culture. There was dancing, dancing and more dancing. What an event!

The festivities may have drawn everyone to the event, but the party was the most fun. Never have I been in a room with so many wonderful people (I would guess over 1000). One would think that such a large event would just be impersonal, but strangely enough it wasn't. Everyone was open and warm and friendly. Sitting on the floor and watching the puppet show, we were surrounded by people we've never met, but we talked and laughed with each other as if we were old friends. The conversation was easy & abundant and the love in the room was almost tangible. At one point during the party I was overwhelmed with the signifcance of the day. The place was packed with families who looked just like ours and how awesome that must be to the older kids. It was great to see Chinese kids (of all ages) so happy and well adjusted and just having a blast. (We even tried to recreate the "red couch photo" on the red carpet, but the kids had their own agenda. 11 of the 14 babies were at the celebration. It was great to see everyone & afterward we migrated to the home of a family from our travel group - we just weren't finished partying.) I hope the pictures do it justice.

I'm already looking forward to next year...