Our BFT (Part II -- Our China Family Reunion)

Friday, we celebrated Sarah's 2nd birthday at a store where the kids pick out an animal and have it stuffed.  It was so fun to party with all the little girls and their families.  Try as she could, Sarah couldn't blow out her candle, but she entertained the crowd with her attempt.  She chose a big golden retriever as a keepsake.  It looks suspiciously like her beloved Va-va.  The group was so sweet -- they pitched in and bought an outfit for the dog, complete with frilly skirt, sneakers, and hat.  She looks adorable.

After the party, we went to the aquarium, which Sarah LOVED.  One of the families has three older girls, and six-and-a-half-year-old Ava stuck with us throughout the tour, pushing the stroller and entertaining Sarah.  She sat with us at dinner, too, which allowed Don and me to enjoy the meal a little more than usual.  It was the closest we'll ever get to having an au pair.

On Saturday, we had planned to visit the C*ncinnati Zoo, but the weather forecast was for record heat and humidity, so we switched to the C*ncinnati Museum.  It's in an old train depot and very impressive.  This time, Ava's older sister Bella hung out with us and doted on Sarah.  We saw the natural history museum in the morning and the children's museum in the afternoon.  The children's museum was incredible -- so many fun things to do.  Sarah loved the big net enclosure with thousands of balls to load into machines and shoot around.  She also enjoyed the slide...the girl loves to slide.

Saturday evening, we all ate at a Chinese restaurant.  It was chaos, with seven toddlers enjoying their meals (notice I didn't say "eating") and running around.  I'm sure our section had to be closed for industrial cleaning after we left.  After dinner, we took some group photos.  Last year in China, the girls had a red couch; this year, they had a black curb.  Oh, well.  Sarah was completely different this time around.  She worked the camera like a seasoned celebrity.

Here's last year's photo:

And this year's:

And our China "family":

It was so much fun seeing all of these families again.  We share a special bond that will only tighten over the years, I believe.  The girls aren't old enough to play together too much, but I know they'll grow close in time.  We're all part of a magical experience powered by love.  It's a gift to us all.