California Girl!

Today we went to the Children's Court and had our hearing for Jemma's readopt. This process enabled us to secure a California birth certificate for Jemma in addition to her Chinese birth certificate, which will be easier in the long run. The judge, Judge Henning (pictured), couldn't have been nicer - in fact everyone in the court was so upbeat and sweet. Upon her arrival, Jemma was given a plush orange bear which she loved instantly because orange is her favorite color. She exclaimed, "Orange, so soft!" and we named him Henning on the spot. The judge loved it when Jemma referred to the bear as "Henning" and then he commented on how verbal she was, at which point, she chatted up a storm with him. He invited her to come up behind his desk and she said, "I use the rail, I climb up myself!" This whole process was a victory for us because up until January 2007, famiies choosing to do a readopt had to pay the adoption agency for this service, but now, due to a change in language championed by many determined parents, we are able to facilitate this process ourselves, saving us lots of money. As a result, we are the second family in LA county to complete this process on our own. Yay determined parents, we thank you! Rua was also thrilled to meet Henning and tries to angle her way to snag the little stuffy. We can't decide who is softer, Henning or the newly groomed Labradoodle!