What a difference 10 days make.

This is SS's Chinese passport, or as P proudly calls it, "her communist passport." P really likes this document, because it is one of the few things we have of our girl before we met. The picture was taken on or about July 4 2008, and if you are one of our three readers, you know that is the date when we departed from SFO to China (via Tokyo). As grateful as I am to have this picture of SS, it hurts my heart. Look at her eyes, talk about deer caught between headlights. She also looks so gaunt, lifeless, my little girl was scared. Being her Mama, I am upset that I was not there to ease her fears.

This picture was taken July 17, 2008, ten days after we met. It was freaking hot in Guangzhou and that explains the bad hair. SS was sweaty and again, a tad bewildered by what was going on around her. It took many shots before the photographer settled on this picture. It was partly my fault, because I kept snapping away, messing up his pictures. It was my only (I think) ugly American moment in China.

Anyhoo, there is a reason why I posted this picture. Look at her face, there is a noticeable difference. In the ten days we had her, SS managed to put on some cheeckage (I'm sure I made that word up), some flesh on her beautiful face. This picture is a painful reminder of what our daughter went through before we met. When we were not there to make things better. When she had three 8 ounce bottles of formula a day, at 15 months. Maybe that explains why P and I are so @nal about making sure she eats well. Yes, we to tend to indulge her, but, how can we not do so?