I know it hasn't been long since I posted this picture, for my brothers birthday back on August 27. It is the one that made me decide to spend this month with old stories and old family pictures.
My parents were sure that they could never conceive another child after I was born, and then one day asked me what I thought of the idea of a baby in the family. I thought having a little sister would be wonderful and told them so. I hadn't known that the reason I had been having a babysitter once a week was because they were attending pre adopt meetings. At that time adoptions were very secretive things and babies were placed far from their family of birth. So we had to drive nine hours to pick up the six month old baby boy. I gave up the idea of a sister as soon as I saw his picture and fell in love.
The worst part for me was that my Dads big sister came to see the baby and decided that a new baby and my long hair were too much work for my mom, and gave me a pixie cut. I hated it and soon started school where I became known as Pixie-Dixie but wasn't allowed to grow out my hair for a few years.
I did love having a baby brother. But we hadn't had him long before he ended up in the hospital with pneumonia and children were not allowed in as visitors. I wasn't happy that the took my baby away, and even angrier when mom bought him a stuffed panda. I cried and begged and got her to give it to me. So then she bought another, this one in powder blue and pink to take to him in the hospital. My panda still gives me a twinge of guilt- even knowing that sibling rivalry is common and knowing that little girl was missing her brother and being the center of her parents attention - I still cringe about trying to steal the toy from a sick baby.
When we first brought him home, he became hysterical at night. The social worker only told us it was because he had been used to sleeping in a crib with two other babies. I was never sure if that meant he had been a triplet or merely that there were a lit of babies in his pre adopt foster home
Now 46 years later, and the mom of an adopted boy myself-I can say adoption is a wonderful way to build a family.
That is so sweet! I'm sorry no one thought to teach you how to take care of your own hair and only cut it a little bit shorter. I do know about those short hair cuts though. Mine was short too. And I was called Twiggy. Sure wish I fit that description now!
September 14th, 2014
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