Merry, Merry, Merry Christmas! *insert music here*

Hi everyone, it's Reese! MERRY CHRISTMAS! (Or Happy Holidays to those of you who don't celebrate Christmas) Yes, I know that I'm a day late, but I was busy with my family yesterday. Here is our family Christmas portrait for 2012:

And here is a fun little behind-the-scenes shot:

As you can most likely tell, the theme of this year's Christmas portrait was historical eras. We all chose one era to dress like, just for fun and to make a bright and merry Christmas card as well. We wanted to represent how Christmas has been through all of the ages. Nellie and Samantha represented our very own era of 2012. Isabella represented the mid-19th century. Emma, Becca, and I dressed as girls from the early 20th century.

On Christmas Day, we all awoke to the sound of what we believed to be sleigh bells on our roof. The sound was so wonderful that it couldn't have been anything else! Running downstairs, arm in arm, we saw a pile of presents under the Christmas tree! It was a truly magical Christmas morning to see the joy and excitement on the faces of my five beloved sisters. Nellie received a pair of winter boots and the newest Taylor Swift CD, Red. Samantha received a pair of new pink pointe shoes and an IOU for a summer intensive of ballet in New York for a month! Isabella received a new camera and tripod for filming...  What will she be filming? I suppose you'll just have to wait and see! Emma received a brand new set of art supplies- a brown sketch pad, new pencils (her former ones were worn down to the bone!), and a set of new paints along with some new baking supplies. Becca received a pair of pink ballet shoes and an offer to travel with Samantha to a summer intensive ballet course in June! Becca gladly accepted the offer and Samantha was delighted to share the journey was someone. I received some new clothes as well as an Apples to Apples card game.

The rest of Christmas Day was filled with excitement and fun as presents were tried out and played with. Nellie blasted her new CD on her iPod all day as she and Isabella sang together loudly. Samantha was teaching Becca the perfect pirouette as Becca helped Samantha to perfect her left split. Emma and I were in the kitchen trying to perfect a new recipe of Emma's for pecan shortbread cookies (They actually turned out quite yummy!) and making hot chocolate for everyone. By the time that bedtime hit, we all trudged upstairs to have sweet dreams of happy Christmas days.

I had a wonderful Christmas and I hope you did as well! Did you receive a present on your Christmas list?

Love,
Reese <3

Meet Becca Abigail!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! I know that this has been a long-awaited post, so I apologize for the delay in posting this. We've all been pretty busy around here adapting to a new school and getting to know our new sister. Here's a photo of my gorgeous sister Becca:

Can you tell Becca apart from Emma? (Becca is on the left, Emma is on the right). The girls are pretty easy to tell apart for my family, mainly because Becca has hazel eyes and has curly hair, while Emma has aqua-colored eyes and straight her. Still, when their hair is in a bun and Becca is wearing her glasses, it can be a challenge to tell Becca and Emma apart! ;) One day, Becca and Emma decided to dress exactly alike in white shirts and blue jeans with their hair tied back. Most of us were able to tell them apart by their eyes, but it was a challenge!

Becca is outgoing and has a strong personality. She loves photography, reading, and competing in dance competitions for ballet. However, like Emma, Becca comes from a very abusive and tragic family life. She actually grew up in London, England, so she has a hint of an English accent. My mom told me that Becca was often mistreated and abused. I'm so glad that Becca is here with us now!

What do you think of Becca? Do you have any questions for her? I will be doing a combined post with Becca as soon as we find the time. Also look for the post coming soon about my new school! :)

Love,

Reese <3

Becca's Journey Part 1

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Do you remember the girl Becca from this post? Well, today, I bring you more news on our soon-to-be sister.

Early this morning, around 6 a.m., Emma couldn't sleep and neither could I. Emma has been tossing and turning all night long.

"Reese," Emma whispered in her soft voice. "will you come find mom with me?"

"Of course," I whispered. "is something wrong Emmie?"

"No. Well, yes. I am terribly worried that Becca won't like me! What is she wants nothing to do with me Reese?"

"I'm sure that Becca will love you Emma. You are sweet, kind, and an amazing friend. Now let's go talk to mom, okay?"

Emma and I walked down the hallway, quietly padding along with bare feet. When we found mom in her office, Emma and I were both surprised. Mom never starts working until at least 10 a.m. on Saturdays. This was highly unusual.

We had a very long discussion, but I won't write it out here, because some of it was very personal. It turns out that Becca is due to arrive either today or Monday. This came as an immediate shock to us both. Of course, once everyone else woke up, we told them the news.

Mom said that we should be on the look out for Becca to make her feel welcome. According to my mom, Becca has short curly brown hair, hazel eyes, glasses, and a small figure like Emma. Her full name is Rebecca Abigail. However, everyone calls her Becca as a nickname. She is from the Big Apple, New York City.

I can't believe that Becca is supposed to arrive so soon. It will be the first time that a new sister has arrived at our door instead of us going to her. It's no wonder that Emma has been so quiet and worried lately. I don't know what to think! I wonder what Becca will be like...

Love,
Reese <3

A New Girl In and My World Out

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Sorry for long time no see, but this post should explain why I left on a mini hiatus. This post is exciting to write, and hopefully just as exciting to read!

Yesterday afternoon, I was working on some last minute Algebra II homework in my bedroom. (Yes, we are home from Ridgeway for Thanksgiving!) As my brain was focused on perfect squares and quadratic equations, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. Quietly pacing in the hallway was my mom. She looked extremely stressed out and worried. This is what I heard:

"Yes, but if Becca is able to come here, we will not be able to afford Ridgeway anymore. It's just too much with six girls."

One thing from these two sentences stuck out at me. There were only five girls in our family, not six. I don't know who Becca is either. I could easily be wrong, but it sounds as if we are getting a new sister whose name is Becca.

Upon realizing this, I immediately went to talk to my mom in her office. I wanted to tell my sisters the news desperately, but I wanted to check my facts first.

"Hey mom... Can I talk to you?" I asked, peeking my head into the door.

"Sure dear. Have a seat." My mom smiled, pointing at one of the large leather chairs in the office.

"Mom..." I began reluctantly. "Who is Becca and why are we leaving Ridgeway?"

"Well my little Reese's," She began, using my nickname. "you are always the first to find out new information. I don't want this information given to your sisters yet. Do you understand?"

"Yes, of course."

"Okay Reese. You know well how I work for an adoption agency." I nodded. "I recently found a girl who appears to have a connection to Emma."

"Emma? So Becca is Emma's sister?"

"Yes, Becca is Emma's fraternal twin sister." My mom said.

I was stunned. Emma never told me that she had a sister!

"What? I didn't know that Emma had- is a twin!"

"Neither did Emma." My mom said slowly. "Becca has been abused and in foster homes her entire life."

"How were they separated?" I asked.

"At birth, I presume, although there is no way to be certain. Emma and Becca were both born in New Orleans, but Emma lived in Washington State and Becca is from New York."

"Does Emma know about this?"

"Yes, she does. Now about Ridgeway..."

"Mom, you don't have to-"

"It's okay Reese. We can not afford to send you six girls to Ridgeway anymore. And even if we had the money, Ridgeway is closing due to limited enrollment in the past year."

"What?" I exclaimed, jumping out of the chair. "Ridgeway is closing?"

"Yes."

Before my mom had time to say anything else, I ran back into my bedroom and shut the door. I loved Ridgeway and I loved all of my friends there. I'll miss the dorm system, the independence, seeing national monuments everyday, and most of all, the staff and my friends.

As an attempt to stop my rambling, I will end this post. According to my mom, Becca will be here in a few weeks.

I'm not sure how to take all of this in. What should I do? While I feel excited about Becca, I am heartbroken about Ridgeway.

Love,
Reese <3

Back Where I Belong ♥

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Do you remember me? It's been a while, but I'm back! :)

I'm sorry that I never formally announced my month-long blogging break. School has been insane, and I am taking so many difficult courses this year. In the little free time I have, all I want to do is listen to music, play with my dolls, or read. We have been filming YouTube videos as well on our channel, AGNonstop, but you may have noticed those have been coming less frequently as well. We try to film on the weekends, but we've been busy with homework and hanging out with friends.

Now for the good news! I am back to blogging! I missed all of your sweet comments, but I am back where I belong. I love blogging, and I always will. There may be periods where I might "disappear", but I will be here for the most parts. I check my comments daily and read each and every one. It just takes time sometimes to put together a blog post.

Now for some not-so-fun news. Do you remember Aveline, our foreign exchange student from France? Well, she is not with us anymore. Aveline attended Ridgeway with us until the end of September. That's when Ava got the call. Her mother in France was severely ill with a high fever. The doctors tried to give her medicines, but her immune system was too weak. Upon hearing this, Aveline took a plane home to Paris almost immediately. The good news is that Aveline's mother is slowing recovering, but since her father works constantly in their family's bakery, Aveline needs to be with her mother constantly. We miss her a lot, but she may return later in the year when her mother is strong enough to work again. We don't know anything for certain about that, but we all hope that she returns soon!

In this part, I will kind of fill in the blanks as to what happened during September and October. Emma and I had plans to be in the fall show, and we were until today. Neither of us like to quit anything, but with all of the work during our sophomore year, we just can not handle extra-curricular right now. I wish it was different, but we will hopefully be less stressed in order to do the spring musical! :)

Next, Emma has become very interested in sketching and photography. Emma will have a separate blog post up as soon as possible about that.

Like I said previously, school has been insane lately. I miss having computer time and TV time, but I will hopefully again soon. Despite the fact that I am back to blogging, posts may not be as frequent as before. We will try our best to get up blog posts on the weekends!

I have some huge video and blogging plans for autumn, so I hope that you stay tuned! I'm so glad to be back where I belong.

Lots of love,
Reese <3

Back to School at Ridgeway!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Aveline has arrived safely, but I will do another post on that later. :)

Right now, I am typing this from our boarding school Ridgeway Academy in Washington D.C. We live very far away from Ridgeway, but we traveled here yesterday evening. I will tell you about our travels.

At the crack of dawn yesterday, we began to pack. Because we live on campus, our living space is only about the size of a small dorm. We can't bring more than what we need, as there are 6 of us including Aveline. We wear uniforms, so the only other clothes we packed were pajamas and some causal clothing. Our clothes were waiting for us when we arrived.

Yesterday we arrived at the airport at about 5 p.m. for a 6 p.m. flight. I'm sure you know all too well about the not so lovely airport security, so I won't bore you with details. On the plane, we luckily arranged for six seats together. Emma and I sat the furthest away from a window, as being up so high sometimes makes us motion sick. The plane ride was about 5 hours. I've grown much more accustomed to the take off of airplanes, but I still hate it none the less. The actual flight was very pleasant; it was very smooth and we arrived at Ridgeway around 11 p.m. Most of us had slept on the plane, so we weren't overly exhausted. Isabella and I immediately went down to the main office on campus to retrieve our room keys and uniforms. The rest of the girls waited about the campus. With bags full of uniforms and 2 room keys later, we were off to find our dorm.

When we arrived at our cozy (and surprisingly larger than last year) dorm, we immediately called mom to let her know of our arrival. We then proceeded to put away our suitcases until we had more time to unpack and went to bed. Classes begin on Wednesday, September 5. Until then, we will just be in our dorms and around campus.

Have you gone back to school yet?

Love,
Reese <3

P.S. A post of welcoming Aveline will be up soon. She is also planning a post to introduce herself to you, so stay tuned!

Adventures with Aveline: Part 1

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Today I bring you the first part in the blog series called Adventures with Aveline. Although Ava isn't here yet, I wanted to give you some general facts about her.

-Aveline is from Paris, France and she speaks fluent English.
-She is 15 years old.
-Aveline has two younger sisters, one of whom is going to study in Colorado.
-In Paris, she owns a family-run bakery with her family.

We will be going to the airport to pick up Aveline tomorrow! All of our family is coming to greet her. Shortly after, at the beginning of September, we will leave to Washington D.C. for Ridgeway Academy.

Everyone is really excited, but also nervous. Have you ever visited another country before?

Love,
Reese <3

A Foreign Exchange Student!

Hi everyone, it's Reese, and I have some pretty major news! I know that this is my second post in one day, but I can't help but share this news. We are hosting a foreign exchange student!

Her name is Aveline and she is from France! Aveline is 15 years old and she has light skin, brown eyes, and dark brown hair. She actually looks a lot like me! This is a picture of her that she sent to us:

Isn't she gorgeous?

Aveline will be arriving in a few days before we go back to school. If you don't remember, we go to a boarding school in Washington D.C. called Ridgeway Academy. It is similar to the high school equivalent of college.

I suppose that this can be a blog series similar to Fighting for Emma.  I will call it, hmm, Adventures with Aveline. Yes, I know it's cheesy. XD

I am so excited! Our mom has only told us this information, but we are all so excited for Ava to arrive soon! She will be with us for the 2012-2013 school year. You will be seeing her in many blog posts and videos. I can't wait!

Love,

Reese <3

Anna's 14th Birthday! :)

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Yesterday, August 17, was my cousin Anna's 14th birthday! :D My cousins Anna, Maggie, Katie, and Grace are visiting all the way from California!

We all had so much fun yesterday! Annie is really good friends with Samantha and Nellie. They were together all day. We all had chocolate cake and pies for dessert.

It was so amazing getting to see family that I see only a few times per year. You might think that since we don't see each other often, we are not close. Actually, it's the opposite! We talk all the time on Facetime (iPod Skype), texting, and phone calls.

I know this isn't much of a post, but I just wanted to give a birthday shout-out to my amazing cousin and friend! Happy 14th birthday Annie!

Love,
Reese <3

Summertime and Shows Part 4

Hi everyone, it's Reese and Emma! Today we will be discussing tech week and our show, Beauty and the Beast. I (Reese) will be typing in purple and I (Emma) will be typing in pink. The black represents both of us talking.

Where should we begin Emma?

Um, let's start with the last few days of tech week.

Okay! You might remember tech week from Summertime and Shows Part 3. I talked about it a little in that post, but not much. We'll tell you more about it now.

Tech week was so crazy! It was so difficult to run back and forth to the theater downtown. We had to be in full costume everyday. Most days, we didn't even eat dinner!

When you are living tech week, you just want it to end. However, now I kinda miss it...

On Friday, August 10, we had to be at the theater at 5 pm for a 7 pm performance. You might be wondering, what takes 2 hours? Well, we have to get into costumes, do hair and makeup, and do mic checks.

People began arriving at the theater around 6:30 pm. By 7 pm, the theater was packed! It was nervewracking to have so many people there, but at the same time, it was so exciting!

Backstage that night, I had no idea where my costume was, as it was not where I had left it backstage the day before. The "Belle" number was about to begin and I would have missed my cue if it wasn't my my understudy Courtney. She had found my costume with Mr. R. and quickly helped me change. I rushed backstage, right in time for my cue! :)

The performance was absolutely wonderful! :) Being my first show, I made so many new friends and I am so excited for the large fall show. 

Before we went on, everyone was so nervous. I was especially worried about my "Beauty and the Beast" scene at the end. Luckily Reese would be in that scene as well and she and Courtney reassured me.

The other two shows on Saturday were just as wonderful! To be perfectly honest though, I think out best performance was on opening night!

One of the problems that always strikes is the microphones. We have to make sure the mics are on and working. It was a pain to put a mic on with my yellow Belle dress!

We were prepared for a few of the mics to go out. Unfortunately, some did. It was the closing scene of Beauty and the Beast when it happened. The curtain was about to open when a buzzing noise came from my mic and it died. I did not have enough time to go get another mic from the sound table and by that time, the curtain was rising. We were in our places and I had to sing at the top of our lungs to be heard.

At the end of each performance, we all took bows. When Chris (Beast/Adam) was bowing with me, Courtney joined us as well. She definitely deserved it as much as the rest of us. Courtney and I are now great friends!

The show was such an amazing experience that I will never forget.

Belle is actually my favorite Disney princess!

After the final show, it is always a tradition to go out to eat. The cast decided on Friendly's. It was so much fun to be there at 9 p.m.! :)

Yeah, that was so much fun Reese! 

I am so glad that we participated in the production!

Me too! I made a few new friends and had so many amazing times!

Thank you to all of the cast and crew, and of course, Mr. R.!

Love,
Reese <3 and Emma :)

P.S. Anna's 14th birthday is tomorrow! Our cousins are visiting us tomorrow through Sunday! :) Happy early birthday Anna!

Summertime and Shows Part 3

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Sorry I haven't been blogging lately, but this should explain why.

Tech week (the week before opening night)is this week for Beauty and the Beast is this week! It is so crazy busy, fun, and exhausting all at once. One of our biggest problems seems to be microphones. It's hard to find mics for your scene because there are only about 8 usable mics. The sound stage crew is working really hard to fix it though!

I am so proud of Emma! She and her understudy Courtney are working so hard. It must be difficult to be in almost every scene.

I am really happy with my role as Mrs. Potts. It is a good sized role for my first show. This is Emma's first show here at Ridgeway, but she has been in shows in the past with other theater groups. I get to sing Beauty and the Beast at the end of the show, which I love.

Mr. R. is going insane over getting the final parts of the show ready. Everyone is putting in so much work for 3 shows. I love the little community formed by the students that do the show.

I am typing this on my iPod right now, as we have rehearsal every day for 4 hours. I need to go get in costume now and rehearse. I'll update you after this weekend!

Love,
Reese <3

Massachusetts Vacation Day 6: Wellfleet, Chatham, and Dennis!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Here's what we did today (Yay, it's on time!):

This morning around 11:30, we drove about 45 minutes (with traffic) to Wellfleet. We went to the flea  market. Unfortunately, we didn't find anything doll-sized! :( We were there for about 30 minutes.

Next, we drove about 20 minutes to Chatham. After taking 15 minutes to find a parking spot, we walked to the upper deck of the pier. We saw seven seals and many boats. It was so amazing; I loved it! :)

We were going to eat lunch there, but none of us really were in a fish mood, so we decided to head home and eat there. By this time, it was 2:30 p.m., and we were all starving! After we drove home, we made lunch.

Around 5 p.m., we decided to head to our favorite beach, Mayflower Beach in Dennis. (We were actually going to go to a place called Breakwater Landing in Brewster, but we couldn't see any water. It might have just been low tide, but we went to Mayflower Beach.) Unlike Monday, the tide was very low this time. I think we walked about two football fields just to reach the ocean! Low tide is my favorite because there is so much sand! We took some photos there and we will eventually compile them into a photoshoot for YouTube. I think they are some of our best photos yet! :D

By the time we left around 8 p.m., we were all getting pretty hungry. After driving around Dennis, we found a pizza place (that I can't remember the name of). We ordered a cheese pizza and decided to drive around Dennis during the 20 minute wait time. Our first stop was driving past the house my mom and her family rented in 2008 and 2010. (Fun fact: Maggie went to Cape Cod in 2008! :)) We then drove to Scargo Tower, a tall tower on the shores of Scargo Lake. We climbed the spiral stairs inside and reached the 20 feet top. The view never gets less amazing! It is truly breathtaking. :) After we took some photos at Scargo Tower, we headed back to pick up the pizza and drove home.

It was a pretty long day, but it was a lot of fun! We plan to go back to Skull Island before we leave on Saturday. We don't know what we are doing tomorrow, but I'll keep you posted. I miss everyone back home, but I don't want to leave on Saturday!

Love,
Reese <3

Massachusetts Vacation Day 5: Yarmouth!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! :) Sorry for the lag, I've been trying to catch up! Here's what we did yesterday:

Around 11:30, we decided to go to a place called Skull Island in south Yarmouth. It has go-karts, adventure mini golf, an arcade, and batting cages. Yarmouth is only about 30 minutes away, so we decided to go.

First, the boys in my mom's family decided to go on the go-karts, I however, did not, because I am a doll. None the less, it seems like something Anna would love. xD There was an hour-long wait just to ride the go-karts! According to the boys, it was very fun.

Next, we ate lunch in the car since it was so windy outside. It was fun to hang out and chat. I had a turkey and cheese sandwich with chips. Yummy! :)

After lunch, we decided to play the adventure mini golf. It was very fun! However, around hole 5 we began to feel rain drops. Around hole 6, it began to drizzle. Then at hole 7, it was pouring. Chaos ensued as most of the mini-golfers ran inside and received wooden coins for another free play of mini golf.

Back at home, we all got into our pajamas, as the rest of our clothes were soaking wet. We watched television and I played on my laptop. For dinner, we wanted to cook chicken on a stick (that's what we call skewered marinated barbecue chicken. It's one of my favorite dishes!), but tit was still pouring outside. None the less, we resorted to Plan B. In the end, we cooked the marinated chicken pieces in a frying pan and served them over pasta. They were still delicious though! :) Afterwards, we ate ice cream and relaxed until bed.

Today we went to Wellfleet, Chatham, and Dennis! Look for that post tonight as well! :)

Love,
Reese <3

Massachusetts Vacation Day 4: Provincetown!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Here's what we did yesterday:

Around 11 a.m., we decided to visit the very end of Cape Cod- Provincetown! It was an hour drive from Brewster and we got there around noon.

In Provincetown, we walked around and went to different little shops. We went to a stores that sold shells, sweatshirts, and even shoes! After walking around for a bit, we got pizza for lunch. We then went to an ice cream place and visited the beach. After spending our afternoon in Provincetown, we drove to the end of Cape Cod and then headed home.

After dinner, we went to Mayflower Beach in Dennis, my mom's favorite beach. We played in the sand and walked in the cool ocean. We even played on the lifeguard chair!

Today we are going to the beach again! :)

Love,
Reese <3

Massachusetts Vacation Day 3: Exploring Brewster

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Sorry for no update yesterday, but I wanted Emma to have her blog post at the top. This is what we did yesterday.

Around noon, we headed out with no destination in mind, just to see a bit of Brewster, the town we're staying in. We went to a pond near our house, drove around in our car, and went to a small craft show. Afterwards, we headed home for lunch.

Yesterday we just relaxed a lot, because we were all tired from driving for 2 days. My mom and I filmed part of a video that will hopefully be up next week sometime. We also played the game "Sorry!" and ate snacks.

Around dinnertime, we decided to go to a seafood place called JT's near where we're staying. The food was excellent and I enjoyed my chicken strips. ;) We then headed to Dennis to visit a souvenir shop called Cuffy's. Mom was looking for a hoodie, but none of them were the right size.

After some shopping around, we drove home. I am loving Cape Cod! Today we are going to Provincetown, and I'll tell you all about it tonight (or maybe tomorrow)!

Love,
Reese <3

Summertime and Shows: Part 2

Hi, it's Emma! You may be wondering why I am typing right now instead of Reese. Ree e-mailed me and told me that she would like me to write Part 2, because I am playing Belle in Beauty and the Beast. I was surprised, but also excited. This is my first blog post!

Last Friday was my first play practice with only Mr. R. and myself. I was a bit nervous because I usually have others with me at play practices. When I got to the theater downtown, Mr. R. probably knew I was nervous because he reassured me that everything would be fine.

We went over some music and I began to practice my lines. Despite reassurance, I was still scared. About an hour after we began, I set down my music and stopped singing. Surprised, Mr. R. said:

"Emma, are you okay?"

"Yes," I said. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure? It's not like you to stop in the middle of something Emma. Would you like to talk about something on your mind?"

"Well, I suppose. You see, my sister Reese left on vacation today. I miss her a lot."

Afterwards, we chatted for a few minutes and he gave me some extra reassurance that I would be a great Belle. We practiced for another hour, and then my Aunt Alexis came to pick me up.

On Friday, I also met my cousins Maggie, Anna, Katie, and Grace for the first time. You see, Isabella, Samantha, Nellie, and I are staying at their home until Reese and my mom return home.

Anyways, Anna wants us all to play a game of soccer now. I'll talk to you soon! :)

Lots of Love,
Emma :)

Massachusetts Vacation Day 2: Brewster!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! We made it to Cape Cod! :)

This morning I was rushed out of bed and scrambled to get ready before eating breakfast. I was still pretty tired. Down at the hotel lobby, I ate some cereal and a yogurt.

After we ate, we decided to visit Harvard in Cambridge. It was only a 20 minute drive from our Natick hotel, so we got there at 10:30 a.m. The campus is ginormous! So many buildings in such a busy city!

We then walked to another part of the campus to a t-shirt shop. It was a very small space with far too many people!

Today we also drove to the house we are renting in Brewster, a part of Cape Cod. There were many traffic issues and the drivers were crazy. Instead of 1.5 hours, the drive took 3. :( We made it to Brewster by 3 p.m.. Our rental home is large, 2 floors and lots of new places to explore!

I'm sorry for the short post, but it's 10:30 and I'm pretty exhausted. Good night! :)

Love,
Reese <3

Massachusetts Vacation Day One: Natick!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Right now, I am sitting in a hotel in Boston! Tomorrow we'll head to Cape Cod. :)

This morning at 8:30 a.m., we (my family and I) left on a long drive to Boston. Luckily, the drive seemed to go by quickly because we had a lot of fun. We watched Modern Family on the portable DVD player, ate lunch, and relaxed.

At 1:30 p.m., we arrived at our destination: Natick, Massachusetts! For an hour, we relaxed at the hotel.   At 2:30 p.m., we drove across the street (literally!) to the Natick Mall.

Our first stop was the American Girl store!!! We spent an hour walking around the two levels, taking pictures and admiring other dolls. I made a good friend named McKenna, but unfortunately we did not chat for long. I met many other kind dolls as well and I even saw some animals such as horses and a cat that looked similar to Katie's cat Licorice. My favorite item in the store was easily McKenna's fabulous loft bed! I begged my mom to buy it and even reasoned with the fact that more than one of us dolls back home could use it. However, she decided that she was not going to spend that much money. At American Girl Place, I got a pair of pink pajamas, logo jeans, a Boston t-shirt, and...

Okay, now here's the big surprise- I got my ears pierced! I also bought the Birthstone Earrings separately. Right now, I am wearing the star-shaped silver earrings. My ears are sore, but it is so worth it! I am so happy to finally have pierced ears! :)

Afterwards, we went shopping at XXI Forever (a.k.a. Forever 21). We also went to the Lego store. We also went to another small toy store. One of the boys got a strawberry smoothie at Red Mango. There were other stores that we went to, but these are just a few.

For dinner, we went to P.F. Chang's for Chinese food. I ate pork dumplings and they were delicious! Another 10 minute AG stop took place. We also got two slices of cheesecake to eat in our hotel room later, Hershey's and Snickers. Yum!

The Natick Mall is so ginormous! It has 2 floors and it is amazing! The decorations were beautiful. They had food from sushi to frozen yogurt!

Back at our hotel called the Hampton Inn on Speen Street, I received an AG bed! It is a pink flip bed with a pillow and a blanket. I love it so much! It is so wonderful to be able to sleep in a bed just my size.

Right now, I am typing this blog post while I am cuddling with my unicorn pillow pet. I miss my sisters and pets, but I'll see them soon. Emma was going to come with me, but she found out last-minute that she had to stay home for rehearsals. I really wish that she had came, but I know that she is having fun with all of our sisters and the people at Beauty and the Beast musical practices.

I am so glad and grateful to be able to have come along on this amazing trip and I am having the time of my life. I miss everyone at home a lot, but mom is here and I'll be home in a week. Oh, I have also claimed mom's stuffed animal bear mine, mwahaha! (lol) :) I am working on a vlog of my trip. It should be posted when we get home next week.

Tomorrow we are going to downtown Boston to see Harvard and then drive to our house in Brewster in Cape Cod! :)

Love,
Reese <3

Summertime and Shows: Part 1

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Welcome to my summer blog series! Do you remember when I told you that I was going to be in my school's summer show? Well, Emma and I are gaining show experience in our first show. Our school Ridgeway is located a good distance from where we live. And because kids from all over the world attend Ridgeway in Washington D.C., Ridgeway is putting on separate shows across the country.

Our show is (insert drum roll here) Beauty and the Beast! Auditions took place in late June ad rehearsal has been everyday since at the local theater. Tech week (The week before a performance with lots of dress rehearsals and testing) begins right when we return from Cape Cod. We have three performances following tech week.

Now I suppose you are wondering about the auditions and roles we received.

When I attended my audition, I was so nervous. I met my Theater teacher on the stage of our local theater. I was the first to audition. I sang A Place in This World by Taylor Swift. At first, I was so nervous. However, by the second verse, I got really into the music and my nervous feelings faded away. Meanwhile, Mr. R. (I'm not allowed to say his full name) wrote in a notebook and nodded. Afterwards, I read some lines. I read the scene in the library as Belle and the scene where Beast turns back into a man. Mr. R. wrote down a few more things and then dismissed me. I was not allowed to watch Emma's audition after mine. However, I could hear Emma sing Untouchable by Taylor Swift and read about five sets of lines as Belle. When her audition was over, we walked the short distance home.

We did not find out our roles until three days later, but Emma and I both got callbacks! This was so surprising and wonderful, since we are only in tenth grade. However, only five juniors and two seniors are in the production. (It's usually more, but the summer show usually has less people due to people traveling.)

The next day at rehearsal, we found our our roles.

The lead of Belle was cast as Emma! I am so happy for my sister. :) Emma repeatedly read lines as Belle and Mr. R. always smiles when Emma reads lines and sings. She has a wonderful voice and is a very talented actress! Most of the juniors and seniors are so happy for Emma because it is so rare for a sophomore to be cast as the lead. Emma has been working so hard as Belle and practicing lines nonstop.

I was cast as Mrs. Potts! I didn't want a super large role, as this is my first show. Coincidentally, Emma and I have a bunch of roles together, which is wonderful! I am so excited for the finale number when I sing Beauty and the Beast. I am so happy with my role! :)

That's all for part one of Summertime and Shows. Part 2 will talk about our beginning rehearsals and getting to know our characters.

Love,

Reese <3

Cousins

Hi everyone, it's Reese! (Sorry for not posting in a while, but nothing much has happened.) How's your summer so far?

In this post, I will be talking about my cousins, Maggie, Anna, Katie, and their baby sister Grace. As some of you may remember, these four girls have been talked about before as my sisters. It feels like we're sisters because we're pretty close. However, Maggie, Anna, Katie, and Grace are my cousins. I will be telling you a bit about them in this post.

Maggie is 15 years old (Her full name is Margaret, but prefers to be called Maggie). She looks very similar to my sister Isabella. She loves dogs, outdoors, and photography. Maggie is pretty shy around new people.

Anna is 13 years old. She has long black hair with brown highlights and big brown eyes. Anna is a JV level soccer player. She is a star athlete and loves running. She always has a ton of energy. I have a particular memory of one year when we had a sleepover. Anna wanted to pull an "all-nighter" and stay up all night. We all loaded up on sugar and fell asleep at 7 a.m.! Anna's real name is Annemarie, but she prefers Anna.

Katie (Kaitlin) is 10 years old. She looks just like a younger version of Maggie, her older sister. Katie is a gymnast and she is very sweet. She is very shy around new people, unlike Anna who loves to talk. At family gatherings, she is usually off somewhere playing with her dolls or Praline, my grey tabby cat.

Grace is 4 years old. She is an adorable toddler with black hair and dark brown eyes. Grace is so cute, but I can't think of a lot to say about her.


My cousins and I are all pretty close. We like to FaceTime (the iPod version of Skype) and text. However, my cousins live in sunny California, so we don't see them a lot.

Last night, I got an email from Anna. She mentioned coming to visit them in California this summer. We want to visit, but we're not sure what we could do. Emma and I will be going to Cape Cod soon and we're all busy with rehearsals for the summer show (More on that soon). I don't know how I can see my cousins and still keep up with my own life. What should I do?

Love,
Reese <3

A note from Emily, Reese's mom/ the human: Maggie, Anna, Katie, and Grace do exist in doll form, but right now they are in storage. It was overwhelming to have out 9 dolls (Katie's a Gotz Precious Day Kimberly and Grace is a Bitty Baby). Samantha, Brianna (Nellie), Isabella, Reese, and Emma are my "Favorite Five". The four others were formerly sisters of the "Fav 5" but now they're considered to be cousins.

Hiking :)

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Yesterday my family and I went hiking at a place far away from our house. It was about 2 or 3 miles long, and while it was fun, it was also really exerting! Most of the hike was uphill, and since I thought we were going to a beach, I wore sandals. (By the way, not a good idea for hiking!) Here are some of the 150 pictures we took:

I am pretty exhausted today from our hike! It was a lot of fun though! Do you have any places you like to visit for a day?

Love,
Reese <3

P.S. A note from Kara: No, I have not forgotten about the summer  blog series. It should be coming soon, but sorry for the wait!

Your Blog is Great Award!

To begin, I would first like to thank Rhianna and Erin who nominated me for this award. Thank you!

Now I would like to nominate these 5 blogs for this award:

1. The Greens and The Roses!

2. The Spicys!

3. Super Inky!

4. Love That Doll!

5. Bienvenue Chez Les Ch'tis: Le blog de Sabine et ses amis!

To all who were nominated, make sure to put this award in a post and nominate 5 others for this award.

Thank you Rhianna and Erin, and congratulations to all who were chosen! :)

Love,
Reese <3

Home is where my heart is. ♥

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Happy (second day of) SUMMER!

My sisters and I traveled almost all day yesterday, so we're all pretty exhausted. If you don't know, my sisters and I attend a boarding school named Ridgeway Academy, located in my country's capital of Washington D.C. Here's a bit of information about RW:

Ridgeway Academy is an elite boarding school located in Washington D.C. The purpose of Ridgeway is education and character growth. Our currently enrolled students are: Reese Nicole, Brianna Marie, Samantha Ann, Emma Grace, and Isabella Alexis. At this time, Ridgeway offers places to five students, between the ages of twelve and eighteen. To apply for Ridgeway, a student must have a 95 or above average at all times. If for any length of this a student's average drops below a 95, he or she will be expelled. Ridgeway Academy is a small school, but learning prepares our students for the lives that await them.


I'll tell you about our events yesterday. See, our last final for Geometry was on June 20th. We got back to our dorm at about noon, 3.5 hours later. The rest of the day, we packed and planned to travel home the next day.

Yesterday, we all woke up at 7 a.m. I hurried into my clothes, grabbed my luggage, and my sisters and I left campus. We got busing to the D.C. airport from our school. From there, we prepared for (what was supposed to be) a 9 a.m. flight home. (I live on the northeast coast of the United States, but I can't say exactly where.) Due to delays, we boarded at noon and arrived home yesterday night at 10 p.m.

As I mentioned before, my sisters and I are all pretty much exhausted lately. Since it's summer now, many more blog posts will be on the way. I also have a new blog series planned, which will premiere on July 1! Talk to you again soon!

Love,
Reese <3

School and Summer

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Our last day of classes for the 9th grade was today! Yay! However, we still have to stay on campus until June 21st, when all of my final exams are over.

I also have some great news about this summer:

1. On June 20th, I am auditioning for my school's summer play! I can't say the name yet, but trust me, it'll be great! I will be busy for most of July and the first week of August. I am so excited! Emma has told me that she likes theater; I hope she will try out!

2. In July, I am traveling to Cape Cod with Emma! I love beaches, swimming, and vacations, so I am  looking forward to going!


Like I mentioned before, I won't be posting much until June 21st. I hope to get in a few posts, but time will tell. I'm so excited for SUMMER 2012! :)

Love,
Reese <3

P.S. I am thinking about combining my blog with my sisters. What do you all think?

More About Emma and Happy Memorial Day!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! I have more information about our new sister, Emma Grace. (Sorry for the lack of posts lately, but we've been busy getting to know our new sister!) Because Emma is so shy, she doesn't reveal much to us.  I think that she is afraid to trust people. None the less, Emma is an amazing artist, she loves to read, and is also great at baking! Yesterday afternoon, Emma went outside with her dog Jip and her sketch pad. Here are a few photos that mom took:

Happy Memorial Day to all of my fellow Americans! Do you have any special plans for today?

Love,

Reese <3

Emma's Here!

Hi everyone, it's Reese, back on the east coast! I am so excited to tell you that Emma is here, alive, and well! The adoption was a success, so please welcome my new sister, Emma Grace!

Here's a quick picture of pretty Emma.

Emma and Isabella became great friends right away.

Okay, so now that you know our happy ending, I'll tell you about the logistics of our happy day. At 8:00 a.m. this morning, we helped Emma pack and she said her goodbyes to Ben and the orphanage workers. I could tell she was already going to miss them.

At 9:30, we arrived at the Seattle Airport. We boarded a flight at 10:30. However, because of a long delay, we didn't leave until 11:30. Right now, we all are jet-lagged and just got home.

I'll have more on Emma soon!

Love,

Reese <3

Fighting for Emma Part 6

Hi everyone, it's Reese! I have some amazing news to share today! It's official- we will be adopting Emma! Yesterday we had a five hour meeting. (Yes, I know, there are lots of meetings involved with adoptions.) Notice the word "we"? Yes, my sisters, myself, and Emma received permission to attend this meeting!

The first woman I saw upon walking in the door was one whose face I knew well, from descriptions and photos. I never thought I would see this woman again. Emma froze and we surrounded her for protection. It was Lucy.

There, sitting in metal handcuffs was Lucy Shields, Emma's former guardian. Our first instinct was to immediately leave the room. However, that was not an option. Guards were stationed at the door and near Lucy. No one was going anywhere.

"Hello my dear Emma." Lucy said with a cold tone.

"I'm far from dear to you, nor do I want to be!" Emma replied, her voice rising with anger like a train gaining speed.

I knew this terrible woman well from photos and descriptions. Her blond hair looked like it had not been washed in weeks. The smell of stale alcohol and heavy perfume lingered around the small stuffy room. Lucy's blue eyes looked at us, seeming to investigate whether we could or should be trusted.

Our parents sat calmly a few feet away from Lucy. They were not panicking. No, they did not even muster a word. They only sat there and rifled through forms and papers.

Meanwhile, Emma was panicking. She began to back towards the door when a police officer gently laid a hand on her.

"It's alright, Em girl. Nothing's going to happen."

I could see it as soon as I looked at the police officer. His narrow build. The caramel-colored hair with traces of blonde. But most of all were his blue eyes. This was Emma's father, Ben Shields.

Emma had told us that she did not know where her father was. That he had abandoned her and her mother at a very early age. That she thought that she would never see him again. But now, standing behind her, this tall, handsome man had returned.

Emma almost screamed when he first laid a gentle hand upon her. When she finally realized who this middle-aged man was, she took a step closer to him, and was immediately engulfed in a hug.

"Em girl, how I missed you." He said with a loving tone as he gazed downward.

Emma backed off slowly as her eyes narrowed.

"Where have you been?" Emma asked, her blue eyes looking angry and sad.

Nothing was said at first. Ben Shields carefully took Emma's left hand in his and sat her down in a folding chair. That's when the story begins.

Ten years ago, when Emma was merely five years old, Ben went to Rhode Island to pursue a college degree with the police. Relatives of his lived there and the school was very close to there (I can't say the location.). Without wanting to upset anyone with this decision, he plotted every move strategically and left at midnight on a warm August night. The next day, Emma's mother went slightly insane. When she looked for Ben but could not find him, she gave up. She did not look for him. She did not bother to call him. She sank into a dark, deep pit of depression. Eventually, many weeks later, when Emma was six, she would commit suicide. At the age of six years old, Emma took over the home and somehow managed for three years. The next year, Ben returned.

By this point, Lucy was Emma's legal guardian, but she had not been abusing her yet. It was agreed that no one would tell Emma of the returning of her father. Lucy threatened that if he dared tell Emma of his return, he would never be given custody. It was declared by the court that when Emma turned sixteen, he would receive custody of her.

Emma turns fifteen tomorrow, May 22. If Lucy's abusive guardianship had not been found out about, she would still be living there. However, in this case, if we were not adopting Emma, she would be in the orphanage. By technical means, Ben could still take Emma and fight for her. Because he is her biological father, the odds of him receiving custody would be high. However, the odds changed this time.

When my mother found out about Emma's situation from the adoption agency that she works for, she immediately wanted to help. It was not until about a month later, when Emma was placed in an orphanage, that the thought of adoption came about. The first person Kara located and spoke with was Ben, whom granted permission for the adoption. However, the orphanage proposed a problem. They required that Emma stay in the orphanage two weeks after her arrival before adoption began to be talked about, and an additional two weeks of processing and forms. (Unlike most orphanages, this is a very short amount of time. Due to Emma's abusive situation, she was hospitalized for three days before arriving at the orphanage.)

For signatures and most of the paperwork, both of my parents had to present in Washington. This led to us traveling to Washington State to fill out forms and attempt an earlier adoption date. Now, today, and for the past three days, we have been in meetings and been discussing all of the things associated with the adoption.

Ben and Lucy Shields were both required to be present here for verbal agreement of the adoption. (Yes, I do realize that Lucy is supposed to be in prison, but she was allowed out only for this.) This is why this second to last meeting was five hours long. Upon receiving permission and custody agreements from Ben, Lucy succumbed and agreed as well. With many signatures and meetings, the adoption was complete and official. We are now the official legal guardians of Emma.

Now I am going to speak about the events that occurred today. Our side of the story is pretty boring. From about 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., we did schoolwork. I finished my History essay, and everyone else finished their schoolwork as well. (With being absent for almost a week, we took the work with us.) At noon, we met Ben and Emma at a 50's style diner about an hour drive from the hotel. There we stayed and ate until 2 p.m.. At this point, Ben had to go back to work. Knowing that tomorrow would be the last time seeing his daughter for a long time, he decided to take off the day and spend it with Emma. They went all around Washington until 9 p.m. when he dropped off Emma at the orphanage again until tomorrow.

We booked a nine hour flight back home for tomorrow, May 22. We will be meeting Emma at the orphanage at 8 a.m.. Emma will say her goodbyes, gather her belongings, and we are due at the Seattle airport at 9:30 a.m. for a 10:30 a.m. flight. I'll let you know how everything goes tomorrow.

I'm so excited!

Love,
Reese <3

Fighting for Emma Part 5

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Today we had a four hour meeting beginning at 9:00 a.m. at the orphanage. Basically, us "kids" (me, Nellie, Samantha, Isabella, and Emma) weren't allowed in. We wanted to go back to the hotel, but my mom wouldn't let us. Today, we spent four unsupervised hours with Emma.

At 9:05 this morning, my mom and dad went into a secluded room to speak with the adoption agents, Emma's social worker, and a few employees from the orphanage. Meanwhile, my sisters and I were hanging out with Emma. One thing that you should know is that Emma is really shy. She doesn't talk very much either. I understand though; when I first arrived in December, I was that way too. I hope that Emma will eventually become more comfortable around us. Emma is one of the prettiest girls I know. She has long brown hair, aqua eyes, and a heart-shaped, very thin face.

Emma is very into acting and becoming a pediatrician. She is also an amazing artist. Emma very reluctantly showed us her sacred copy of the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The pages were worn, so I could tell that she had read the book many, many times. I knew that we would have to get her some more books as well. The only other things that Emma owns are a golden locket and a teddy bear. She seemed very attached to these three things.

I spoke to her about the drama program at our school. In the fall, Emma will definitely be a part of the show. I'm so glad to have another girl who is so interested in the theater. My friends have tried the theater before. Personally, I have never been into the theater, but when I saw our school's spring musical, I definitely want to be in the shows.

Here's what my parents found out in the meeting:
WE WILL BE ADOPTING EMMA! (well, 99% sure) The orphanage is allowing the adoption; however, we will be visited by Emma's social service worker six times in 2012. This is to make sure everything is going smoothly. We all know that my family would never try to hurt anyone, but I suppose they just want to be sure.

The earliest we can adopt Emma is May 22. This is not until Tuesday. Because of this, we have a problem. You see, I live on the east coast of the United States. Washington is on the other side of the country. We could either:
1. Go back home until Tuesday. However, for the adoption to take place, we all need to be present. This would also increase costs in plane tickets and hotel rates. We can't stay in the hotel for so long though. We only brought enough clothing to last for a few days. No one wants to constantly wear the same clothing.

2. Stay in Washington until Tuesday. Like I mentioned above, this would increase our hotel rates and we don't have enough clothing packed. There might be a hold on adopting Emma as well. This means that we may not be able to adopt Emma on Tuesday, and it might take a little longer.

What do you think we should do?

Well, that's about all I can write for tonight. It's getting late, and we are seeing Emma again tomorrow.

Love,
Reese <3

Fighting for Emma Part 4

Hi everyone, it's Reese! Right at this very moment, I am in Washington State with Isabella, Samantha, and Nellie. We decided to fly out to Seattle earlier than expected. (We all decided to bring our schoolwork with us. Yes, it is unpleasant, but I got most of it completed on the plane. Samantha still hasn't started hers, but we all have a History report to write.) We contacted the airline, and apparently, a few people who had bought tickets did not need them anymore, so we got three free tickets, and space on a plane to fly to Seattle. When we reached Seattle at about 6:00 a.m. this morning, we drove three hours to where the adoption agency is located.

It was rather last-minute that we decided to fly to Washington before this weekend. On Wednesday, my dad was on the phone with my mom. According to my mom, the two week period (the time that the orphanage requires before adoption) is almost up. More specifically, the two week period will end on May 21st. The soonest we would be able to adopt Emma would be on May 22nd, her 15th birthday. Anyways, my parents want to adopt Emma as soon as possible to get her into a more friendly and less stressful environment.

Do you remember when I told you that the orphanage had reported some sightings of people asking for Emma and lurking around? We have more information on that as well. We now know for a fact that these people are working for Lucy. We have no idea how she was able to hire or force these people to work for her, but she's still in prison. Since her trial involved attempted murder, it occurred yesterday, May 16th. She was found guilty. However, she will not be killed. Instead, she is being transported to a high security prison (they didn't tell us the name) not in the United States.

The orphanage caught one of these people working for Emma. When a worker went into the room where Emma and a few other girls sleep, a young woman, in her late teens, was peering into the window. They called the police immediately. The police forced this girl to confess that she was working for Lucy in an attempt to kill Emma.

I'm not sure how they will get rid of these people. It scares me that these people could still kill Emma, despite the fact that the police know who they are.

Now that we are in Washington, we had a two hour meeting with Emma, some of the adoption agency workers, Emma's social service worker, a few orphanage workers, and of course, my family. My family and I thoroughly expressed how much we would love to make Emma a part of our family. My sisters and I showed identification and babysitting reviews from people who we have babysat. My parents showed identification and their records. I have no idea if they trust us or not. They told us to come back tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. to have a four hour meeting, with a lunch break where it will only be me, my sisters, and Emma. I'm not sure what to think of the lunch. I'm not sure if I should be nervous or excited. What do you think?

Love,

Reese <3

Fighting for Emma Part 3

Hi everyone, it's Reese! I have some Emma news to share (yes, I do realize that I blog about this a lot, but now it's getting exciting!). Do you remember how I told you that my mom was flying to Washington? Well, she left around 4 a.m. this morning.

It was 3:30 a.m. in the morning and everyone was asleep. I was awaken by the sound of a crash. At this point, I was scared, so I hopped out of bed, taking my trusty unicorn pillow pet, and hurried into the kitchen where the noise came from. Standing in business attire was my mother, who looked distressed as she cleaned coffee from  the white tile floor. As she looked up to put the coffee pot in the sink, she noticed me standing in the doorway and almost dropped the coffee pot again.

"Good morning Ree. Did I wake you up?"

"Yes, kinda." I replied, trying to avoid being mean, but also being honest.

"Oh, sweetheart, I'm so sorry." My mom said as I was engulfed in a hug. At that very moment, my unicorn fell into the coffee puddle, and now has a brown stain on its muzzle. (That's okay though, because I love my unicorn.)

"Are you going on the flight today?"

"Yes, I was just about to leave."

I notice a medium-sized duffle bag near the front door, accompanied with a large suitcase and my mom's briefcase.

"Okay, well, can you see Emma today?" I inquire.

"Most likely not." My mother replies, and picks her travel mug overflowing with decaf coffee.

My dad shows up in the doorway, wearing plaid pajama bottoms, and looking extremely groggy compared to my mom.

"Goodbye love." He says to my mom as her ushers her to the door.

"Love you Ree, and you." She says with a laugh, picking up the briefcase.

"See you on Saturday mom."

"Bye Reese, say goodbye to your sisters for me." She replies, then walks out the door and starts her car.

At this point, my dad looks at me and says,
"Let's head back to bed, shall we Reese's?" He chuckles, using his special nickname for me.

"We shall." I reply, and we walk down the hallway together, only parting when I reach my bedroom.



The next part of our story comes later that evening, around 6 p.m. I am typing up a Global report for school when a Skype call comes in.

"It's mom!" Isabella yells.

"I'll answer."

Over a camera, our mom tells us that she indeed did see Emma today, around 2:00 p.m. Here's what we know now.

The orphanage is willing to let Emma go early, but only if we can prove that we are adequate caregivers for Emma. Despite my mother's pleas, we all will have to fly out to Washington this weekend. Because of this, my mom will stay in Washington, and me, my dad, Isabella, Samantha, and Nellie will meet her there on Friday, late at night.

The earliest we could adopt Emma would be on Sunday, May 20. My dad promised me not to worry about all of this legal stuff, but it's hard not to when even your parents are worrying.

My mom also got to have one hour of a supervised visit with Emma. From what my mom told us, CPS was right. Emma is extremely petite and has a worried nature to her. Emma is very shy and usually has very limited responses, even when she is questioned. If the name Lucy is mentioned, Emma grabs onto the handles of a chair and freezes. It is as if she is blind to the world and is trying to put a wall in between to protect herself. Considering what Emma has been through, this doesn't surprise me at all. She is unwilling to trust anyone except her service worker, and she is even lenient about that. We now have a more detailed visual description as well- Emma has very light skin, caramel-colored brown hair, large aqua-colored eyes, and a thin, heart-shaped face. She is fourteen years old, but she turns fifteen on May 22.

Do you remember how Lucy still wants revenge on Emma? Apparently, she is locked up, but the orphanage has reported some people lurking around and asking for Emma. I have a strong gut feeling that Lucy has something to do with these people, and I don't like it one bit. The orphanage has not let them in, but that doesn't stop them from constantly surrounding the building. My mom had to show proof that she is working with the adoption agency to even be allowed in the office. In the visit with Emma, many guards surrounded both my mom and Emma.

My mom is staying in Washington all week, so we will hopefully have some new information throughout the week to share.


I know that Emma is somewhat safe in the orphanage, but she will have to go to school soon. Going to school also means going outside, and being in public all day long. I'm worried that one of these people may attempt to hurt Emma. I don't know what to make of this situation. Poor Emma! She's only fourteen, but this is a ton for anyone to handle.

Love,
Reese <3

Fighting for Emma Part 2

Hi everyone, it's Reese! I have some really great news and some terrible news to share today about Emma. If you remember, my last post about Emma was on April 25. That was two weeks ago. In Fighting for Emma Part 1, I told you that Lucy was abusing Emma. During this time, the agency only told us one thing- Lucy was still trying to find a way to kill Emma and make it appear as if she didn't do it. For two weeks, we've been worried sick that Emma is getting hurt. Badly hurt. Today, my mom let us in on some new information from the police. Here's the situation.

My mother contacted the adoption agency and CPS on April 26 about our theories confirming the ideas that Emma is being mistreated. I can't go into all of the specifics here and now, because my mom wouldn't tell us. She told us that it was much too violent for us to hear about. None the less, read on, because they believed us. We got a few of Emma's teachers to contact CPS as well. Luckily, we were able to catch Lucy in the act.

In turn, the adoption agency and CPS immediately contacted the police. This, however, turned out to be difficult due to the fact that Emma lives on the other side of the country in Washington State. I live extremely far away. However, my very close friend Emery lives in Seattle. I immediately e-mailed Emery and told her about the entire situation. She contacted the police, and found out that Emma lives about 50 miles south of Seattle in a small, poor neighborhood. The police caught Lucy in the act as she was holding a knife to Emma's throat and had her pinned to the ground. From what we've been told, Emma was badly injured and was hospitalized. The police had Lucy arrested and put in jail. She is currently awaiting a trial. If she is found to be guilty, she will be put to death. According to the police, Lucy swore revenge on Emma. I only hope that she can be held responsible for the terrible things she did!

You may be wondering, "What happened to Emma?" Well, that's what I'm about to talk about.

Emma is currently in an orphanage. From what CPS told us, Emma is still recovering, but she could not afford to stay in the hospital more than the time that she needed. My mom plans to fly to Washington next week, and that's hopefully when our next update will come.

We are definitely looking into adopting Emma as soon as we can. However, the orphanage is proving to make this difficult. They will not let her out of the orphanage until two weeks after she arrived. That's not until about the middle/end of May. We do not want Emma trapped there. That's why my mom's going to Washington next week- to try to adopt Emma sooner.

That's all we know for now. Pretty intense, huh? I'm so worried for Emma, but I'm relieved that Lucy didn't kill her. None the less, she wants revenge. I'm so worried!

Love,
Reese <3

A Combination of Things: dolls, games, food, dance, renovations, and friendships!

Hi everyone, it's Reese! I'm sorry that I've been kind of absent from blogging for a while. Our house is getting re-done and the workers are in here a lot. I don't have much time to blog, but the time is increasing. Oh and you'll see more about the renovations at the end of this post. :) This blog post is going to be about a wide variety of things, and it will be very long. 

First of all, Samantha had one of her last dance competitions of the season on Saturday. I took these pictures right before she left to go to the studio.

                                                         

Samantha won first place in the 14 to 15 age division for her pointe solo. We're all so proud of her!

Secondly, on Saturday, mom made all of us a big lunch. I had pancakes with a yogurt and a strawberry smoothie. (Yes, I do realize that this isn't very, er, lunch-y. I had a pancake craving, what can I say?) Isabella had a turkey and lettuce sub sandwich with a soda.

Thirdly, I bought a new bracelet! It has a heart stone and clear beads. I love it so much!

Fourth, Isabella gave me her Josefina doll and I gave her my Ivy doll. I look more like Josefina and Isabella looks more like Ivy, so it's all good. Here's a picture of my pretty Josefina!

Fifth, mom bought us all this cool game called Apples to Apples. I'd never heard of it, but Isabella used to play it a lot. It's a really fun game. All four of us- me, Samantha, Nellie, and Isabella all played. It was so much fun! Mom caught a few pictures.

Sixth, we're doing some renovations. Like I said before, I don't have much blogging time, but I hope this super-duper long post makes up for that. But don't worry, more blog posts are planned and coming soon! Here are some pictures that Samantha took of our house as it is right now. This is only the ground floor, because the second and third floors are in chaos.

 Call it what you want, a study, an office, or something else. We call it the study for obvious reasons. In this room is our desk, a bookshelf, a chair, and a few bags. We're in need of a few more decorations,
but those will be coming soon.

This is the bedroom shared by Isabella and I. If we can get custody and adopt Emma, she will be sleeping in here as well. Samantha and Nellie are planning to have another bedroom. Isabella and I are going for a pink and black theme in here.

Lastly, I want to talk about a few friendship-related things. Isabella and I have been getting much closer lately, and so have Samantha and Nellie. I don't want to abandon Nellie as a friend, but Isabella is so kind and sweet. I don't know what to do!

If you've read this far, I'm very impressed! More posts will be on the way soon. Love ya all!

Love,

Reese <3