Happy 4th of July from the Staffords!

Well, we had hoped that Anju would be formally a Stafford and an American by July 4th, and alas it is not to be.  The court of Polk county has had our adoption paperwork for over 2 weeks, and has not contacted us for a court date yet.  So, Anju remains a citizen of India her first Independence Day.

However, our little Desi girl will enjoy the bounty of the day--grilling with friends, fireworks (if she can stay awake), and red/white/blue pancakes for breakfast.  And actually, although her upcoming American citizenship is an important aspect of her new life as our daughter, it actually brings a tinge of sadness to think of her losing another part of her history.  Her Indian passport with the small, baby girl's face inside and the Visa picture of a screaming toddler will be no longer her essential legal document--but a souvenir for her scrapbook.

So we celebrate today---we celebrate our forefathers who established the ideology of what this new country, America, was to be.  We celebrate the efforts of men and women in times past and present who fought to keep our country safe and free--especially those who gave their lives.  We celebrate as a Scandinavian-German-Indian family.  The stuff America is made of.