Not exactly love at first sight

From reading other blogs, I know that many people rip open their referral envelope, see the photo, and fall in love immediately. Not so for me. I wasn't disappointed or sad or let down. There was nothing negative, really. But I wasn't exactly jumping up and down like a contestant on a game show either.


Hers is one of those referral photos you've seen a million times: shaved head and Michelin man snowsuit, looking rather surprised by the whole ordeal. All of us were sort of stunned at first. The I. broke the silence: she said, "I didn't know she was going to look like that. She's fat!"


We all laughed. Dennis and I looked at her photo over and over again without commenting. We just looked and looked.





The next day, we put her photos up on the fridge. Every time I passed by I looked. I don't think I've ever tried to read any other photo so closely. And there's not much to read, really. That giant snowsuit covers almost everything. Even her shoes are about five sizes too big. There's just her little round head and tiny fists.



Her eyes. Over days, it's those eyes that get me. There's so much life behind them. I see a good mind, a sense of humor; I see a girl who has got some sass. And her little fists, too. I know babies clench their fists a lot, but because I don't have much else to go on, I'm going to let myself believe those clenched fists are more than just baby instinct: she's ready for a fight, this Willa Girl.