I never expected to welcome another Blevins into the family. Having another sibling was something I had never even conceived in my mind, let alone an adopted one. Going on a two week long trip to California on a quest to adopt my sister was the last thing I thought of doing in my eighth grade year. I had no expectations, no idea how my life could change, the responsibilities I may have to take on.

Before the trip to California, my brother and I weren’t really told much. We were told that we would be traveling to adopt a newborn girl. Our parents wouldn’t tell us what they would name her. We waited with anticipation.

Then it came time for the trip. We packed our bags, got on the plane, landed at the Los Angeles International Airport and drove to our hotel.

I remember the moment I heard she was born. It was a beautiful day on Dec. 13. My grandfather called my dad. My brother and I were with him in an unfinished mall. We didn’t think anything of it.

But little did we know, our lives would change from that moment on.

We rushed from the mall to the hospital. We saw my mom; she had just seen the birth mom and our new sister. The birth mom’s name was Dominique; she was a very pretty woman, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to take care of her child. She was kind enough to put our last name on the birth certificate so we didn’t have to go through the tiring legal process of changing it.

However, after the trip, we didn’t hear much from her. She’s a mystery to me at least.

It’s all kind of a blur for me at this point; the excitement and stress of having and meeting my new sister was a lot. For some reason I remember the exact layout of the hospital, but I can’t for the life of me remember who brought out my sister so I could see her for the first time. Regardless, it was time, time to find out what my sister’s name was.
Beaudil. Her name is Beaudil.

It was a beautiful name, but one I had never heard before. It’s pronounced like “bow-dle”, almost like combining the word “bow” and “idle”. My parents tell everyone it’s a family name, but that’s a lie. The truth is, they met a woman with the name on a business trip they went on years before. They fell in love with the name and knew that if they ever had a daughter, for any reason, that would be her name.

Beaudil is the best sister anyone could ever ask for. She’s 6 years old now, and rambunctious as all get out. She loves dancing, she’s part of a dance class. She’s extremely loving and caring, trying her best to get involved in her brother’s lives at any chance she gets.

Like I said before, it was never something I thought would happen, but I sure am glad it did. She’s brought our family closer together than ever before, and we are all so excited to watch her grow up. I hope one day she reads this and can look back and agree with all these things.

The hardest part of being an older brother is leaving. She may not be aware of it, given that she’s so young, but it’s incredibly hard to deal with the fact that I’ll be going away and living far from her for four or more years of her life.

I’m so honored to be her brother. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I hope she’s learned at least something good from me, I hope she will have a good head on her shoulders, I hope that she never forgets how much her oldest brother loves her.

I love you so much, Beau Beau.