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Jordan started hearing at age 2 that she would soon have a little sister, who, like her, would come from China.
Now that the five-year wait is over, Jordan described her feelings in two words.
"It's awesome," she said loudly enough to be heard throughout the house off North Rolling Road.
Jordan must share a bedroom with her sister, but said she doesn't mind.
"I felt really excited, because I got to have a sister and play with her," Jordan said, adding one of her favorite games with her sister is peek-a-boo.
Jordan's enthusiasm for her sister's birthday began with shopping trips that started nearly a month before Tatum's birthday.
In the family's living room of their home in Westview Park, Jordan's theme for her sister's birthday became apparent as she showed off several presents she got for Tatum. She pulled out a red, white and blue anklet, a stuffed Beanie Baby bear adorned in stars and a hand-made card on which she substituted stars for the letter "O."
"I'm so excited because it's Independence Day," said Jordan, who will begin second grade at Lamb of God School in the fall. "She's turning 1."
Tatum's parents have bought patriotic outfits and toys for Tatum's birthday this year but plan to mix it up from year to year like they do with Jordan.
Every other year, the Namies will give the girls gifts they bought during their visits to China to pick up their daughters in an effort to connect them with their native land's heritage and culture. From those birthdays, Jordan has already received a silk shirt and bracelet with a lady bug, the Chinese symbol for adoption.
The Namies have other Chinese-themed presents picked out for their girls but want to keep them a surprise.
People seeing Tatum's birthday as a symbol of her destiny to move to America is something the Namies come across often.
"It's pretty consistent," Tracy Namie said. "They just associate it right away with all that it is. Everybody goes there."
"I just think it's serendipitous to see the date and think the kid was destined to be an American citizen," her husband added.
For the Namies, Tatum's birthday serves more as a neat coincidence.
"It's not necessarily a sign," her father said. "It's been fun for us as a family to make it part of her story."
