Mother's Day is a time to celebrate all mums, and Jill Robbins has found a way to celebrate and appreciate her adopted sons' birth mothers each year.
Because Jill is aware that the joy of motherhood she has with her two boys came at a cost for two other women.
In a Facebook post, she explained how she remembers her sons' birth mothers each year. "So Mothers Day cards are popping up in the stores and I sort of have this secret. I buy two extra cards each Mothers Day," she wrote. "I write my sons' birth mothers (yes, there are two different birth mums) a card every year. I've done this every year that we've had them.
"I write little snippets of what they've done and accomplished every year, what their challenges and accomplishments have been."
Jill then puts the cards in an envelope, seals them, and puts them in a shoe box in her cupboard. "I don't have any place to mail these cards, you see," she explains, because she has no way of getting in touch with them, or even knowing who they are.
"There's no such thing as an 'open Chinese adoption'", Jill explains. "There are laws in China that prohibit a mother from making an adoption plan … The children are 'abandoned'. When they are found they are entered in to the social welfare system. They're made available for adoption and that's the part where we come in.
"I know my boys' birth mothers waited and watched until their babies were taken to safety. I KNOW. I just do," she continued. "I know they loved these children and I know their actions were something they deemed necessary. I don't need to know the reasons. Their motives don't need to pass any sort of litmus test with me."
Jill says she doesn't want for much in life, but if she had one wish, it would be that her boys' birth mothers know that their children are safe and loved.
"So I buy those cards every year," Jill says. "I write in them. Somewhere on the other side of the world there are two women who would probably give anything to get them.
"I write these cards for me. I hold them against my chest before putting them in a shoe box that sits on my closet shelf and I squeeze my eyes shut and I wish so hard that these women who gave me the gifts of my boys can know how much I cherish them."
The post struck a chord, with some who have been through the adoption process and others who were inspired by the sentiment.
Rose Juergens wrote, "Thank you. I am an adopted child. I wish someone could have done this for my birth mum. She lived with so much guilt for so long."
"Even if they never get read by their birth mums, you sons will know they exist," said Cara Johnson-Blystone. "That in itself is a gift to them."
Paula O'Brien was inspired to take the same action with her children: "I'm a momma of three adopted kiddos (Kazakhstan, India and China). I love this idea and starting it this year here!"