~Where did the year go?~

As I woke up this morning it hit me that the year is nearly gone! And what a year it has been. Since we had just adopted EM in June of 06 we had no plans for another. In fact I think we thought our family might be complete! Obviously that was not the case. To think that we saw JM face for the first time in March and that his is now here with us, is really hard to believe. We have been so blessed by our children. So fortunate with the agencies that have helped us bring them home! And so lucky that we have the family and friends that we have to help us to raise them in a loving Christian environment! We have been so Blessed!

Reality will hit tonight. I go back to work! Yikes. I am excited and a bit nervous at the same time. Since I only work casual at the Hospital I have been fortunate to stay home with the kids to get things back to "normal". Well I guess this is as normal as we get! SF is busy working on his evaluations for school. He is about 1/2 done!

EM will have surgery on the 14th of this month to "lengthen" his palate. We hope he does well. SF's parents will come out to help us with that one! We are looking forward to their visit. The kids love having their Grandparents around.

Well I guess I better get the day started. Just wanted to post to let you know what is going on around here!

May 2008 be a Blessed year for all!

~Visit to the Surgeon~

Today we had our return visit to the Plastic surgeon. Hard to believe it has only been one week since JM's surgery. He is looking so good. The surgeon was pleased and said I should call back next week to schedule his palate surgery.Probably 4-6 weeks from now. I will keep you posted!

I asked about JM's front teeth and if and when they would actually be "attached" to anything. The surgeon said he hoped that they would reach the Palate in the next surgery. He expects the teeth to keep moving back with the lip that is now intact and forcing slight "pressure" there.

They have moved so much already it is hard to remember what they looked like when we met him less than 2 months ago!

The older kids are out playing in the snow. We have about 10 inches on the ground now. It is warmer today...about 28degrees...so great weather to go sledding. Thankfully we live on enough of a hill that they think it is great!

We had a Blessed Holiday. Our 92 year old friend came over. We played games and enjoyed a wonderful "family" day!

Hugs to all!

~CHRISTMAS 2007~

~CHRISTMAS EVE 2007~

~ALL DRESSED UP~

~HE"S COME A LONG WAY~

The three photos are from JM's Gotcha Day...then shortly after he had his first surgery and the final one is today...2 days after his lip repair...I am amazed to think we have only been lucky enough to call him our son for 47 days!! We have been so Blessed!

~FUN IN THE SNOW~

We are getting some snow today and it is the "wet" kind...so the kids are having fun sledding and playing in the front yard! Looks like we will have a white Christmas this year for sure!

~Sorry so long for an Update~

    Scott came with the 3 older kids and brought JM and I home at about 7PM tonight...to say it was a long day and a half would be an understatment, but we are so glad to be home.

    They ended up starting JM's surgery an hour early which was such a blessing. They were done with the surgery before the original start time...but things didn't go as planned after that. JM had a really difficult time coming out of the anesthesia and eventually spent the night sedated in the PICU(pediatric intensive care unit). It was stressful to say the least. But thankfully this morning they were able to get him off the meds and more comfortable. This afternoon by 12:30 he had taken a bottle and we turned the corner. The surgeons nurse talked to me about 3:30 and said she would leave discharge orders and if I felt comfortable we could come home tonight or if not stay the night. Thankfully he really started acting like himself and we will be able to sleep in our own beds tonight.

    Thanks for all the prayers and support! We feel so Blessed. I must go get some sleep!

~HERE WE GO~

The hospital called a bit ago to say that they wanted us there about a half hour earlier...so hopefully the MD will stay on track and get to us as they expect! JM had his last food at 9AM and so when we get him up he is going to be ready to eat...so I hope the wait will not be long.

Thought I would leave you with a few photos of the face we love as we look forward to his new look!!

I will post again probably on Friday

All for now

 

~DECORATING FOR CHRISTMAS~

~DOCTOR, DOCTOR, EVERYWHERE A DOCTOR~

JM started off the day seeing his pediatican(to have yet another History and physical completed) and then we went to the Pediatric Orthodondist as well...so I would have to say he is Doctored out! He has done really well...but I will be glad to have this surgery overwith on Thursday!
The Pediatrican thinks he looks great and is ready for surgery...and then gave him a Polio vaccination. He had titres drawn and all his vaccinations seem to be fine except the polio. So we will redo those! He did indeed have the chickenpox while he was in China...so we can cross that one off the list. Can you even imagine a room full of little ones with cleft lip and palates and the chickenpox!! I don't even want to think about that!
The Orthodondist is excited about his mouth! She adjusted it one more time and says we have used everything there is...and it should be fine.
I was thankful to confirm that all that comes out on Thursday prior to his lip being fixed! That surgery doesn't start till 4PM...not sounding like a good time keeping a 16 month old without anything to eat or drink all day! But I will do what I have to do to get this done!
JM and I will spend the night at the Hospital and SF will hold down the fort at home!
Prayers and good thoughts will be appreciated. I wont be able to post anything till we get home sometime on Friday! Just so you are not imagining the worst!! I do not have computer access away from home!
All for now.

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeKEqsd2-xA

I saw this on a friends blog and wanted to share it with all of you. At this Holiday season especially...maybe their is something you can do for the orphans of the world! Bless you all!
SEE THE LINK ABOVE

SJ AND JM

~SISTERS ARE OK~

Saw the ENT today

With all that is going on with JM's lip...one almost forgets that he had tubes put in his ears on the 4th as well. We saw the ENT today and after a bit of a struggle he was able to confirm that the tubes are in place and working properly. That was a relief. It seems that JM is "hearing"... the hard thing to determine with a 16 month old is just how much he hears. I know he likes the music that the kids play for him and he responds to some sounds...but other times I'm not sure that he "hears" everything.
He had fluid in his ears as well as some infection behind one of them prior to the surgery, so that in itself would give reason for some not normal findings in a hearing test...so we will have to keep an eye on it and they will let us know when and if we need to do anything else.
SF has his last day in the current school building. The High school that he teaches at is just completing a new building and they will make the move over the Holiday Break! The exciting part for us is that the school is only 5.4 miles from our house. The other school wasn't too far...but half the distance sounds good!
MR has one more week before her Break begins. I think she will be ready.
We have cold temps here again. I think it was around zero again this am. Thankfully it is white too! I always think if it is going to be cold then it should at least look nice.
OK need to work with SJ and EM on their "letters". Now is a good time while JM takes a nap!
ALL for now!

~WHAT A KID~

JM is tolerating this entire process so well so far! I am so proud of him. He is still sleeping this morning! It is 7am and he was in bed last night by 8:30PM. Could not ask for more on the front!
He is back to taking about the same amount of formula and cereal as he was before we started on the 4th, so I am glad about that as well!
I took MR to her dance class last night and actually ran over to the YMCA to walk on the treadmill! That felt good. Anything that takes me back to a bit of normalcy makes me realize that we will get there!
The kids all love helping with JM. SJ likes to "help" with the diapers! Which cracks me up.
MR is trying hard to be a little "mom". Watching her carry him is funny. He weighs 22# and she only weighs about 43# so it is a bit of a stuggle!
EM is the tender heart. Always running to get JM his blanket or Bear!
We have been truly blessed!
Well maybe today I might get some cleaning done!! Time will tell. And oh yes Christmas is coming....a tree would be good!
Always something
All for now

~HE LOOK'S GREAT~

    That is a quote from the pediatric Orthodontist that we saw this afternoon to have JM's appliance tightened. She thought he looked like he was tolerating it well and that things are moving as she had hoped and starting to line up.

    The actual process was rather difficult to watch, but thankfully it didn't take all that long. We gave him pain medication when I got there...about 3:30 and then she waited about 10 minutes to start. He has what appear to be "strings"...rubberbands...I don't know exactly what they are, but she pulled on a red one and then a white one and secured them and that was it. It took what felt like forever, but I am guessing it took less than 10 minutes.

    He is strong. But I knew that. It took 3 of us to hold him down. He was drenched in sweat, by the time it was over. He never really calmed down till we were out of the room. But once we were out, he was back to himself. He has been a bit extra clingy this afternoon. Who can blame him. He is officially my little "velcro boy". He just holds me tighter and tighter. It feels like he is saying "OK, MOM as long as you are here with me and sticking it out, I will too!!" He is so Brave.

    We go back one more time. Next Tuesday the 18th and then he will have his lip repair on the 20th!

    Our new song here is "ALL WE WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS A FIXED LIP FOR JOSHUA"

St. Nicholas Visit

 

We had a visit from St. Nicholas at our Church Saturday night. The kids had a good time. The photo of JM is with our good friend Andrea.

Then we stopped by at a neighbor that decorates his lawn and dresses up for the kids each year!It was too cold outside for JM...but the rest of the kids enjoyed it. IT was a nice evening.

 

~THANKFUL AND HOPEFUL~

JM finally slept through the night again. We went to church last night. Had a visit from St. Nicholas and then a potluck. It was fun and the kids really enjoyed it. After we got home JM went to bed about 9PM and slept through till 7:15 this morning. That will go a long way to making for a happy mom!
I am hopeful that it is a trend that will continue. We see the orthodondist tomorrow afternoon and she will "adjust" his appliance. When I talked to her on Friday we decided I would bring his pain medication with me and give it to him about 10 minutes before she is ready to begin. I am not looking forward to this, but know it is how things must proceed. To say that I am looking forward to his surgery on the
20th is an understatement!
OK just wanted to let people know how things are going. Good night from here!

~Painting~

The kids are making "Manger scenes" in church school. We had homework from last week. Today we painted the pots that they will use to make the scene. It was fun and as you can see they painted more than just the pots!

Painting a Manger Scene

~~ANOTHER DAY CLOSER TO GETTING THE "APPLIANCE" OUT!!~~

JM had another long night last night, but has at times seemed more himself today. He likes to crawl around and play with his sibblings and that is good to see. SJ wants to know when they are going to "put his lip together" As much as we can tell that will be the 20th of this month. We counted on the calendar today...EM thinks that is a LONG time...but it will go quickly! Since it is "5 days before Christmas" I must say that it is coming quickly. I am really not at all ready for Christmas to be here!

    I talked to the Orthodondist this afternoon and we have a game plan for Monday. I will take the strong "pain med" with us and when it is about 10 minutes before when she will adjust it...we will give him some! She said she sure hopes he does well, but only time will tell. The good thing is that will get us a step closer to the final goal. Getting it out and repairing his lip!

    Need to help clean the table, so I need to run.

~~ENOUGH~~

    JM was up at 5AM this morning, but thankfully he took has bottle well and the morning went pretty smoothly. I got a call around 10AM and when I went in to check on the kids this is what I found. He was exhausted and so I took him in and put him in his crib and he took a 3 and 1/2 hour nap! I think he needed it.

    He is needing a bit less pain med and thankfully eating better. I am hoping he sleeps well tonight, because I could use a good nights sleep!

    We will go see the Pediatric Orthodondist on Monday and she will adjust his "appliance" and then we will see her only one more time before he will have his lip repaired on the 20th of December.

    OK I think I better try and get some sleep. I never know if I will be up at night or not! All for now!

    

~~Rough night~~

JM had a long night. I think he probably had some anasthetia still in his system the night before. He did sleep some thankfully. Seems to be messing with his ears some, so I guess I can not forget he really did have two procedures done and they are both bothering him.
Hoping that he wakes up in a better mood, but not really counting on it.
EM's speech session got cancelled this am. The teacher is sick, so that will be to my advantage. I only have to get MR to school then we can be home till SF gets home this afternoon.
More later.

~Slept well~

Just thought I would let everyone know that JM had a good nights sleep and therefore...so did I! He went down about 9PM and slept till I woke him up for pain meds at 1AM. Boy he didn't like the things on his arms to keep them straight and his hands out of his mouth. Can not say that I blame him. Nothing like lying on your tummy with arms straight out (as boards) to be comfy to sleep! But then he was back to sleep in 10 Minutes or so and slept till 6AM...That's my boy! He took a bottle this am. Doesn't like all that stuff in his mouth, but took it! Thank goodness!
OK just didn't want everyone wondering how things are going.
Now I just need to get the troops going and MR off to school and EM to speech! Sounds like a typical day!

~~AMAZING~~

As I was trying to think of how to describe the day ...Amazing is the only word I could come up with. We are hanging in there...and JM is nothing short of amazing.
The poor little guy. It was 4 weeks and one day ago that he met us for the first time and now today he is enduring this procedure that I'm not sure I would be tolerating quite as well!
It was a rough morning to say the least. I had to get him up at 5:30 and then he couldn't eat anything. That was confusing enough. We made it to the hospital by 6am, got checked in and waited for the MD's. He had 3 all together. The ENT was to place the tubes in his ears. The plastic surgeon and pediatric Orthodondist to place the appliance that she had made for him. It was all to start at 7AM. Well by 7:40 the MD's had all arrived. Not sure what the hold-up was..but once they got going it didn't take long. By 8:35 it was over. I had to wait till 9:20 or so to see him. Then they came to get me and JM was screaming and not to be consoled. Finally the nurse called the anasthesiologist and she came over. After another dose of Morphine he went back to sleep. THankfully the next time he woke up things started to improve. His O2 sats came up and his pulse slowed a bit. It had been around 200 when he was in all the pain. So at that point they decided we probably would make it home today. After a while in the day surgery center I brought him home about 1:45PM. Thanks to some strong pain meds and a really amazing kid, he actually played a bit this evening with the other 3 kids. He sure came a long was in less than 8 hours.
So now he has this appliance in his mouth. Looks like a bunch of wires and not comfy at all I tell ya...but it should do the trick. I will take him to see the Orthodontist next Monday and the following Tuesday and then he will have his lip fixed and the appliance taken out on the afternoon of the 20th! As I said it is nothing short of AMAZING!
We are so fortunate to have such skilled MD's just 3 miles from our home. The Orthodondist is very specialized and one of few that know how to make this Appliance that JM needed. His upper jaw is so narrow that it needed to be widened before they could fix his lip or palate. That too is AMAZING!
Thanks everyone for the notes and prayers. We could really feel them. I saw the Orthodontist in the hall after the procedure and she said "you must have a lot of people praying for you". Not sure how she knew that ...but I know it was true!
OK I need to get back upstairs, but wanted to let you all know that we are doing OK so far.
Keep the prayers coming. Hopefully JM will continue to increase the amount he is eating and drinking and get some rest tonight!
I will try and keep you updated...All for now!

~SURGERY IN THE MORNING~

Just a quick note to remind most and let others know that JM has his first in a series of surgeries in the morning. We will be at Gillette Children's Hospital at 6:15AM. He will have tubes put in his ears at 7AM and then have an appliance implanted that the pediatric orthodondist has made for him after that. That will pull his gum line back and spread it as well so that hopefully on the 20th of this month they will fix his lip. 6 weeks or so after that he will have his palate fixed.
We are hoping for a good nights sleep and that all will go smoothly in the morning.
It is always a bit frightening to have an adopted child go under general anesthetic for the first time. Family history is an unknown! I know it is difficult for all parents. This just adds another layer to the fear!
OK, guess I need to get everyone to bed. I will try and post tommorow and let you all know how it went.

DECEMBER 3, 2007