November 7

Seems like a lot has happened since my last update.  We have had our share of illness the last few days and will be glad to move on.  Last weekend Gracie, Josh, and I had some kind of stomach bug that wasn't terribly bad but had me down Saturday & then we stayed home from church Sunday.  Then on Monday of this past week, Ben came down with a fever and then Zach the next day (while we were in Boise for another appointment for Zach).  By Thurs I figured out it must be strep throat and took them in on Friday.  At first the doctor really thought Mono uggg(!)..... but decided it was a bacterial infection of some kind and wi/ hours of the antibiotic both were doing much better.  Josh then came down with it on Friday night but we got him right on the antibiotic and he is fine today (Sunday). We missed church again partly because I though Josh would be still sick this morning and we didn't want to take Gracie so she doesn't get sick before her surgery.  (Though the germs are abundant around this house...) Wednesday was our middle son, Ben's, 14th birthday which he spent in bed nauseous and feverish.  However, we had a fun family party Fri night.

I don't know how Gracie has not come down with it.  Zach took her up in the Burger King playland (which she LOVED - screaming all the way from the slide to the steps back up each time)- before we knew he was getting sick.  Then keeping her away from sick kids is almost impossible. I had to put both boys in their room because she just can't resist trying to get them to play with her or stealing their food or drinks- or tv remote (most coveted thing in the house).  So far she has just sneezed a lot yesterday and today but doesn't appear to be sick at all. Her preop appointment is tomorrow (Monday) and we will also go get portraits of her and the family.  Her surgery will be at 10 am on Thursday and it sounds like we will likely bring her home on Friday.  Please be in prayer for her (& us!) on that day and the next few as her mouth heals.

Her absolute favorite thing is being outside and she will sometimes bring you your shoes and say "cluck, cluck" as she likes to see the chickens and ducks.  She actually gets quite frustrated if she can't go out so even in the rain, like today, I bundled her up and had boys take her out for awhile a couple times.  I guess cluck, cluck, ow, and ma, ma are her main really English words.  She has said many other words but doesn't repeat them.  However, this wkd she started saying "hello" and repeating it over and over like a parrot.  She also attempted "wet" and a few other words but the "hello" is very clear!  She is actually sitting with Dan "watching" an old movie.  She so rarely sits and does anything- although now she is chirping like a bird and pretending to read a magazine.  We had a skiff of early-season snow so got pictures of her seeing snow for the first time. It was just a little and she didn't seem too impressed but she will be soon.

Sick boys quarantined from busy, inquisitive one.

Busy, inquisitive one, pretending to be sick too.

Pretty in polka-dots & stripes- a cute outfit from Aunt Heidi.

The black animal is NOT stuffed & is purring.  Guess Gracie isn't the only connoisseur of warm cuddly blankets.

Not sure about this white stuff.



A quick cupcake mallard duck.... which will be threatened by the below birthday gift.



I hope this doesn't influence her.  I live with enough hunters!

Dedication and Upcoming Surgery

Hi all - This was an eventful week for Gracie.  Grandma and Grandpa McCammon came to visit, arriving on Thurs. and leaving Monday (10/25) morning.  It rained like crazy part of the time but we still enjoyed being together.  They were amazed at how much Josh, Zach, & especially Ben have grown.  Grandpa taught Gracie Patty-cake or at least his somewhat mixed up version of it.  Gramma tried to keep him in line w/ the correct words and hand movements but it didn't always work. Gracie loves the roll 'em and roll 'em part. When she saw Grpa/Grma walk in Subway the other day, she immediately started rolling her hands so for now we will call him Patty-cake grandpa. 

On Sunday during the church service Dan and I told a brief account of Gracie's "story"- from us deciding to adopt through some of the amazing "fumbles" and events that allowed us to get exactly the little girl God had for us.  After our talk, we had a dvd (made by good friends Molly & Andy Wegener) played of the time in China, our first days w/ Gracie, & a little of the wild home life she has w/ three wonderful big brothers. Then we had a short dedication in which Grpa/Grma joined us w/ the boys & Gracie up front and we all cried.  My mom and dad sent a beautiful bouquet & Pastor Will mentioned them in the final prayer so though they couldn't be there physically, they felt close. We will never stop being thankful to her birth mother (most likely, & possibly father) who took the risk of putting Gracie in a busy place where she would be found & taken to be cared for until we could adopt her.  I don't know what the consequences would be if she was caught but they can't be good.  I always try to stress that Gracie was "PUT" and not "LEFT". It was intentioned that she would be found by the proper people and that at least her immediate medical needs could be met.

She now needs to have her palate repaired.  Her surgery was just scheduled today and it will be Thurs. Nov. 11th @ 10 am in Boise.  I think I wrote before that she will need 2 surgeries to close the palate and then others as she gets older but one hoop to jump at a time!  She will be in the hospital probably 2 nights.  We of course dread this process but it will be behind her soon & likely won't be as bad as we imagine.  Anyway, here are some great pics of last few days.

The Celebrity

Gracie-land has been a busy place. We've had so much fun with family members coming to visit and see the "celebrity" (& her brothers).  Incidentally, her brothers have taken her constant front-stage position very well and seem genuinely happy to let her be there, at least for awhile.  Her ears are doing fine and the cyst incision, which is about an inch long, is healing.  She had her first real bath in 10 days tonight so that was eventful!  She is saying various words off and on but it seems almost spontaneous and it's hard to get her to repeat them much. She has said pray, amen, ow, & I think I heard peek-boo.  They pop out & she almost doesn't seem to even know it sometimes. She has really taken to praying before meals and at various other times that are not quite typical prayer times.  We are doing a little potty training- trying to at least avoid some poopy diapers. The other day, I set her on the toilet and was all hopeful that she was concentrating on the "job" at hand, when I looked at her and she had her hands folded and eyes closed to "pray".  Last night her and Ben & Zach were playing some game- cops/robbers or whatever it was, and she came running out and fell on the floor as if wounded.  The boys love to imitate her grumpy faces and then watch her make them back in fun. 

She got pretty sick last week and had a fever for about three days.  It got up to 103 Thurs. which I did not like but apparently just a virus that has passed.  She is on an antibiotic again though, just in case her ears or incision were the cause of the fever & that may have helped her quickly get over whatever it was.

We found out that she will need to have two surgeries to close her palate.   Sounds like she will be in the hospital 2-3 days and then have soft arm restraints that keep her arms from folding all the way so she can't injure the stitches.  The stitches are disolvable & for about 2 wks she will eat very soft foods like yogurt etc. There will be other surgeries as she gets older but I don't completely understand all that yet.  Eventually, her gum will need bone added, which used to have to come from the hip but now there is another much less invasive option using bone protein.. or something like that!  We don't have the surgery scheduled but will likely be early to late November.  In the meantime, we revert between laughing like crazy & being in awe at how doggone cute she is, and wondering how something so cute can have such a mischievous streak.  The other day, Josh told her no as she went for the computer and she walked over across from us, stared ahead with a deadpan expression and then fell to her knees- (reminded us of the body language of a desperate person lost in the desert when the last plane ever flies over and doesn't see the poor soul...).  Anyway, bout time for bed. She still wakes a few times most nights but seems overall less restless than she was when her ears were infected.



Me -n- Grampa Merritt.  I was sick this night but still put up a good show.Grampa coined our new phrase "wave away", which is what I do when I want one of my many servants to go away or leave my royal presence.

 


Gramma Merritt & I looking at my  "Jesus Loves Me" book I sing with (from our friends the Cimbaliks). I'm wearing the sweater Gramma brought that was made by Jean Brown, a very good friend of our family in Alaska.



I guess big Snickers isn't too bad after all.

These were my "entertainers" Aunt Lisa & Uncle Kerry. They brought the bros & I some really fun stuff.  They also taught me that it's nice to have someone sit with me when I eat so now about every time I eat, I point to the chair next to me but nobody seems anxious to sit with me at every meal...

Goodbye all too soon

Three's a crowd but four is fabulous (& all so cute, even if  I am biased)!

Sunday, October 11

Just a quick update - Gracie did really well with the ear tube procedure and cyst removal.  She was pretty upset coming out of the anesthesia for about an hour but after that was just irritable & tired for the rest of the day.  Our middle son, Ben, went along on the journey to Boise & was a very big help despite not getting a lot of appreciation from Gracie!  Her ears were in very bad shape as far as infection and fluid.  She had been on an antibiotic for a week and still both ears were infected.  She seems to feel better and is surely hearing much more clearly.  The dr figured the sound she could hear was probably similar to what can be heard under water.  This should help a lot in developing speech.  I will never stop being amazed at how strong she is and her high pain tolerance.  She actually cried tonight when she slipped on something and hurt her toe.  I think that is the first time she has really cried with us , other than a whimper or two, when she got hurt by falling or the umpteen ways toddlers hurt themselves.  It also explains why she hates her ears being messed with.  We have to put drops in each ear for a week and already I can tell the difference in her ear sensitivity so I know they don't hurt like they did.  Well, my sister & her husband are here for a couple days & we had such a fun time tonight with them.  No pics tonight. Time to get some sleep!

October Update

Sorry it has been so long since I wrote anything.  For some reason, I've been a LITTLE busy!!  We are all doing quite well and adjusting to each other.  Gracie is like a mega-volt  battery energizing the entire household.  (The cats would whole-heartedly agree!)  She is eating pretty well most days and goes to bed at night waving goodnight to the ducks and chickens through the window, turning on the nightlight, playing a few quick peek-a-boos with mom, & hugging her teddy bear from Aunt Lisa.  She snuggles in looking up at the flowers Aunt Heidi bought for her wall & surrounded by blankets made/given by grandmas and friends.  She gets a new outfit or present from someone in our church, family, or even Subway customers every week.  We went to town today and everywhere we went, someone gave her a little thing like a sticker or cookie or even a cup w/ whip cream and a straw from Wheelers!  The outpouring of support, kind words, prayers, & just interest has been so amazing.

We had a couple short visits from Gr/Grpa Merritt (from Alaska) this last week as they were traveling here and there on a fall trip. The other grandparents come in a couple weeks and Aunt Lisa & Uncle Kerry come in a few days!!

Tomorrow Gracie gets tubes in both ears and will have a small cyst removed that is related to the cleft palate.  We'll leave about 5 am and hope she sleeps for the 2 hr drive because she can't eat or drink until after the procedure.  She has had 2 ear infections in the short time we've had her and probably has had fluid and ear infections most of her life.  It is related to the cleft palate.  Next Friday, oldest bro Josh gets his wisdom teeth removed and that same Dr. will consult with us on Gracie's palate repair.  The first dr we took her to the end of Sept. did not do major cleft palate repair (which we didn't know until we got her there) but she will be the Dr. to handle the auditory portion of Gracie's care.  By God's grace, we had found the dr for Josh's wisdom teeth before we left and just found out the other day that he traveled to China w/ our adoption agency in 2005 with a team of four doctors to perform cleft lip/palate surgeries.  He is both a doctor and dentist so we are hopeful that he has lots of experience w/ palate repair and that he can lead us through the next few years in her mouth repair.  Don't know what all that will entail yet but will keep y'all posted.

Other than that, she has finally started playing some w/ her toys rather than getting into everything and "helping" with house organization and cleaning.  The boys spoil her and love to do the chase game, which involves one brother running with Gracie and another chasing her.  She also likes to pretend to sleep (way funner than really sleeping).  She also loves to ride on a brother's shoulders.  Josh has figured out that if he sits down he can get her off w/o too much fussing but she's onto that now and starts up as soon as he nears the chair.  Well, I have had a lot of trouble w/ the pictures tonight so will try to put one in but need to get to bed.  Her hair is growing and we finally have a bit of "bed hair" in the morning- yay! 

Saturday, 9/18

Hi All - Let's see, what's new to report.  Gracie is doing so well. She has everyone doing pretty much as she pleases.  Had our first shower the  other night and that was pretty exciting. Her favorite place is outside and just like the boys, sand falls out of her shoes and clothes when I change her. So much for the cute little outfits staying clean. She typically pitches a bit of a fit when we bring her in.  Yesterday she was chasing the ducks and chickens w/ the chocolate lab, Snickers, as an accomplice.  Right now she is being chased by Josh and Zach and laughing so hard, she can't breath.   She has slept w/o waking me one time the past two nights. We are anxious to get her into the specialist and find out what the plan will be for her palate surgery.  My guess is that they will want to do the surgery sooner rather than later.  I keep hoping that somehow it will close on its own but I don't think that will be the case.  She says a variety of things but not very regularly. She seems to say, "bye", "ow", "mom", and I think she said "more" the other day.  We taught her to sign "more", which was probably a mistake because I'm usually signing "done" and she just keeps pointing to her hand... "more".  She understands almost anything we say, if you just show her once - like "hot" or "put on your socks" or "no, no, no, no, no, no, no!"  She has gained some weight & is filling out with a little of that toddler pudge that she should have.  Like any 2 year old I guess, one day she loves something and the next day gives it the big frown.  The other night I tried sweet potatoes on her (all dressed up w/ butter, sugar, and salt). She took a big bite and out of the corner of my eye I saw this orange glob go flying across the counter.  I had to turn away because it was hilarious. Take care all - Sorry, I can't figure out how to make this blog site send a message out when I post so if anyone knows how to do that, email me! 

Sunday, Sept. 12

Got a few minutes so thought I'd post a little note.  Gracie continues to settle in better every day.  Found out this week that she had one ear infection and fluid in the other ear so she seems to feel much better now that we are treating that.  Though we don't know Chinese and she doesn't know English, we communicate very well.  She reads hand signals and picks up things so quickly.  We crack up at her fake phone "conversations" and a host of other funny things she does.  Last night she came running into the kitchen and I wasn't really paying too much attention but knew she sounded excitedly triumphant about something.  When I looked at her, I saw that she had finally snatched the TV remote control when no one was looking and was concentrating on pushing every button. 

We know she will probably need surgery on her palate but will not know the specifics of that until after her appt at the end of this month.  Here are some  pictures of her and brother Ben in action.

Emperor "Chair-Head" and his Queen