Pumpkin Picking

The kids are excited every year to head to the local pumpkin patch and pick the best pumpkin off the vine.  This year was no exception.  Hannah couldn't wait to get her very own "punkin."  On our way back from meeting Micah's China buddies, we stopped at Curtis Orchard in Champaign, IL.  The kids loved trekking through the fields and exploring the farm.  We had a great time on a beautiful Fall day.

Shanghai Sweeties Reunite!

Facebook gets a bad reputation for many reasons.  With that being said, I am so grateful for facebook.  Through facebook, we have connected with so many adoptive families.  We also have connected with the families of children from Micah and Hannah's orphanages.  For Micah in particular, we have very little information from the orphanage. In fact, we received two pictures from them.  That is all!  With facebook, we have obtained many pictures from families and advocates that visited Micah's orphanage.  There memories are priceless and we are so grateful!

This past weekend we were invited to the birthday party of one of Micah's orphanage buddies.  Although it was over two hours drive away, we knew it was God orchestrating this wonderful reunion.  We were able to meet the birthday boy, Hudson, along with Liberty, one of Micah's best friends.  The meeting went great and we pray that these friendships will continue to grow.

Happy Birthday!

Fall is full of birthdays for our family.
First up, Nathan is 8!  His birthday was at the end of September and this weekend we celebrated with friends and family.  He is a kid who loves history, video games, sports, and Star Wars.  He likes to keep his toys in order and cuddle with a book in bed.  He is our first born and a great blessing to our family.  Happy Birthday Nathan!  May the force be with you!

Baba Matt celebrated his birthday after Nathan.  We are so grateful for our God-loving leader.  He provides for our family in so many ways.  He loves to play with the kids and have a lot of fun!  We love you Daddy!

This weekend our family traveled to Peoria and celebrated the three men of the house.  Nathan, Micah and Matt!  Micah's birthday is in November, so his celebration was a bit early.  We decided that we would have one big celebration to keep the travel to a minimum.  It was a great time with family!  We love you all!

3 weeks post-op

Hannah is 3 weeks post-op and doing very well.  We love to see her personality shine each day.  She has been able to get out of the house a few times, although we are still limiting her activity.  She still gets caught picking her head incision, but it is looking much better since taking the antibiotics.  We are praying it continues to heal well.  She will have a follow-up MRI in November and then we will see what the plan of care will be.

Praise!  We have received the official pathology results of the tissue and bone that was removed during surgery.  All tissue came back benign.  The tumor came back with cells that are found in stomach lining.  The thought is that it was the result of improper development in utero.  We will mostly likely see genetics since Hannah has a couple mid-line birth defects.  We are unsure at this point if there is any concern for gastrointestinal abnormalities.  Hannah does not have any symptoms to indicate any GI issues.  We trust that God knows all the details!

As of Sunday, Hannah has officially been our daughter for 5 months!  Whoa!  So much has happened in that amount of time.  We love to see her dance and play.  She enjoys hearing her favorite songs "Twinkle" and "ABC".  She is learning many words.  She loves to point out and say words she knows.  She loves Minnie Mouse, Kai Lan and My Little Ponies.  She is a spicy girl that brings great joy to our family.

Thank you for your continued prayers!

Hannah is happy!

Hannah is two weeks post-op and that means she can suck her finger.  She is one happy girl!  

Her head incision is improving with the antibiotics.  She continues to pick at her incision and pull out stitches.  We are doing our best to keep her hands off her head.  She is 3!  She seems to pick at it in her sleep.  Please pray that she will continue to heal without set backs.  Thank you!

Possible Infection

Just a quick update on Hannah...
She is pretty much back to her normal activity at home.  She loves to be the center of attention at the dinner table, have a dance party and eat a lot of snacks!  Overall, she is doing well.  Praise God!

On Saturday night we noticed that part of her incision was red, swollen and draining.  The on-call doctor requested that we go to the ER for the Neuro team to evaluate Hannah.  We were told that she had a "normal reaction" and were released around 1am.  On Sunday morning, that part of the incision started bleeding.  We spoke with the on-call doctor again.  He requested we call and talk with the office today.  We brought her to the office today.  They decided to start antibiotics to be on the safe side.  Please pray that the antibiotics will be effective and the signs of infection will resolve.

Thank you for all who have been praying, bringing meals and checking in with our family.  You are loved!

"I love you Ma Ma"

Thank you for checking in to see how Hannah's recovery is going.  Overall, she is doing quite well.  Her pain is minimal and she seems to be returning to herself.  She is still taking it easy and lounging around the living room most days.  We are seeing more smiles from her and she is excited to get back in action.

FAQ:

1.  Did Hannah's head get shaved?

Yes.  Hannah has a very fancy hair cut right now.  She has a 2 inch racing stripe that goes from ear to ear along with a nice circle design at the top of her head.

2.  Is Hannah's brain tumor malignant?

The doctors do not believe her tumor is malignant.  We are still awaiting the pathology results to confirm.

3.  Were the doctors able to remove the whole tumor?

The doctors are confident they were able to remove the whole tumor and connecting tract.  Pathology results will confirm this.

4.  Will the tumor grow back?

Only God knows the answer to that question.

5.  What type of follow-up is recommended post-operative?

Hannah will see both neurosurgery and plastic surgery in the next two weeks.  She will also be seen 6 weeks post-op along with having a follow-up MRI.  Her pathology will determine the frequency after that point.  She will most likely be seen about every 3-6 months.

Prayer Request:

Hannah's biggest issue right now is her incisions.  She keeps picking at them and itching them.  She managed to remove some of the stitches on her nose incision.  We are praying that it heals well and does not get infected.  The incision on her head is very itchy and she has itched it to the point of bleeding.  Poor girl!  It seems to happen most frequently when she is sleeping.  Please pray for quick healing and no infection.

Recovery Highlight:

The highlight of this week came in the form of 4 words.  "I love you Ma Ma."  They are words that we have longed to hear.  It is a phrase we do not take for granted.  You see, Hannah's heart has been broken.  We are working every day to build trust and love with her.  We tell her "I love you" over and over.  She typically avoids eye contact and doesn't respond.  This week, while chomping on a bowl of watermelon, she responded.
Ma Ma: "I love you Xi Xi."  

Xi Xi: "I love you Ma Ma."  

I jumped off of the couch, sat in front of her and let her know how much she is loved.  It was the first time to hear those sweet words come from her mouth.  I am so thankful for that brief moment that she let her guard down.  Thank you Jesus!  

"We love because he first loved us."  1 John 4:19