Friday, November 7, 2008
Favorite Family Foto
These are my favorite family fotos. Unfortunately, the only ones we have of all six of us was taken during our Celebrating Adoption Photo shoot, and I don't have pics to share. So these are my second favorites. Hope you enjoy.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Happy Halloween
Halloween is my favorite holiday, because it's my Birthday. This year I turned 35. Where have the years gone. I had a great birthday this year. I spent the morning visiting with Stacy and Isabella. Thanks for the card and balloons, Stacy. Isabella is so beautiful and is an official toddler. She is walking all over. Check out the pics. Faith and Isabella are going to be life long friends.
Isabella
Isabella and Faith
We spent Halloween night at a Harvest Festival getting face paintings and jumping in a bouncing. We then went home, celebrated my Birthday with cake and then took the kids out trick or treating. Faith dressed as a Pink Poodle, Paris was Wonder Woman, Roc was some sorta Ninja and Rex was Batman. Some of our cousins also joined us for the festivities.
Every year I joke around about turning 22, again. Well after the kids went to bed and the babysitter arrived Jayme and I went out to have some drinks with friends. I was so hungover on Saturday that it was ridiculous. I realized that I can't drink like i was 22, because the recovery is a lot harder. Saturday, Jayme and I shipped the kids off to there Grandparents and drove up to Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort in Avila Beach, where I got the best Hot Stone massage EVER and slept for 12 hours. It was very relaxing and a much needed getaway.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Watch
I've been sitting at my computer trying to think about how I should right this post. I have all these great thoughts and analogies that I want to express, but I just can't seem to get it out.
As I was driving today thinking back to how my life has turned out, I wonder, was it all in GODS plan. Did I ever have control over it. I have four amazing children and I would love to have more. People who know my situation often say "Four kids and you want more. Your husband wanted two, for his sanity, STOP". So I wonder, my heart tells me one thing and his another. Do we have a choice. I mean doesn't GOD already have a plan for our lives. Whether it's four kids or ten!
I do know one thing, GOD just doesn't hand things out and says "live happily ever after". What am I to learn from my life, from my husband, children, etc...
Which leads me to Faith. GOD gave me a special needs child. I didn't want a special needs child nor asked for one. But that's not my choice. So as I'm driving in the car today, lost in my thoughts, I kept on asking myself, why me? Just about everyone I know who adopted a child, got a "normal" child, so why not us. I new the answer was in front of me, but I couldn't figure it out. What did GOD want me to learn from all this. I kept on hearing that little voice saying WATCH. Watch very carefully. WAS GOD TALKING TO ME!
Through Faith I've learned many things, things I never wanted to learn about. Like PT, OT, ST, SID, Hyptonia, Myopathy, Metabolic disorder, etc... I've learned that we spend a great deal of time looking at the big picture and sweating the small stuff.
I've watch my three older children grow, hit there milestones when they were suppose too, walk, talk, jump, hop, skip. Faith has yet to accomplish these milestones. I always thought that the down side of adoption was that I'd miss her first year, miss her first steps or fist words. Be carefully of what you ask for. So I sit and watch Faith, I watch her shake her head back and forth freaking out because she is on Sensory overloaded, I watch her roll all over the floor wondering why she isn't crawling or walking. Meanwhile, I hear a voice yelling at me WATCH, WATCH, WATCH.
So I came home from my sons soccer practice yesterday and in the mist of chaos, my Nanny wants to show me a video of Faith, so I stop and WATCHED. Check it out
Did you see what she did. She pick up that bib, what 7/8 times. Intentionally, purposely grab it, picked it up, played with it. Believe it or not that is a huge milestone for Faith. For 17 months, that child has never grabbed a thing, she's never held anything in her hand, she's never wrapped her hand around my finger or pulled my hair or throw a toy. Until yesterday.
So now, now I watch all the little stuff, all the stuff that means something. I no longer worry when she is going to do something, because she is doing something. She is growing and thriving each and everyday. I know that GOD doesn't just want me to watch Faith, I know that he wants me to watch and learn from all my child.
So right now, this very moment, I raise the LORD up and praise him for giving me the gift to WATCH and LEARN.
Excuse me if this was all a bunch of rabbling and really doesn't make much sense, but it is all very clear to me.
As I was driving today thinking back to how my life has turned out, I wonder, was it all in GODS plan. Did I ever have control over it. I have four amazing children and I would love to have more. People who know my situation often say "Four kids and you want more. Your husband wanted two, for his sanity, STOP". So I wonder, my heart tells me one thing and his another. Do we have a choice. I mean doesn't GOD already have a plan for our lives. Whether it's four kids or ten!
I do know one thing, GOD just doesn't hand things out and says "live happily ever after". What am I to learn from my life, from my husband, children, etc...
Which leads me to Faith. GOD gave me a special needs child. I didn't want a special needs child nor asked for one. But that's not my choice. So as I'm driving in the car today, lost in my thoughts, I kept on asking myself, why me? Just about everyone I know who adopted a child, got a "normal" child, so why not us. I new the answer was in front of me, but I couldn't figure it out. What did GOD want me to learn from all this. I kept on hearing that little voice saying WATCH. Watch very carefully. WAS GOD TALKING TO ME!
Through Faith I've learned many things, things I never wanted to learn about. Like PT, OT, ST, SID, Hyptonia, Myopathy, Metabolic disorder, etc... I've learned that we spend a great deal of time looking at the big picture and sweating the small stuff.
I've watch my three older children grow, hit there milestones when they were suppose too, walk, talk, jump, hop, skip. Faith has yet to accomplish these milestones. I always thought that the down side of adoption was that I'd miss her first year, miss her first steps or fist words. Be carefully of what you ask for. So I sit and watch Faith, I watch her shake her head back and forth freaking out because she is on Sensory overloaded, I watch her roll all over the floor wondering why she isn't crawling or walking. Meanwhile, I hear a voice yelling at me WATCH, WATCH, WATCH.
So I came home from my sons soccer practice yesterday and in the mist of chaos, my Nanny wants to show me a video of Faith, so I stop and WATCHED. Check it out
Did you see what she did. She pick up that bib, what 7/8 times. Intentionally, purposely grab it, picked it up, played with it. Believe it or not that is a huge milestone for Faith. For 17 months, that child has never grabbed a thing, she's never held anything in her hand, she's never wrapped her hand around my finger or pulled my hair or throw a toy. Until yesterday.
So now, now I watch all the little stuff, all the stuff that means something. I no longer worry when she is going to do something, because she is doing something. She is growing and thriving each and everyday. I know that GOD doesn't just want me to watch Faith, I know that he wants me to watch and learn from all my child.
So right now, this very moment, I raise the LORD up and praise him for giving me the gift to WATCH and LEARN.
Excuse me if this was all a bunch of rabbling and really doesn't make much sense, but it is all very clear to me.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Genetic Testing
Quick update:
I heard from Cedar Sinai today and they got the results of one of the tests that were taken. The test was called a Microarray, it tested around a 1000 chromosomes to see if any had multiplied, split, etc.. The results came back negative.
Not sure how I feel about it yet. I mean it's good to know that all her chromosomes are in check, however, it also means that I don't yet know what is causing Faith's delays.
As soon as the remainder of the test results come in I will let everyone know the findings.
I heard from Cedar Sinai today and they got the results of one of the tests that were taken. The test was called a Microarray, it tested around a 1000 chromosomes to see if any had multiplied, split, etc.. The results came back negative.
Not sure how I feel about it yet. I mean it's good to know that all her chromosomes are in check, however, it also means that I don't yet know what is causing Faith's delays.
As soon as the remainder of the test results come in I will let everyone know the findings.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Happy 8th Birthday Paris.
My first baby is 8 years old today. Boy does time fly. Paris is growing to be a strong, independent, outgoing, sassy girl, and so beautiful.
We love you so very much, Princess and hope you have a wonderful Birthday.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Geneticist
I don't even know where to begin. Jayme, Faith and I left the house this morning at about 11:30am, headed down to Cedar Sinai Medical Center. Luckily we hit very little traffic and made it to our 1:00 appointment in perfect timing. They wasted no time getting us into a room, measuring and weighing Faith. Faith lost a few ounces, which I thought was a little odd, but the doctors didn't seem concerned. We were then moved to a different room where another Dr. spent about a half hour asking questions about Faiths history, what little we knew, and our assumptions about her foster care and birth mother, her physical and cognitive delays, her hyptonia and Sensory Processing Disorder.
She left the room and came back moments later with Dr. G. He proceeded to examine her, which she hated and screamed bloody murder when he even looked at her. After about 20 minutes of blood hurdling screams, Faith fell asleep on my shoulder.
The next hour was spent discussing what may or may not be wrong with her.
Words like:
Myopathy
Metabolic Disorder
Chromosomes
Array test
Fragile X
Autism
Prader Willis
MRI
Rhett Syndrome
etc, etc...
Dr. G. is a world renowned Dr. who specializes in Genetic cranial disorders amongst other genetic issues. He's seen many kids with Hyptonia, Sensory Processing Disorder and Developmental Delays, however, he stated that he has never seen a child like Faith that will not grasp anything with her hands. He, like us was totally perplexed.
She finally woke up and he got to see the happy side of Faith. Examined her a little further, which she didn't mind, and then arranged for some blood work. The lab took 6/7 vials of blood, once again our precious daughter screamed as we held her down, but calmed as soon as I picked her up. Glad that parts over.
Dr. G is testing her for some very specific disorders at first. He is testing her for 3/4 disorders that would cause hyptonia, although he feels she has no other systems that pertain to those disorders. He is also testing about a 1000 different chromosomes to see if there is any discrepancies. He believes that there is a 10/15% chance that any of those tests will be positive and a 50% chance that we may not ever get a diagnosis. Should the test come back negative then we will see him again in 6 months and do some further testing.
We finally left Cedar Sinai at about 4:00 and spent 2 hours in traffic trying to get home. It was a long day.
I am so very proud of Faith. She was a trooper.
This may very well be a process with no end in sight, but i know doing it will give me the peace of mind that I never gave up on my children.
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I am a SAHM who has been married for 10 years. My husband and I have 4 children. Our youngest who we adopted from Guatemala. We have 4 dogs and a Poppy and hope to add another child to our family through adoption. This blog is about us.
