Home 3 months...where has the time gone?

It is so hard to believe that we have been home for 3 months today. This time 3 months ago we were sitting on a runway in Chicago about to begin the last leg of our journey to Abby Grace. It is amazing how much she has changed from the small little girl we met in China. She is amazingly intelligent and such a joy to be around. She is really coming into her own. She says no when she doesn't want to do something and then cries the biggest crocodile tears when you make her do it. She loves to give hugs, kisses and high 5s. She is such a great kid. Today she was doing somersaults in the living room with Owen and would clap when we said yeah. Just the cutest little thing. Tonight at dinner when we said grace she folded her little hands and closed her little eyes and tried to sing along, it was so cute:) We had a blast at Mrs. Martha's pool on the 4th of July and she loved riding the jet ski at the lake on the 5th. She was not supposed to get her head in the water because of her tubes but that did happen a few times. I need to see about swimming lessons for her and Owen this winter. Neither one of them is afraid of water. We'll really have to watch them closely at the new house.

We went to MUSC and got fitted for her appliance this past Thursday. They have not cemented it in yet but will this Thursday. They sent it home with us and told us to let her get used to it being in her mouth. Yeah right:) She hates it of course. We've tried making it a game and she manages to leave it in for about 20 seconds and then spits it out. I guess when they stick it in with fixadent next week she'll just have to learn to deal with it. I was a bit concerned when we left the doctor. She had told us earlier that Abby Grace is the oldest child they have tried this NAM procedure on. It is usually performed on infants while their bones are still soft enough to mold. She said she'll know in about 3 weeks if it is even going to work. If not they'll just do surgery the way her lip and palate are now. That came as a bit of a surprise. Why are we even putting her through all of this if there is a high chance that it won't work? I don't know, it was almost as if the doctor really did not want to do it at all. Maybe I was reading her wrong but that was my interpretation. I'll let you know how it is going later.

PRAYER REQUEST:
A few weeks back I posted a prayer request for a friend here is an update. My friend Leslie and her husband are adopting a little girl 2 months older that AG. She has a cleft lip and palate and a heart condition that is complex. They are currently awaiting their RA, the document in which China OKs you to adopt a particular child. Well this past week they received an update with some scary info. Susannah was taken to a hospital in China for heart surgery! This was a big shock and there was not a lot of info available to Leslie and her family. Our agency thinks the surgery was already scheduled before they sent their LOI so they were just proceeding as planned. Our agency does not know if this surgery was an emergency or not. But no matter why the surgery is being done now it is just important for us all to pray for them. Pray for Leslie and Charlie as they await info on Susannah. Pray for their paperwork in China to get approved and their RA to be processed quickly. Pray for the team of physicians who are caring for Susannah right now. Pray for Leslie's heart that she feel peace knowing that God is taking care of all of Susannah's needs. If you would like to offer them prayers of support you can visit their sight at www.youbelong.net/theirwins