Can it be 10 weeks since this little one entered our lives? In this short time, it seems as though we have been through every emotion. We love this little girl more than we could have imagined. Since I was unable to get to my blog in China due to all social media being blocked by the government, I will do a quick over view. I think Lee and I would say it was the hardest two weeks of our lives. In our very selfish nature we questioned God in every way. It was not that we didn’t love this little one, but the extent of the work ahead of us was overwhelming. We praise the Lord for Lee’s mom being with us and the love and support she supplied to us in a time of need. We are also so thankful for the prayers at home for us. They were felt and it is what got us through. Shira & Cody did a great job on the home front while we were gone keeping all the animals alive and taking care of house hold chores. Also a big thank you to my parents for bringing food, supporting Cody at his soccer games, and helping out where needed.
A little about Kylie. Her smile makes you melt. She soon got the nickname Smilie Kylie! She has a great sense of humor. Last night she rubbed her hand in orange juice before reaching for Kate’s hand to pray with a mischievous grin. She loves to hide behind the corner, as if to surprise the next person to come around, but she is always betrayed by her giggles. She is scared to death of dogs and cats. Her first American Girl doll given to her by Grandma also scared her. We all waited in great anticipation as she unwrapped the doll thinking this would be the best gift ever. Too our surprise she took the lid off the box and fear entered her little face and she pushed the doll away. At first we were in shock and then we all started laughing. We believe it was too real looking and she thought it was alive when the eye lids moved. Even though Kylie is six she is at a 4 year old level in most areas. We are trusting with love, encouragement, therapy, and time she will catch up. She is starting to understand a lot of English but her speech is coming slowly due to her cleft palate. She will need more surgery for her cleft, but she need to get through another open heart surgery first. We started her in preschool and, most days, it is going well. She is in therapy for speech, occupation therapy, and physical therapy. She has an arm brace that she wears at night to keep her fingers in an outward position. At this point she does not use her right hand. She is also being fitted for a leg brace that will strengthen her right leg. More on that to come.
We were home less than two weeks and we learned Kylie needed more heart surgery. We knew when we adopted this little one she had had heart surgery in the past, but were hoping that everything was repaired and she was good to go. This was not the case. We were not prepared for this news, and again we were thrown for a loop. Our pediatric cardiologist suggested we send the preliminary tests to both Chop and Boston. There were two surgery options one being a bigger one, more extensive, and more of a total repair, but the doctor said due to some damage in her heart she was not sure she would be a candidate. We did not like the second option because it would not allow her to utilize her whole heart and, over time, it would put a lot of pressure on her liver. So we prayed that there would be a surgeon willing to perform the larger surgery on Kylie. Our prayers were answered last week when we received news from a doctor in Boston who is willing to take on Kylie's case and perform the surgery needed to repair her little heart. We praised the Lord for this news. We will have more tests in February and are hoping the surgery will be in February or March. Please pray for this upcoming surgery and complete healing.
Also a big thank you to all who brought us food. I argued with my good friend and sister in law who lined up the meals. I truly felt as though we would not need all those meals. Well they knew better than I how much I did need those meals. I remember a family member telling me you think you feel normal after you have a baby, but it’s really not till 12 weeks and you look back that you realize you still were not yourself. Let’s just say some nights just cleaning the dishes up was more than I could handle. So THANK YOU to each of you who brought a meal. It was a huge blessing to our family!
One of the biggest blessings is watching our other 4 children interact with her. Shira being our psych major is the one to work with her to teach her cats and dogs are not bad. Mitch, like daddy, throws her into the sky and she screams with delight. Cody is the best at playing with her when he gets back from school. Kate is a huge helper in all ways - getting her ready in the morning and teaching Kylie how to conduct herself with kindness. They share a room and she brings her down each morning, after Kylie typically wakes her and she doesn’t complain. She helps with bathing her and other care. We are blessed!
Lee and I are so grateful that God made it so clear to both of us we were to adopt. Not only that, but God also made it so clear that it was specifically to be Kylie. This give us great peace on the days that are very difficult. We believe God has BIG plans for this little one. Thanks for doing this journey with us. My intent was for the blog to end after we were home. But due to the heart surgery and needing all the prayer support we can get I will continue it through the next couple months. We are gracious we serve a mighty God who walks beside us. And are so blessed with family and friends who have been by our side to love and encourage us.
May you be blessed and a blessing to other this Christmas!
Kylie had fear the first time I put her in a grocery cart then got a huge smile when I pushed her.
Elena has been our interpreter for Kylie, and now our friend!
Kylie adores all her siblings.
Grandma is graciously taking Kylie to her therapy every Tuesday while I'm at work. We are hoping to have the leg brace in a couple weeks to help with her balance and walking.
