Joshua

I am still madly in love with this little boy:

Joshua's 1st Grade School Picture

Our #1 son, Joshua, is a strong, understanding, loving boy. I am so proud of him. Life hasn't always been easy in our house and we've had our challenges, but Josh has always taken things in stride. He is flexible and understanding and forgiving. He always tries his best at whatever he does. He is so smart: he's reading around a 2nd-3rd grade level and his comprehension is great. His math ability is advanced for a 1st grader, and he enjoys non-fiction books. He loves learning. He is also active, and is doing awesome in his swimming lessons and at riding his two-wheeler bike. He has enjoyed T-ball and basketball. He will start basketball again in January, and will do T-ball next summer.

He still has an addiction to Legos.

Joshua is a sweet boy. He needs his snuggle time. Like NEEDS it or things just ain't right. He received a character award at school last week. He lit UP when he saw all of us walk in the auditorium. Look at him in his light blue uniform shirt wearing his school ID around his neck ~ he's such a big kid. His teacher is the blonde and she has been such a blessing to Josh. Check out the picture:

Thank you, Lord, thank you thankyouthankyouthankyou for giving us this little boy to care for and to love and to raise. I promise to do my best as his mother. Thank you for blessing me with the experience of carrying him in my womb and birthing him and nursing him. It was incredible. It still is incredible watching him grow.

Somewhere along the way, somewhere between Surgery Day and Bye-Bye-to-the-No-No's Day, somewhere in there something clicked and he really REALLY loves his brothers now. They became HIS brothers. He claimed them. It's so cool. We never ever wanted Josh to be an only child, and he's not anymore. And he knows it.

(((hugs))),

chris

2 Corinthians 13:11  Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.

Check out our Munchkins

But first, a question for you that has been boggling my mind:

How do bloggers with multiple children find time to blog??? I follow several blogs of people with four to seven children and they blog almost daily. I am super-impressed. And I love their blogs. Maybe their children sleep longer than for 20-30 minute increments :o)  Or maybe their computers don't take 20 minutes to load a web page.

Someone tell my husband there are faster computers now ;o)

Anyhoo, I digress...

Gotta type fast before the next one wakes up.

Here are the munchkins and big bro' too:

Crazy Hair Day at Josh's school

So of course the other ones had green hair all day

#2 and #3 were a big hit at the surgeon's office at their followup visit that day :o)



We LOOOVE noodles ~ in the bowl, on the table, in our drink, on the floor, in our hair...

The leaning tower of David ~ it stayed like that for an hour until Baba got home from work.

Our trip to the Pumpkin Ranch

feeding the goats

I can't believe how big #1 is.

belly buttons!!!



First snow of the year ~ almost a foot of snow! It was 80 degrees two days ago... gotta love Colorado!

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

 (((hugs))),
chris


Glory and honor to God forever and ever. He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen.   1 Timothy 1:17

Inquiring Minds...

I have heard this question (or a version of it) a lot, "Are the boys done with surgeries now?"

Oh, no, my friend. Oh, no.

And that question is followed up with some version of, "How many more surgeries?" or "What else needs to be fixed?"

Do we know how many or what kinds of surgeries they will need? Nope.

Sorry to be vague. It is a kind of "wait and see" process. I think we'll only know what should be the next step as we go along.

The boys just had their first surgery. We only know what is next. Samuel will have his full lip repair done in about 6 months. That means they line everything up and attach all the muscles under his lip. He doesn't look much different now from the front (you should see the roof of his mouth though :) it's very amazing and exciting), but he should after the next surgery. With David, we wait for him to grow and then the doc will attempt to close up the top of his mouth (his hard palate). How long will that take? Who knows. How about we evaluate again in 6 months. I predict that David's palate will take several surgeries to close.

I'm not being pessimistic, just being realistic. Wouldn't it be a pleasant surprise to only have one surgery to close up David's palate, eh?

I also predict one more lip revision for David. I double-checked with my crystal ball on this one :o)   I think there is still a loose muscle in there that needs to be fixed. Perhaps it was fixed this last surgery, but a flying book or no-nos rubbing on his face made it detach...

Once the lips and roofs of the mouth are closed up, and the boys are talking more clearly, we'll be able to see ~ or rather hear ~ if their soft palate is working properly. Your soft palate is the flappy part at the back of your throat that keeps you from sounding like Nasal-Nelly all the time. You need to close your soft palate to make certain sounds when you speak, especially the plosives like "b" and "p". If the boys can't seem to do this, they can be evaluated to find out the reason. I think they can put some sort of camera in their nose and take a look at what might be causing the trouble ~ whether the soft palate just isn't moving (velopharangeal incompetence) or it isn't long enough (velopharangeal insufficiency).

If their soft palate isn't closing because it is not big enough, then they will need that fixed surgically. I think there are two ways to do this. The docs can either reconstruct the soft palate or make a "speed bump" out of tissue so that the soft palate can close. I'm not sure at what age this would happen... so I'll guess around 5-6ish.

After their permanent teeth come in, they will need a bone graft in their upper teethridge (the alveolar ridge). I think the docs usually take bone from the hip to do this. All kids with clefts that go up into the roof of their mouth need this, since there is a split in their gumline. I have heard this surgery falls into the "not fun" category just like the hard palate surgery... ouch...

As they grow, we'll see if their jaw and upper teethridge are growing at the same pace. Sometimes the upper teethridge doesn't grow fully with all the stuff that's happenin' in there, so surgery is needed to line the top and bottom up. I think that happens later, maybe in the late teen years when they are at their adult size.

And all along the way we'll keep an eye on their ears in case they need new ear tubes.

And fistulas will not be our friends. Those mean more surgeries. We love our plastic surgeon, but not that much...

So that's surgery-land as I know it.

I bet I got something wrong will learn more as we go along.

I have to figure out a short and sweet answer to the question, "Are the boys done with surgeries now?"

Ask me when they are in high school and we'll have a better idea :o)

(((hugs))),
chris


Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.   1 Peter 5:7

Helicoptering

WE'RE SURVIVING!

We're doing it! Everyone is getting fed (even the dog). The house is being semi-maintained. The kids are (relatively) clean and they are happy at least half of the time. Not counting the hours when they are sleeping.

Half is better than where we were last week :o)

Last Thursday we went to see the doc for the post-surgery followup visit. I am happy to announce that we are holding together at the seams! The doc said that if all stitches are still holding in a month, then he will call the surgery a success. So we're not out of the danger zone yet. We are still concerned that Samuel's lip might pop, but so far so good!

Samuel's hands are venturing toward his mouth more... David hates having his nose splint put in... Both boys are waking up multiple times a night and someone is up usually every hour or hour and a half ~ probably a combination of pain and trying to sleep while wearing their uncomfortable no-nos... It is nerve-wracking watching the boys play and worrying that they might fall or bump their faces with a toy that is being swung around or stick a finger in and pop a palate or throw something at brother...

I dislike being Helicopter Parent.

We would dislike having to redo a surgery more.

So be a Helicopter Parent, I must.

Although in spite of my Helicopter-Parent-ishness, last week Samuel flung a book that hit David square in his lip then an hour later David kicked Samuel square in his lip. Helllloooooo Tums! Thank you, Lord, for keeping their faces together in all their rough-and-tumble boyishness! Ugh.

Good thing they are so darn cute.

And good thing we are blessed with a never-ending supply of coffee.

Thanks again for all the prayers. God is listening. He has us wrapped up in a great big bear hug right now.

(((hugs))),
chris


The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth.   Psalm 145:18

Welcome to No-No Land

The boys are feeling a little better and starting to smile more :o)

Samuel started smiling his big huge smile again on Monday, and this is when his lip started bleeding. We're concerned that he is coming apart at the seams. There's nothing we can do about it, says the doctor. Our follow-up appointment is tomorrow so we'll have doc look at it then.

Both munchkins are also touching their faces more, so they are wearing their no-nos more. It has been a crack a beer open at 9am kinda day rough day, so I don't have very many words. Enjoy the pictures!

(((hugs))),
chris

What are YOU lookin' at?

Capturing the moment of #1 and #2 playing together

#2 and #3 and their new best friends, the no-nos

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,
for to you I entrust my life.   Psalm 143:8

Happy 2nd Birthday, Samuel!!!

Samuel enjoyed his first birthday celebration turning 2!!!

What's this???

Power tools ~ what every kid needs

Big brother #1 helping open presents

Big brother #2 enjoying Sammy's musical birthday card

My four guys playing with the tool bench

It was a fun day for Samuel ~ (just about as rootin'-tootin' fun as three days post-surgery and a liquid diet can be anyway  :o)    Samuel enjoyed all his toys, but wasn't a fan of the chocolate milkshakes we had to celebrate his birthday. Jason took them outside to throw water balloons around, and that is always fun!

His two big brothers both ended up crying because they did not get any presents, and because Samuel got his choice of his toys to play with. It will take time for the three to learn that each of them will get their "special day".

There were bittersweet moments for me... I kept thinking about the day that Samuel was born. How was the pregnancy and delivery? What is his China mom like? His China dad and their family situation? Are their hearts still breaking because they had to make the decision to leave little Samuel so he could have a chance at life? I wish I could send them an email so I could tell them what a sweet, funny, smart little boy he is. I wish I could send them a video so they could see his beautiful face and how he walks and talks and what his voice sounds like. I wish I could ask them so many questions...

               I wish they could know how much we love him.

So I pray for them. I pray that they feel peace about their decision. I pray that they are happy and healthy and having a good life. We will never forget them.

Happy Birthday, sweet, sweet little Samuel. We are so blessed to have you and we love you!

(((hugs))),
chris



You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.    Matthew 5:14-16