Our Family...: An update!

Hard to believe that we have been home for 2 weeks and we have had Hannah for 1 month. She is still doing well, although we certainly have our days. She is really comfortable at home and seems to understand that we are her family. She is very chatty with us and runs around and plays, but when other people are here she is really quiet, shy and clingy. She is still sleeping great and really loves her bed! We had 2 nights in a row where she ended up in our bed because she woke up during a changing. Both of those nights were awful because she rolled around and moaned like she couldn't get comfortable. I finally got so frustrated on the second night that I took her back to her bed and she fell asleep within 5 minutes! I think she enjoys her bed and likes the comfort of being closed in a tight space. I am so thankful she loves her bed and is a good sleeper.

Everyone asks me how Emma is doing with Hannah- they want to know if she is jealous. Not at all!!! Emma is really patient with Hannah and is a big help with her! All of my kids understand that Hannah needs patience right now and that she does not understand a lot of things. Timmy is the only one we have to watch... Hannah was standing in the middle of the driveway the other day and Timmy rode his bike right into her and knocked her down. She had a massive melt down and Timmy acted like he didn't care. I asked him why he did it and he said, "She was in my way!" Oh, my. He plays the little brother role really well! Most of the time he is fine with her... but he is the one who won't give up a toy or give into her requests.

We have decided to have all of Hannah's care done at Cincinnati Children's. It just made the most sense. She requries so many different specialists, and they are used to working as a team on a treatment plan. We live just over an hour from Children's hospital and 45 minutes from our local hospital, so it really wasn't much different. The problem was that they wouldn't get us in for at least 2 months unless we could prove that she was a "critical" case! Ugh... so frustrating!! Then she said that is best case, that normally they want adopted children in a family for 4-5 months before they are seen, to see how they grow and change. The nurse told me to get bloodwork and a renal/pelvic ultrasound done and send them the results. That would give them enough information to make a decision. Well, we had the u/s done Wednesday at 2:00 pm and by 8:30 am on Thursday, I had 2 missed calls from my pediatrician and a message from Cincinnati Children's saying they want to see us in the next few weeks! There was an issue with her kidney (we knew it was bad...) that needs to be resolved quickly. They are going to do 2 full days of tests and we meet with doctors on the 3rd day. Then we will be able to schedule her surgeries! We should know a lot more about our girl in the next few weeks!

Our local head start preschool knows about Hannah and has taken her information. We are not sure she will qualify, but given her age, medical condition, and development, we are hoping that will be enough to get her in. Unfortunately, since Hannah is adopted... she can't be labeled as having a "disability" but rather a "lack of opportunity." She has not been given the chance to develop her language or gross motor skills, so it isn't her fault that she is behind. BUT, there is still hope... so we have faith that it will all work out!

I have 11 days of school left and they can't go fast enough. I love my class and I have had an amazing year, but it is time to focus all my energy on my family. We are counting down the days!

Timmy and Emma's new hiding place... the kitchen cabinet!

My kids with some of their cousins

Emma and cousin Olivia

Matthew and Emma are the most patient with Hannah. They were helping her get to the sandbox. She is not very coordinated and falls easily when the surface is not flat.