Trying to catch up

I'm discovering that having 3 children's schedules to keep up with is rather tiring so getting the blog updated has taken a back burner. Here's what we've been up to over the past few days:

Phil & I decided that since everyone was doing so well, we would have a quick family get away. We headed to Chattanooga on Monday afternoon, spent the night, then went to the aquarium on Tuesday. It was SO nice to spend time with the boys & Madison together. The boys are still learning about Madison's personality but they already love her so much. I'm so impressed with how they are each handling this huge change to our family.

Madison had her first pediatrician's appointment on Wednesday. Everything went well. Dr. Rosser said that she doesn't even show up on the growth chart (she's just SO tiny). However, she had already gained 5 oz since she was weighed in China. I guess that's what happens when your brothers are constantly feeding you. She is behind developmentally, as we expected she would be but we are already seeing her make progress & we will continue to be patient & watch as she flourishes.

Today Madison went to Patti Thigpen, audiologist. Dr. Thigpen ran numerous test & determined that she does have fluid on her ears. She also determined that Madison has a mild hearing loss that is probably not linked to the fluid on her ears. We will go to an ENT to determine the next course of action. We are so grateful for the news of a mild hearing loss. I know this sounds strange but we were initially told she had a moderate to severe hearing loss. Therefore, a mild hearing loss is a blessing compared to the alternatives. Some other good news - Dr. Thigpen said that this loss will probably not effect her speech & language development & will just require minor modifications (e.g. she will have more difficulty in crowded areas with conversational speech, etc).

We also would like to say thank you once again for all the well wishes, cards, calls, visits, etc. We feel so blessed to have so many people wanting to hear Madison's story. Our hope is that this blog will continue to raise awareness about adoption & the joys that it can bring to families. If you ever have questions about the process please contact us. God has given us this gift - we would love to share more of the story with you.

Jet lag Stinks!

Hanging out with boys

At Chicago airport - outfit made by

her grandmother, Linda Nixon

Sorry Madison, your brothers

thought this was funny

Wow- what a whirlwind. Today is the fist day I have even been able to look at our blog. Our friend Steve, who did the updates for us, did a wonderful job. We are so thankful to him for doing this since we could not do blog updates from China.

Now a little about our trip home. We left Guangzhou on Wed evening flew into Hong Kong. Had a quick nights rest then headed to the airport for our 14 1/2 hour flight to Chicago. Let me have a proud momma moment & say that Madison did AMAZINGLY well. I think she cried for about 30 seconds 1 time when she was trying to fall asleep. The people around us were so impressed. Once we landed in Chicago, we had to go through customs, immigration, etc. This is where Madison became an official US citizen. Our flight was delayed to Nashville but we finally made it home around 8:30 on Thursday evening. We had numerous family members & friends greet us. Let me apologize for those of you who thought we were arriving on Friday & had arranged to go to the airport to meet us. So sorry for the confusion.

Seeing the boys brought me to tears. We missed them SO much. They were more worried about seeing Madison than us, but that's understandable. Madison was a little unsure about all the chaos around her but she managed a few smiles. My sweet cousin, Ronnie came & took pictures for us but I don't have them yet. As soon as I get them from him, I will post pictures from the airport. After the airport, we went to our house with family. The house was decorated for her return home, dinner was waiting for us & she had a welcome home cake. We are so appreciative of all that family & friends did for us while we were gone. We are so blessed.

Jet lag has been hard on us (more Phil & I than Madison). Last night I gave in and took Melatonin. That is a wonder drug!!! I feel so much better today. I always thought jet lag was just feeling tired but it was so much more (light headed, stomach problems, etc). Madison was been staying in her routine as best we can but she has gotten up each night around 2-3 & been up for approximately 2 hours, then goes back to sleep until around 8. However, she doesn't seem affected during the day, She's her usual cheerful self.

Madison & the boys are quickly bonding. Sometimes it's difficult for them to understand when she doesn't want them to pick her up. They think she doesn't like them. They are learning that she needs her space sometimes & they are beginning to read her moods & personality. I'm so proud of how well they are handling this huge change in our family. They're great kids!

Wordless Wednesday

Final Appointment - consolate!

A

Our all-American girl will be a U.S.

citizen as soon as we land in America.

Aug. 31, 2010


Today we started out by going to the zoo in Guangzhou. It was an interesting zoo (lots of animals), but the conditions were rather depressing. The animals were in very small enclosures and had very little room to move around. Also, many animals seemed very thin. I guess the upside was watching Madison -- she loved seeing all of animals. I now know what everyone was telling me about the HEAT! This was really the first day we have experienced extreme heat. We have discovered that Madison is very hot natured (like her daddy and brother, Taylor).  

This afternoon we went to the U.S. Consulate. We completed our paperwork and did the swearing in ceremony. While she is still a Chinese citizen, as soon as she lands on U.S. soil, she will be a U.S. citizen. The lady that runs the adoption program for the consulate came out to speak to us about the importance of adoption and the changes she has seen over the last few years. Approximately three years ago, only 7 percent of the adoptees were boys.  Now, the number has dramatically increased.  The reason for the increase is the dramatic rise in special needs adoptions.

Ready for the zoo.

The majority of adoptions going through now are special needs. Of the 10 families we were with today at the swearing in ceremony, I believe all but 1 was special needs. The children's special needs can range from premature/low birth weight, cleft lip and/or palate, heart issues, etc. While many have issues that will have to be dealt with when they return home, many others have already had surgery or will just need to be monitored. Then there are cases like Madison's where we thought we were adopting a child with a moderate to severe hearing loss. As far as we can tell, her hearing seems fine. Of course, we will let the audiologist make the final call on this, but even if she has a minor hearing loss - we will adjust and deal with it and make sure she gets whatever she needs to help her. 

This may be my last post from China. Tomorrow night we leave our hotel to catch our flight to Hong Kong. Our flight does not leave until 10:40 p.m., so we will arrive at our hotel in Hong Kong after midnight. Then our flight for the U.S. leaves the next day around noon. We are all so ready to be home. This experience has certainly been like no other, and we will miss certain aspects of China. However, we want to be with our ENTIRE family and in our home, with our normal routine (well, at least normal for us). If I don't get to blog before then, watch for coming home pics.

Checking out the alligator.