Bella, Post Adoption: Month 7

This is kind of an oddly-timed update, as today is the 28th but Bella's Gotcha Day was on the 31st; so, I usually write these updates on the 31st (or on the 30th if there isn't a 31st in the month). Well, today is the last day of February, hence why the update is being shared today! An update on our amazing girl as we celebrate seven months of being Forever Family:

Language. Well, we finally got some definitive answers about Bella's hearing after many, many months of specialist visits, scans, and evaluations. We now know that Bella's small right cochlear (auditory) nerve is causing her hearing loss. Hers is a mild loss, and only for the right ear, and only for high frequencies (i.e., often those sounds at the ends of words; more difficulty detecting female voices; certain sounds, such as /s/ and /sh/), but it requires a hearing aid nonetheless, so that her speech development will continue to progress. Getting her hearing aid will require a few additional appointments as we assess her hearing one more time and then have her ear measured, an ear mold created, etc. This is in process as we speak under the expertise and care of our awesome audiologist. 

One of our goals for this month was for Bella to begin initiating more requests - letting us know what she needs/wants rather than us having to ask her every time. And she is making good progress with this, including asking for more snacks, asking for her water, asking to play, etc. Good job, Bellaboo! 

Motor. I honestly feel like, developmentally, there haven't been huge noteworthy changes in Bella's motor skills this month. Our girl is definitely getting stronger by the day but she is also very timid when it comes to trying new things and very stubborn when it comes to attempting things she's not confident in. That being said, she took a single step at the start of the month, but weeks later, she still won't take more than one step at a time. And she won't even always take a step when asked. I am really hoping that she'll start taking more and more steps consistently and consecutively. It is hard not to feel defeated and frustrated at times. But we are doing all we can and trust me when I say I am praying so hard about this. 

I wrote that paragraph on Sunday evening because things had stalled with Bella's gross motor skills, and I was feeling really down and really frustrated. We have been working so, so hard with Bella on her motor skills for seven months, and I was starting to feel defeated. On Monday morning, I prayed, yet again, for God to please help our girl walk. I was in tears, begging and pleading for Him to help her make this developmental leap. 

That night, Monday, February 26, 2018, our girl walked. Not just a single step. She walked, again and again, from her daddy to me, from me to her daddy, as we scooted further and further apart. 

I wish you could have seen her face the first time she walked. She was ecstatic. I started crying. Her daddy started cheering. It was one of the most amazing, proudest moments of my life. We continued practicing over and over, and she continued to be completely amazed with herself, over and over. The next (yesterday) morning, she showed her new skills off to our physical therapist, and then to our early interventionist, over and over again.

Thank you, Jesus, for helping our girl learn to walk, not in our timing, but in Yours. We are so much more appreciative of every single step she takes, of every hour of therapy it took to get here, of every healthcare professional who helped to heal her body so that she could take these steps. Our girl started walking this month, and onward, we will march. <3 

Cognition. I have said it all along: our girl is a smart cookie! She learns quickly and easily remembers what she learns. One thing that has been so fun to watch is Bella's acquisition of colors.  She received this awesome color-matching toy for Christmas. Initially, she couldn't match the colors at all. She would put the colored discs on any given colored peg, not attempting to correspond them by matching the colors. But now? The girl quickly and easily puts the discs exactly where they belong! And then, this smart girl, just to mess with me at times, will purposefully mismatch the colors, then look at me, smile, and correct herself. It's like she's saying, "Ha! Fooled you, Mom!" She is also doing an awesome job doing puzzles by herself, and we are so proud of her!

 

Attaching. I feel like a broken record, so this will be the last time I will include "Attachment" as a category in these updates. Bella knows we are hers. We know she is ours. She can separate from us easily and without tears and know we are always coming back. She will play with siblings and grandparents and therapists, even when her daddy or I are in the room (instead of just sticking close to us). She is a full-fledged member of the Lu Crew, and she knows it. <3 

Out and About/Playing. This was a special month for our family, as it was the first we celebrated Chinese New Year. We gathered with several other families who have adopted sweet kiddos from China and celebrated the Chinese culture together. It is undoubtedly one of my new favorite days of the year. 

As per usual, there were also plenty of extracurricular practices and games that Bella accompanied us to; there were Sundays at church; there was lots of outside fun - Bella even learned to love ice cream! Home girl could not get enough!

She celebrated her first Valentine's Day and we Lu Ladies had our first official girl's night in - a spa night! We also gathered with friends on a warm, beautiful night and went swimming in their (heated) pool. Bels could not have loved it more! She just laughed and splashed and floated for over an hour. And when it was finally time to get out of the pool, she quickly signed and asked for "More! More!" Safe to say, we'll be having plenty of fun days at our neighborhood pool this summer!

Etc. We had several other important appointments this month for Bella. First, for the first time ever, we had an appointment and finally heard the words, "Everything looks good!" It had taken over six months for us to hear those beautiful words. Every other appointment we have had since we brought Bella home has resulted in the identification of a new concern, the need for a new referral, a new intervention, a new request for follow-up. So, when we finally heard, "Her vision is normal!" I started crying. Praise the Lord! 

We have several important appointments coming up in March, including meeting with a pediatric rheumatologist, meeting our new developmental pediatrician, and having speech, occupational, and physical therapy evaluations completed by our public school system to determine Bels' eligibility for a specialized preschool program. And of course, we'll have several appointments with our audiologist to get Bella's hearing aid, in addition to maintaining our weekly therapy load. Whew! I know we'll be ready for Spring Break when it finally arrives - ha! 

Bella Elizabeth, you amaze us every day and make us so very proud. We thank God for you and can't wait to stand alongside you as you use your beautiful life to move mountains. We love you with all our hearts, sweet girl. On to Month 8 we go!

Week in the Life

I have always loved reading posts that other bloggers write about a "Day in the Life" or a "Week in the Life"; so, I thought I'd follow suit to share a little bit about what things often look like these days for my Lu Crew. If this bores you to tears and you want to scroll on, no hurt feelings here! For some weird reason, I just like hearing about the day-to-day, mundane details of people's lives; so, I thought I'd share a few of my own. :) It'll also be fun to look back and read this a year from now and see how much our days have changed!

A few things are usually the exact same each morning during the week. For example, on weekdays, I wake up at 6:00 and get myself dressed and make-up-ed quickly before getting Banks and Raleigh up at 6:15. Because Raleigh and Bella share a room, and we want Bels to continue sleeping that early in the morning, I wake Raleigh up and then carry her into the playroom, where her outfit for the day was laid out the night before. By this time, my hub has returned home after completing his 5:00 am workout. After Banks and Rals get dressed and brush their teeth, they head downstairs for breakfast. I eat mine,  too, and enjoy the first few sips of my coffee, before my hub walks our big two out to the bus stop at 6:51, and I wave to them as the bus drives past. I then immediately do my quiet time, alongside my hub. Right now, that consists of reading my daily devotional (currently doing Savor by Shauna Neiquiest) and writing in my gratitude journal (I love mine and love starting my day by reflecting on something I feel grateful for). If we don't have an early morning therapy session for Bella, then we will sip our coffee and watch the Today Show until 7:30, at which point we get the little two up. If there is an early therapy session (twice a week therapy starts around 7:30), I still complete my devotional/gratitude time but forego my 30 minutes of quiet coffee sipping and instead head upstairs to get the little two dressed, teeth brushed, and back downstairs for breakfast.

Also of note, our Spring sport practices start this week; which means that last week, we had several glorious nights with NO extracurriculars and beautiful weather, which made for more laid-back, schedule-free nights (and all the mommas said Amen). This is rare during the school year, so we soaked up every minute of every plan-free afternoon last week!

Annnnnywho. Now, a way-too-detailed look at what last week looked like for us: 

Monday. 

Physical therapy session from 7:30 to 8:30 am for Bella. Normally, I would immediately leave to drive Harrison to school after the session ended, picking up his sweet friend Sulli on the way (if it's my week to drive; this week in particular, it was), but it was President's Day and the preschoolers didn't have school. So, Bels, Harrison, and I enjoyed a snack and some play time after her first therapy session, and I threw in some laundry, while waiting for our speech therapy session to begin at 9:30 am. When that ended at 10:30, I put Bella down for an early nap as she had an appointment later in the day that would have interfered with her normal naptime. Then, Harrison and I high-tailed it to the elementary school, where we surprised Banks for lunch. Once home at 11:45, I put Harrison down for his nap and folded four loads of laundry and watched part of an episode of Stranger Things while doing so. :) At 12:30, I woke up Bella from her nap (siiiiigh) and we hustled out the door to make it to a 1:00 pm ENT appointment. Once home, around 2:15 or so, we had a quick snack before it was time to get Banks and Raleigh off the bus. They had their own quick snack, and then Banks started his chores and homework while Raleigh got ready for dance. Because my hub was home this day, the boys got to stay home and play while the girls and I left to run a couple quick errands (dropping off clothes to a friend; hitting the pharmacy) before dropping Raleigh at her tap/ballet class at 4:00. During her 45-minute class, Bels and I made a quick trip to the grocery store, grabbing some things for dinner for that night and the following two nights. We grabbed Rals from dance at 4:45 and then headed home, where I "made" dinner (Rotisserie chicken from Harris Teeter with 90-second brown rice and succotash). Meanwhile, my hub played with the kiddos outside. At 5:30, we sat down as a family to eat. I then took a quick shower and got some to-do's checked of my list (re-scheduling some of Bella's therapies due to a conflict that arose; ordering some new furniture for our family room; responding to emails/texts; etc.) while my hub got the kids showered/bathed. We then sat down and watched a little AFV together (we usually do this on Sundays but had had a LifeGroup family gathering the night before). We put the kids to bed at 7:30, and my hub and I watched some tv and got in some couch time before crashing at 9:30. 

Now, that was a busy, non-stop day for us. It was our busiest day of the week by far. As you'll see in some of the slower-paced days that followed, it's not always quite that crazy. Some days, yes. But not all days!

Tuesday. 

Because I like to work out six days a week, and because my hub's travel schedule would not allow for that this week, I opted to do two workouts in one day, which took place on this day. Do I do that ever week? No. Because Mondays are usually very busy for us, it is my "off" day from exercising. But I like to try to do something active the other six days. So, on this day, I went for 3.5-mile run to jumpstart the day. Then, because our first therapy session wasn't until 10:30 am, I joined a couple girlfriends at a morning Barre3 class, with Harrison and Bella along for the ride (they played in the childcare area, which they l.o.v.e.). We then hustled home so I could quickly shower and get the kiddos a snack before our early interventionist arrived. After the 10:30 -11:30 session, I put them both down for naps so that I could head back up to the elementary school to surprise Raleigh for lunch. <3 I then came home and still had about an hour left of naptime; so, I worked on some blog posts, and a few other odds and ends, before getting the little two up from their naps. I fixed them a quick snack (aka poured some pretzels in bowls) and we headed out to the bus stop. Once the bus arrived, we went back home to do homework, study for Banks' spelling test, and then hosted a buddy for a play date for a couple hours, playing outside the whole time in the glorious weather. My hub then cooked dinner and we spent the rest of the evening playing, prepping for the next day (e.g., making snack packs for Bella as she had an early appointment and I knew she'd be hungry; making Harrison's lunch since he has Lunch Bunch at preschool on Wednesdays). We got the kiddos into bed by 7:30 and again finished the day with our usual couch time. 

Wednesday. 
Bella had another appointment this day, this time at 8:00 am in Charlotte. So, after getting the bigs on the bus, I woke her up early and got her dressed and ready so that we could get out the door by 7:20 am. (Meanwhile, my hub stayed back to get Harrison up, fed, and dressed before driving him and his sweet friend to preschool by 9:00). This was an important appointment for Bella, and she was required to basically sit still and quiet for 45 minutes, hence the snack packs I had made the night before (which included eggrolls, lots and lots of eggrolls). She did GREAT! Unfortunately, the outcome was not what we were hoping for, but we were thankful for some answers, finally! Bels and I got back home around 10:45. I put her down for an early nap since I would need to leave by 1:15 for preschool/Lunch Bunch pick-up. Normally, we would have had physical and occupational therapies that morning at 7:30 and 9:15 am, respectively, but we had to reschedule them this week due to the ENT appointment. Anywho, while she was napping, I took care of some Rodan+Fields business, spoke with our audiologist, answered texts/emails, had some lunch, folded laundry, etc. After picking up Harrison and his buddy, we came home and hung out until the bus came. We then spent the afternoon playing outside until it was time for my 4:30 Barre3 class (yay! Got to get in a class after all!). All four kiddos accompanied me and played in the childcare area during the hour class. On the way home, we stopped by our occupational therapist's house so that she could tape Bella's scapulas with kinesio tape. We then came home, had dinner, and played in the playroom until my hub got home from his day trip at around 7:00. After baths and showers, it was bedtime for the kiddos and I followed suit shortly after, falling asleep on the couch before 9:00 pm.

Thursday. 
On this day, our dog woke me up at 4:45 am (my hub was already up and getting ready for his workout), and I was never able to go back to sleep. Boo! This meant I treated myself to a Starbucks late morning in an attempt to make it through the day unscathed. This was another early therapy day, so we got the big two off to school and the little two up, dressed, and fed in time for the 7:40 session. Afterwards, we had a snack and played around for a bit before heading to my 10:00 B3 class. The rest of the day was ours to have fun with. It involved naps for the littles, blog time for me, more laundry and dishes, playing around outside, and heading to our Greenway that evening, which is right across from our neighborhood, for a pizza picnic dinner. My hub, who had been out of town for the day, wasn't able to join us, but we met him at home afterwards. Also, on this day, we had our house professionally cleaned. This is something we have done about every three or four weeks. The rest of the time, we spot clean and make sure the house is generally picked up and tidy. But I so look forward to the day each month the house is cleaned. I know it is a luxury, and I promise I don't take it for granted for one single second. Anywho, after our evening at the Greenway, we hung as a family - watching Jeopardy and snuggling with the kiddos before getting them ready for bed. We were in our own bed not long after.

Friday. 
This was the only day this week we didn't have therapy! We often have a heavy therapy load the first half of the week and leave Thursday and Friday open to do other things, but this week was scheduled a little differently since Bella had two additional appointments, and since we had to skip our occupational therapy session as a result. Anyway, after dropping Harrison and his friend off at school, Bels and I had an open morning ahead of us! We hit up the grocery store to get some necessities for the weekend, I did a B3 class while Bella played in the childcare area, and then she and I had lunch with one of my girlfriends before heading back to preschool for pick-up (Meanwhile, our house/porch/driveway/sidewalks were being power-washed by a fantastic company - long overdue and they did a GREAT job!). Lunch and naps followed and then Nana and Pop arrived for a weekend visit. We spent the entire beautiful afternoon outside, enjoying each other's company, playing, practicing baseball/teeball, walking up to one of our neighborhood parks, swinging on our swingset, etc. It was just lovely! We then enjoyed our favorite Friday night meal (Moe's!) while watching a movie together as a family, which we do nearly every Friday night. After getting the kiddos to bed, the four of us grown-ups just chatted away and watched some of the Olympics coverage before heading off to bed ourselves. 

 

Saturday/Sunday
And that was our week! Our weekends are usually filled with plenty of family time and friend time - sometimes that means playdates and sleepovers, sometimes that means grown-up date nights with friends, sometimes that means running errands and getting projects done around the house, sometimes that means sports practices and outside fun, always it means workout times for my hub and me, always it means church on Sundays at 10:00 am and lunch back at home as a family, always they seem to go too fast! 

Over this particular weekend, we had fun with our Nana and Pop; my hub ran an 18-mile race on Saturday morning; I got in two Barre3 workouts; we met up with friends to go swimming and grill out (hello, high-70 temps in the middle of winter); I volunteered in our church nursery; Rals had a playdate; I took a nap (!!!); we filled out some important paperwork for Bels; we made the most of our break from the weekday madness and prepared for the week ahead. :)

  If you made it to this point, thank you for reading! Every day and every week is different, but this was a glimpse into what it often looks like 'round these parts for our family. <3

Cheers to the Weekend, So Long February Edition

Ummm...do you guys realize this is the last weekend of February? How did THAT happen? Beats me! Now, a few things we're saying CHEERS to as we welcome in the weekend!

Fun times with sweet cousins. Late last summer, one of my sisters moved to the Mill, and it is so nice when our schedules align and we are able to get together! That was the case last Sunday, and we loved our outside cousin play time!

Chinese New Year Party. I posted a little bit about it last week, but over the weekend, we celebrated our first Chinese New Year, and I now know that it is one of my favorite holidays! On Saturday, we got together with several other families who have adopted sweet little ones from China (some families we knew; some are now new friends) for a super fun celebration. The girls wore their beautiful silks and we all feasted on a huge Chinese feast. It was SO fun and so special to be sitting around a table with other adoptive families, who understand so much of what we have been, are currently going, and will go through. Such an awesome night that we absolutely loved (and yes, the dads and boys were there, too!  We just don't have photographic proof). ;)

Audiology appointment. On Monday, Bella and I headed back to our ENT for her post-op (aka post-tube placement) appointment. They checked the tubes (they look good!) and re-tested her hearing...and she continued to fail part of it; so then, early on Wednesday morning, she and I headed to Charlotte for a(nother) special hearing test. It required her to stay quiet and still for the duration, which ended up lasting well over an hour. I came packed and prepared though: snacks galore! Namely, egg rolls. ;) I figured it was a snack that would take her some time to eat and would be quiet enough for her to enjoy (unlike goldfish or Pirate Booty or something else crunchy) but wouldn't interfere with the testing (i.e., the need for a sans-crunch snack). I also had a few lollipops on hand as a back-up when needed. Bella did GREAT! She sat so calmly and quietly the whole time. I was so proud of her. The testing confirmed what we suspected and a new treatment plan is now in place: Bels will soon be rocking some new gear in the form of a hearing aid. While hers is a mild loss, and only for high frequency sounds, and only on the right side, it is still imperative that she has it, especially as we continue to focus on strengthening her speech skills. I am hopeful that she won't need it her entire adult life, but even if she does, we are so lucky to have the best audiologist in our corner, whom we absolutely adore. <3 

Lunch dates with Banks and Rals. Although our full therapy and appointment schedule often thwarts my plans of visiting Banks and Raleigh for lunch, that was not the case this week, and I took full advantage, surprising Banks on Monday and Raleigh on Tuesday. And sweet Rals, bless her heart, saw me waiting and came running at full speed with the biggest smile, joyfully yelling out, "Mommy!!!" Melted my heart. <3 I loved our lunches together. 

Outside fun. When February in the South bring us a week of 70-degree temperatures, we basically camp out outside from the time the kids get off the bus until dinner time (or beyond dinner time, as was the case last night when we picnicked at our Greenway).

Although my days tend to be full and, honestly, often quite hard during this season of life, I don't take my time with my littles for granted. Last night was a little slice of paradise as we dined on pizza and popcorn and took in the beautiful sunset views around us. 

 
And that's all she wrote! We have some special visitors arriving later today and we are so excited! We love spending time with our Nana and Pop and cannot wait for them to get here! And because baseball/teeball practices don't start until next week, we have a full, *fairly* plan-free weekend ahead with more 70-degree temps forecasted. Yes, ma'am. We'll take it! 

Have a lovely weekend, y'all!