Libby Update

This post will be totally random, but we felt the need to update our friends and family who pray for Libby and us daily!

*Libby has started school. She's doing much better now, but the transition hasn't been as easy as we had hoped. She's such a trooper though!

*Libby had a great checkup at the pediatrician. She's chunking up and growing BIG TIME! We've zoomed through 2 sizes in clothing already!

*The orthopedic doctor at Emory, Dr. Bruce, is amazing. Libby has prescriptions for new braces and a gait trainer! She'll also be having botox injections in her left arm and leg with casting to follow. We're praying the weeks she's in the casts are not as hard as we're thinking. HAHA Dr. Bruce sees Libby making GREAT progress!

*We also really liked Dr. Peterson, Libby's pediatric ophthalmologist. We're currently doing patch therapy to strengthen the muscles in her left eye. Y'all, she's AMAZING! The first day was no fun patching, but she gets mad when it's time to take the patch off! HAHA She's also getting glasses this week. She kept picking up the pink frames so I let her go with it! I was leaning toward the clearish frames, but the girly girl in me was THRILLED when Libby loved the pink! We're praying the glasses help her out a ton and that she keeps them on.

*Speech, OT, and PT are WONDERFUL! We're so thankful for the help Libby is getting with the amazing therapists that she sees! We can see growth already!

*Tubes will go in her ears the day before Halloween, and we're eager to see the change in her once she can hear better. It's not going to be fun to have our baby put to sleep though. :/

*In November, Libby will have an MRI to make sure everything is okay and to get a baseline. Another time she'll be put to sleep so please help us pray that all goes well.

*Tuesday, WE FINIALIZE LIBBY'S ADOPTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She'll officially be a Leonard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*Libby is getting better with her peers and not being as aggressive. She's still learning, but we're so proud of how far she's come. Hey, she's feisty like her mommy. Just ask my cousins and Timmy. ;)

*We're so thankful that God has chosen us to be Libby's parents. Please continue to pray for Libby and for us as we've got a lot going on. :)

Evaluations

The past two days Libby has had 3 of the appointments I mentioned in the last post. She's been such a trooper, but Mama Me couldn't leave her sight... not even for a second (you bet I LOVE it!). Libby Rose was evaluated for speech, occupational, and physical therapies to see if she would qualify for the special needs preschool program at school. She should have no trouble qualifying. :)

Libby's speech therapist was impressed with her new signs and how clear she was saying the words she knows. I'm so proud! She said that after the tubes go in at the end of October we should see major improvements! WOOHOO!!!!

Libby's occupational therapist was also impressed with the range of motion in her left arm and leg. She basically said the exact opposite of what Dr. Doofus said. Libby even took 2 steps to me! I love that during both sessions yesterday, the therapists gave me homework. Being the nerdy mommy that I am, we practiced some as soon as we got home. Libby is such a hard worker! She was asking "mowoah peesh" after we did some stretching exercises!

Today was physical therapy, and it was amazing! She looked over all the braces that Libby has had throughout her 3 years (you go Hong Kong!), and she taught me how to put on her leg/feet braces and the brace for her left arm. She was also impressed with Libby's range of motion, how well she sits up, stands up, her flexibility, etc. Libby will most likely be getting a gait trainer (a walker like for elderly just reversed). The gait trainer plus the braces will have our little girl walking in a few months. When the PT told me this, I couldn't hold my tears in y'all. It was the kind of cry where you're so stinkin' happy that you laugh. Libby Rose has accepted that I'm nuts, but the poor PT probably didn't know what to think! HA! She ended the session by giving more things to work with Libby Rose on while at home.

I'm incredibly thankful for the three fabulous therapies Libby is going to get and for the wonderful ladies who will help her progress as much as possible. Next week, we have her qualification meeting, and I'm eager to see what goals are made for her IEP. I know she'll kick some serious hiney!!!

When I think back to the things happening 8 years ago when I was trying to get a good job in the system I so badly wanted to teach at, I'm amazed at how things worked out. I was crushed that I wasn't hired there, but I quickly learned that God had better plans for me. That meant a move over the mountain and a new hometown for our family of 2. At that point, the thought of having children was far from our minds. It wasn't far from God's mind though. He knew that we would adopt a precious little girl who would need amazing teachers and therapists that could help her with her special needs. I believe and am so thankful for where Libby Rose will be going to school!

Since Libby can wear her braces, she needed bigger shoes. I scored these two pair for $18.02 at Payless (Jen taught me that Payless is the bomb). The Minnie Mouse shoes were $19.99, and the blue/pink shoes were $4.50 because of the B1G1 1/2 off sale. I then had $4 coupons off of each pair since I had to drive to another store... SO the blue pair of shoes were 50 CENTS!!!!!! WHAT?! Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Libby Rose's braces fit well in her shoes and she has a little room to grow. :)

Thankful

September is appointment month it seems. It's very stressful looking at our Google calendar, but I'm so thankful that we have doctors and therapists to take our Libby Rose to! We've had 3 appointments already this month, and have another 6 before the month is over. The ENT visit went like we thought. Libby Rose has fluid in both ears and will need tubes, and it's scheduled for October 30th. I really liked her ENT and would highly recommend him to others in our area. The orthopedic visit was NO FUN! The lady who checked us in was rude from the get go... She made me cry when she was griping at me for not having adoption paperwork (which she couldn't tell me exactly what I needed...IDIOT!). She told me several times that I was told to bring "adoption paperwork" in the reminder call, but no one told me. I stepped outside with my girl to pull it together while Charlie dealt with Ms. Fart Face. She told Charlie she didn't mean to make me cry and completely changed her tone then. She never apologized to me though. Whatever... On to the visit... Dr. Moses looked Libby over pretty quickly rambling off some numbers in dr. lingo. Then he told us numerous times that our little girl was not normal and would not be normal. He said we wouldn't get out of her what we wanted to which I promptly replied that all we "expect" out of our little girl is the best that she can do... THE END. He then started talking surgery and said it probably wouldn't do any good. Then mentioned casting her for 2 months with changing casts each week. He told us this probably wouldn't work either but would be better than the surgery that wouldn't work at all (WHY MENTION IT STUPID?!) He told us she had no feeling in her left hand, but couldn't explain how she picks things up with it... Basically, he babbled on about surgery, casting, and botox all the while telling us our daughter was not normal and should not be expected to be normal. I was ready to lay the smack down, but I decided to ride it out... He said he was going to refer us to a botox dude and a developmental pediatrician. He said the waiting list for the developmental pediatrician was so long that Libby would never be seen, but he was referring her because she wasn't normal... When Libby stood up and climbed my legs to get into my lap, he seemed shocked... This proved to us that he didn't really listen to what we were saying or seem to give Libby Rose a chance and watch what she could do. We were given a prescription for OT and PT... NEVER heard of that, but whatever she'll get both at school. Oh and he said school would not be good for her and helpful that she needs far more help than they can offer I was ready to punch this joker between his eyes.... Lastly, they sent us to xray. I went in with her, they took a couple shots, and we went home. We have no clue about the results... Odd? Yes, it is. We won't be going back there.... Nope. Not. At. All! Charlie called Dr. Bruce in ATL who specializes in pediatric orthopedic cases of children with cerebral palsy! Boo to the yah! The lady who scheduled our appointment was so nice. We can't wait to see what he says! Yesterday, Charlie and I both felt distraught, but we've rebounded for our little princess. She's worth a fight. She's worth so much more than words can express. She may not be "normal" compared to her peers, but to us she is. Normal is overrated anyway! I write all of this to update you on Libby's progress and to ask for prayers for the rest of our visits. Please help us pray that plans will be made to help our girl progress as much as she can. :) We know she has so many possibilities and look forward to seeing how much she excels in the months to come.

Our Journey with Libby

Our precious Libby Rose has been home for almost 2 months now, and we're soaking in every minute of it! Libby Rose is learning new things all the time from new words to signs! We're working on getting things squared away so we can start with speech, occupational, and physical therapies. I know she's going to excel so much!!! It's been very eye opening to see things from a parent's perspective as opposed to a teacher's perspective. Parenting a child with some special needs is challenging at times, but I'm VERY THANKFUL for her and wouldn't change a SINGLE THING about my perfect girl. I've always had a heart for children with special needs so when things were said slamming a child with special needs, I would get defensive. Now that my Libby Rose is here, I find myself wanting to scream at some people for the comments they make. Libby's left arm and leg don't function as easily as mine or Charlie's do, among other delays she is faced with. Within a month, we were faced with hurtful comments. I'm praying that Libby doesn't pick up on it at all, but I know she responds to her daddy and mama's emotions. We're doing our best to ignore the sheer ignorance of rude people. I'm also guilty about saying things and not meaning to hurt someone, but I'm trying to think a lot more before I speak. Words are hurtful and stick around for a while. Though we've had to deal with the above yucky stuff, Libby Rose has been welcomed home with open arms by so many!!! She's definitely spoiled already by quite a few, but we love it! She's loving being a part of a big family and loves her cousins a lot! She's especially smitten with Carter!; she watches him like a hawk, and he's very protective of her. I love that sweet boy! Libby loves going to FBC Chickamauga. It's like she's always been with us. In other news, here is the word list: Bye, Mama, Dada, mowa=more-also signs, peesh=please-also signs, gaga=phone(no clue why, it just does), indacaa=in the car(PHRASE!!!!). She will use more and please together with phone or in the car. We'll try to keep updating the blog! I have a feeling it will be easier once we can share pictures. :) This should happen sometime in October!

31

Today marks exactly one month until our Libby Rose KitYing turns 3 years old. It's hard to believe that we've hoped for her for a year and 2 months already!

We would like for you all to continue praying that we'll be with her as soon as possible. It seems that we could have yet another delay... Our estimated travel time has been moved so many times already...

We would absolutely love to be with our little girl before she turns three, but we realize it's not in our control. We're praying that we will be with her! If we are not able to be with Libby until after her birthday, we'll celebrate whenever we want! After crying a couple buckets full about another possible delay, we decided that we'll just make up a birthday this year! We'll make our own rules. HA!

Also, Father's Day may come and go before we are with our precious Libby. If this is the case, please pray extra for Charlie. Last year's Mother's and Father's Days were FUN knowing we had a DAUGHTER! This year, Mother's Day was hard again. Even harder than before we were matched with Libby Rose. Spending the night at "home home" was wonderful and being with Mama almost all day was wonderful! Timmy and I were able to spend Mother's Day at Cloudland Canyon with Mama like when we were kids! I'm very blessed to have such an amazing husband and family who encouraged me and kept me busy. :)

To say we're not completely disappointed would be a big, fat lie! We are. For real. We're choosing to take things one day at a time. We'll continue to pray for our sweet girl without ceasing. We'll still cry, have melt downs, get mad, hide under a blanket, BUT we pray happy days filled with daydreams of Libby Rose will outnumber the yucky!

Thanks so much for your continued prayers for Libby Rose and for our family!

Overflowing Cup

Remember Psalm 23? I memorized it as a child, and it comes back to my mind at times (totally a God thing). :) Well, it's been popping up a lot this weekend. After our stinky news of yet another delay before we meet our precious Libby Rose, God has placed special people around us to lift our spirits! The phone call from my mama on Thursday; she had just the right words. My cup was filling up. Friday, a card on my desk that made me laugh so hard with encouraging words AND a drink from Sonic. Better yet, the laughter I shared with my friends at school. My cup filled up more! Saturday morning I got a text stating Carter said I had an "ear conFECTion and a throat conFECTion". Lots of giggles. Pictures of my nephews in their St. Patrick's Day shirts = a grinning Aunt from ear to ear! Saturday night time with friends whom we've been blessed to meet along our adoption journeys. My cup filled up more! Our church family is wonderful. Sunday School to "big church" to the music we sang in worship to our King were exactly what I needed. This afternoon we spent time with David, Jen, and Makayla. While in Makayla's room, she showed me her pictures of Libby and then pointed to the heart on her shirt and said, "My Libby!" Watching cartoons with your best friends and sometimes just being with each other. My cup has spilled over! I'm so thankful! Thankful God has placed so many great people in our lives in real life and online (our HK message board friends). Our niece Makayla wearing her "Worth the Wait" outfit I made her!

Patience......

Apparently we are deserving of learning a whole new level of patience. Today after an email exchange with the Hong Kong coordinator, it now appears, due to paperwork processing times in HK, that we are now looking at mid to late May as the earliest time frame for us to travel to get Libby. I can't say we understand why, I can't say we like it, I can't say we aren't sad, mad, disappointed, and discouraged. Today felt to both of us as if we could quit trying. It's not nice, fun or cheery, but it's the truth. Honestly, the only thing that has got either of us through the day is the hope of seeing and holding her soon, our soon just isn't His soon. You go into adoption being told it's journey and that you may have to wait, what you don't understand until you are in the middle of it is that it's more like riding the bus line and getting off at every stop and you have to stay there until the "right" bus comes along, it could be the first, third or fiftieth bus, you just have to remember it's what's at the end of the line to make it worth it. We love you Libby Rose KitYing!!