One week home!

It's hard to believe we've been home a week. Ivy has done remarkably well in many ways. She is developmentally delayed in some areas, due to lack of exposure. It's hard to imagine an almost 5 year old that has never seen 'stuff' just lying around, such as a picture frame, house decor, toothpaste, anything and everything. So everything needs examined for the first time just as a young child would do. She has no reference for the stove being hot, knives being sharp, or the idea that some things are dangerous to put in your mouth. Have you ever tried removing White-Out from a child's eyelids and lashes? It's not as easy as it sounds! The stuff is not water soluble. But she is very smart and learns quickly. She is extremely advanced at observing details and emotionally sensing situations. She doesn't miss anything! I'm sure these are things survivors learn to do.

Her hardest adjustment is sleeping. The first couple nights she slept out of total exhaustion. Now we are facing sleep issues that are very common in children with this type of history. Fortunately she is allowing us to comfort and cuddle her. There are many hurts to heal. We are privileged to be the ones that get to teach her what love and family are all about. Every sight, sound, smell, taste and person in her world is different. That's just plain scary. Clearly she enjoys so many new things in our home, but feeling safe and secure will take time.

Ivy has mastered the following English words: Hi, Bye, Potty, Eat, Doll, Good Job, Uh-oh, All Done, Apple, Banana, I Love You,  and here's my two favorites.."Amen" and "Are you Okay?"  We were shocked when Emma tripped and Ivy asked her if she was Okay! The other night she did something, and I said to Dan, "She's really bright".  Ivy immediately repeated, "She's really bright!".  She often says an unidentifiable Chinese word in front of "Mama". It sounds like she's saying "Crazy Mama".  Everyone gets a laugh out of that. It's an appropriate title these days! She hums 'Jesus Loves Me' throughout the day, and can identify her head, eyes, nose, mouth, hands, knees, tummy, feet, and her water cup. She loves all the foods we give her, even green smoothies which she begs for. The kids get a kick out of that and try to give theirs to her! The only food she's rejected so far is avocado. She acted like that was pretty strange. She begs for fruit of all kinds which is like dessert to her. Tonight some sweet friends brought us Chinese food, and boy or boy did Ivy enjoy dinner. It was so entertaining to watch her gobble it up.

We will post our airport pics once we get them. Here's a couple backyard shots for now. Running in the grass and playing on the play set are the highlights of her day.

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit -Psalm 34:18

“As I do what I can, I am able to watch Him do what only He can.”

 from  'Kisses from Katie' A Story of Relentless Love and Redemption

Home!

Sorry for the silence here in blogland, but we were caught by surprise that the the trip home and the re-entry was the toughest part of the trip! It started one hour into the 11 hour flight from Korea. Dan made a few trips back and forth to the lavatory vomiting. Next thing I knew he was on the floor in the aisle doubled over in pain. We had a stash of meds that we took along 'just in case' and hadn't used them the whole trip. So I said.."Honey..how 'bout I pull out some drugs and you get back in your seat!'. You can imagine the attention we were drawing at this point. He said nope, he needed help. So we called the flight attendant and they soon made an announcement requesting the assistance of any medical professionals on the plane. We ended up with two American EMT's and a Korean Orthopedic Surgeon. They determined that he needed fluids quickly before he dehydrated, as he was now vomiting in the aisle. They suspected food poisoning, and assured me that they would take him upstairs, (yes the Airbus has upstairs) get him on an IV with painkillers and all would be fine. So I remained in my seat trying to keep some peace with the kids and hopeful that people would stop staring at us. About 30 minutes to an hour later they made another announcement that they had a more serious medical emergency and they were looking for an Internal Medicine physician or a General Surgeon on the plane. HELLO? I bolted upstairs after telling Macy to hold on to Ivy and not allow her seat belt to come off. The scene I found was Dan rolling on the floor with four medical people hovering over him. The Korean flight attendant told me that he was much worse, and they didn't know what was wrong with him, but not to worry because they now have found a very competent surgeon! WHAT? I started to fall apart. She said we are now in the middle of the Pacific and we can't land but he is a very good surgeon! I freaked out and asked to use the phone and called home to ask the kids for prayer. When I finally was able to speak to this competent surgeon he explained that he was pretty sure that Dan was passing kidney stones and that there was no medical emergency. He spoke better English than the flight attendant so I was able to calm down. They pumped him full of fluids and pain meds and got him to sleep. They told me an ambulance would be waiting in LA and we would need to go to the hospital. I said, "No Ambulance..we have 7 hours to go, lets wait and see how he is". I was determined to get home and not stay in LA. I called my son again and asked him to fly over to LA and meet us. (can't wait to get the phone bill)  I didn't want to face this alone with the kids and all our luggage we had to pick up in LA. Dan slept the remainder of the trip and was able to handle the next short flight home, with the help of our son.

We were greeted at the airport by our precious family and many dear friends. Their love and support was amazing to us. What a relief to be home. We were all complete zombies as the girls only slept about 1 1/2 hours in the 26 hour journey, and I slept none at all. I can't imagine how tough it was on Ivy not understanding all that was happening, and then dealing with sleep deprivation as well. She really did well all things considered. The older kids had the house spotless and the fridge stocked with food. My sweet neighbor had decorated the front of the house welcoming us home. Our son-in-law spent half the night with Dan at the ER and they confirmed he had passed one stone and another remains. So far he's been ok. The term "Jet Lag" somehow doesn't seem like an adequate way to express the extreme exhaustion. Never in my life have I had this much trouble staying awake even while sitting straight up in a chair. Ivy is overwhelmed by everything in the house that is brand new to her. The first night she woke crying really hard for quite a long time. She let me just hold her in bed. The second night she did the same but not as long. I can't even fathom all the changes she is going through. But each day she gets a little more comfortable. She is bonding to me well as evidenced when I'm out of her sight she gets very nervous.

We made our way out to the backyard early in the evening tonight and the fresh air did wonders for us. Ivy is really enjoying the play set.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all of your prayers and encouragement.

We are so blessed.

Wednesday April 25- Day 13

This was our last day in China. We leave in the morning and begin our 24 hour journey home, and we are ready. I've had enough fried noodles, and I am looking forward to some mexican food. But most of all I'm looking forward to hugging my other kids and grandbabies. We are so thankful for how the Lord has shown such great mercy to us on this trip. It has truly been wonderful to be here in this country. Now we go home and embark on the new normal.  I appreciate the way all of our family members have embraced this adoption. Our adult children have given us such encouragement. They know their parent's weaknesses and limitations, and the sacrifices this will mean for their own lives as well. And yet they have enthusiastically said yes to the call. We know we will face many challenges. It's not always as lovely as it looks in pictures. But the hard times will be gifts He uses to strengthen and transform us into His likeness. So here we go..Ivy will become a US citizen tomorrow when we arrive in Los Angeles. She's already legally part of our family, and officially she has won our hearts as well. 

"We cherish the grace that is this unique family. And to the questions and the comments and the compliments, this is my reply: 'These are the children that the Lord saw fit to bless me with' "

Kisses from Katie..A Story of Relentless Love and Redemption

By Katie Davis

Monday April 23- Day 11

Thank you so much to so many of you who are praying for our family. Emma woke up feeling much better and her fever was gone! That was a quick turn around from 103* the day before. We feel your prayers on our behalf, and your comments are so encouraging. We decided that the zoo trip was a bit too intense, so we chose a  more leisurely day on Shamian Island. The island is quiet and beautiful, and the shopping was great. Tomorrow we have to rise very early for our Visa appointment and Oath Taking Ceremony at the US Consulate. We are getting really close to coming home!

“It may take place in a foreign land or it may take place in your backyard, but I believe that we were each created to change the world for someone. To serve someone. To love someone the way Christ first loved us, to spread His light. This is the dream, and it is possible.” 

― Katie J. Davis, Kisses from Katie: A Story of Relentless Love and Redemption

Sunday April 22- Day 10

Today was difficult because Emma woke up sick with a high fever, sore throat and headache. She stayed in bed all day. We would appreciate your prayers that she would recover quickly and the rest of us would stay healthy for the remainder of the trip. We are scheduled for a trip to the Safari Zoo tomorrow and Emma is really hoping to be able to go and see the panda's. We don't have any pictures from today, but we posted some videos that we thought you might enjoy. 

The first one is Ivy dancing for us when we visited her orphanage. 

This is at the restaurant where the orphanage staff treated us to lunch. What an experience that was!

This is Ivy eating a cup of noodles in our room. She likes to grab my glasses and put them on.

T

Saturday April 21- Day 9

Friday we said goodbye to Anhui and our many adventures there. I personally am hoping that I am done being scared for our lives when we cross the street. But we haven't been out much here yet so that remains to be seen. I do believe that some of our family members will miss their celebrity status, however. Emma sort of enjoyed people staring at her and wanting to touch her face. We had a long travel day as our flight was delayed. They announced on the intercom that our flight  would be "very, very late". We wondered what that meant and Dan asked for an estimate. They said, "no estimate..very very late. Go to waiting room!" We were envisioning the idea of sitting there all night. But it was only a couple extra hours so we survived. Ivy continues to be such a brave, adventurous girl. She loved the airplane, and squealed with delight and cracked up laughing at the landing. 

Arriving at the beautiful Marriott in Guangzhou was like a breath of fresh air.  This was the first sight of Westerners and English speaking people in almost a week. We were ready to start hugging strangers! We topped the night off with a hot fudge sundae from McDonalds. We never go there at home, but it was the first stop in Guangzhou. 

This morning we enjoyed the breakfast buffet and then met our travel group in the lobby. It was fun to see all their beautiful children and hear stories from the week. We all went to the health clinic which was packed full with other adoptive families. Ivy had a check up and TB test. She continues to amaze us with her strength, intelligence, and sense of humor. One thing we noticed is that when she falls down and gets hurt she refuses to cry. We are trying to nurture and encourage her expression of emotions. We had our guide talk to her about it and she said she doesn't want to cry. This is common in orphanage children. The guide told her that her mama would like for her to cry when she is hurt. The little sweetie said she would try. Sunday is a free day and we plan to go to Shamian Island for some shopping and fun.

Snackin' on raisins 

Ivy discovered 'Temple Run' and pushed her way in on the game.

She enjoyed "Kids Praise" on the ipod and broke out singing in English.

We got a kick out of this sign at breakfast this morning.

Gotta love this doctor

Starbucks never tasted so good!

What a doll..

Thursday April 19- Day 7

Today was our first free day . It was wonderful to catch up on some sleep and skype with 'Big Sis' and her family. Ivy showed off her outgoing personality for them and some of her new English words, such as, "I love you". She continues to blossom and thoroughly enjoy coloring, playing play-dough, dolls, and teasing big sisters.  She already responds to her American name and repeats things we say like a little parrot. She soaks up love, attention, praise, and food! Tomorrow we get her passport and then we are off to Guangzhou. This is  in the southern part of the country and where the US Consulate is located. Here we will complete more paperwork, have Ivy's medical examination, our Oath Taking Ceremony, and receive her Visa. We will also meet up again with the families in our travel group. We have had  a cultural experience here in Anhui which we will never forget. I asked the girls their memories of this province and they responded...pollution, crazy drivers who actually don't get mad, beautiful countryside, warm hospitality, friendly people, fast pace, unique food flavors, washing our clothes in the bathtub, Dad trying to speak Chinese and getting "hello" mixed up with "I love you" when he greeted people! Dan said that the city of Hefei is like New York City on steroids, except the people are respectful and don't get angry. We are anxious to get to Guangzhou, but it's bittersweet leaving the province of Ivy's birth. Tonight we took a stroll through a local park by our hotel.

  God makes a home for the lonely  Psalm 68:6

Wednesday- April 18- Day 6

Today we we were blessed to travel to Ivy's orphanage in Bengbu, Anhui. It is very difficult to find words to express the emotions of the day. Truly God directed our path. We will never be the same.

Ivy saying goodbye to her very first nanny when she was a baby.

Saying goodbye to her closest nanny

One hand in nanny's and one hand in mama's

“...because "Mommy" is forever. It's such a powerful name. Mommy means "I trust you." Mommy means "you will protect me." Mommy is for shouting when you need someone dependable and for laughing with when you are excited. Mommy is for crying on and cuddling with when you are sad, or giggling and hiding behind when you are embarrassed. Mommy is the fixer of boo-boos and the mender of broken hearts. Mommy is a comfort place - a safe place. Mommy means "you are mine and I am yours and we are family.” 

― Katie J. Davis, Kisses from Katie: A Story of Relentless Love and Redemption