It has been a little over 2 weeks since we landed on US soil with Promise, and to say that it has been an eventful two weeks would be a huge understatement! Two weeks ago we arrived to the warm welcome of family and some great new friends who have become family to us, but more about them later. The travel itself was pretty rough for mom and dad but Promise handled it pretty well. After one layover of 5 hours and another layover of 3 hours, it took us 31+ hours of travel to get from Hong Kong to home. We did not get to go to bed until 3am that first night and because Promise slept most of the travel, she was ready to go at 6am. The next few days would not be much different as all three of us were fighting jet lag but now we all seem to be on a schedule. Promise is on a great schedule in which she goes to bed about 8:30 and wakes up around 7-7:30 the next morning. Then she also takes a 2 hour nap everyday around 1pm.
Over the two week time we have been home, we have seen Promise continue to come into herself as she grows more and more trusting of both of us and the people we bring her around. For the first few days, Michael's parents were in town and she really began to take to them at the end of their time here. Shannon's parents live less than a mile away and her sister visits often. Promise is taking to them very well too! Overall, it is really exciting to see how comfortable she is with family. We have also started to take her out into the world little by little as well. She has visited Michael's office a few times and has gone out for a walk almost everyday. This seems to be one of her favorite times each and every day! Overall, her adjustment has been going very well!
There has also been many other fun events with Promise. One event was Halloween. While we didn't do too much with her, we did dress her in a personalized pumpkin shirt (Thank you Peggy).
Two days later we took her for her first meeting with the head of the Orlando Cleft Lip/Cleft Palate (CL/CP) team. The team is needed because there is so much involved in correcting Promise's condition. There is a plastic surgeon, an oral surgeon, an orthodontist, and a speech therapist, all of which are necessary. This would also be the first time they got to see her in person and it was a day we will never forget. We arrived a few minutes early and they got us into a room immediately. After getting some basic information, the assistant to the head of the team came into to talk with us and share some valuable information with us about CL/CP. He was amazing as he took the time to explain every bit of the process and patiently and lovingly worked through each and every question we had for him. But remember, we said this meeting was unforgettable. When he first walked in, he introduced himself and then calmly started with this statement: "We are going to be doing surgery tomorrow," and he was serious! We went into this meeting thinking it was just a consultation and this is what we first hear. After we as the parents moved past the shock and began to process what we was saying, we began to be okay with it. Basically, because she is so many months past the time in her life that she should have had two operations, they wanted to go on ahead and just get them done. However, once the head of the team came in, he decided to wait one month as they want to do a procedure with the orthodontist first in which they use a type of mold to help her "floating jaw" move into better position for the procedure. Another bit of good news is that they are going to take care of 4 issues in one surgery rather than stretching it out over a period of time. This means she is only under anesthesia once, she will most likely only have three surgeries during her lifetime now, and her next surgery will not be until she is 6-7 years old! So, it looks like we will be getting ready for surgery at the beginning of December.
I also want to share about the family mentioned earlier that met us at the airport. To say they have been incredible is another huge understatement. They have become family to us! The father of this family was born with the exact same condition as Promise. In addition, a few years ago they also adopted a girl from China! When the father first heard about us from another amazing family, he immediately wanted to meet us. About one week later we met him and he shared his journey as a child growing up with CL/CP. Talked about the challenges he had but how it is easily corrected now. He also shared about the great joys of adopting. He was a tremendous encouragement. Since then, we had met and talked many more times with him and his family throughout the adoption process and they have supported us in every way possible. While we were in China and having a very rough time on the first day, they talked to us all the way in China and helped us through the first steps! When we returned to the states at midnight, they were there with our families at the airport. When we went to see the CL/CP team this past Friday, the father went with us. They along with 3 other families who have adopted, have made us several meals. More than anything, they have been Jesus Christ to us. They have sacrificed of their time and resources of such great extent that we will never be able to repay them. They have taken a young, new family under their wings and have been walking with us through this process and we are so thankful for them!
BUT, they are not the only family that has been Christ to us. There is a whole adoption community that has become family to us! All of these families have adopted from China! There is another family that Shannon taught their son in school for a time and the mother has mentored us through the entire process. There is another family who has prayed for us and made some meals for us! Then there is the family that has adopted three children from China who has played a major part in getting Promise's surgical team set up for us! We have been so thankful for this adoption community that has done so much for us! We love all of you so much!
One other group that we do not want to leave out is all of our brothers and sisters in Christ who have been such a great encouragement to us! So many of you have been praying for us and supporting us by meeting different physical needs and we are so thankful for all of you as well!
Over a year ago, God led us to an adoption that should have been impossible for us but "with God all things are possible" (Luke 1:37). Not only that, but "He who promised is faithful" (Hebrews 10:23). God's people are continuing to be His hands and His feet so that His will can be done! It is such a humbling journey to be a part of something so big. To God be all the glory!
Promise loves to give hugs!
Promise can not resist the power of the force.
Promise is really beginning to learn to use her legs. Before long she will be running all over getting into everything!
