Monday, March 3, 2014
WE ARE HOME!

The prayers for a safe and uneventful trip home, one in which Gracie could be in a protective bubble from the influences around her that would throw her into a meltdown and for our strength and wisdom were answered! Praising God that we arrived home around 11 P.M. Wednesday night to the arms of our loving families!!

The trip to China was amazing and lovely as well as overwhelming and stressful. One of our biggest fears and most prayed about issues was that Gracie would be able to journey home without any severe meltdowns. Things that tended to cause her meltdowns while in China were new places and situations as well as people who would enable her by doing as she demanded. That only escalated her trauma and tantrums. So staying in airports where it was hectic and having lots of people who spoke her language and could understand her demands slightly terrified us. As it was, our guide John got to be with us almost until we boarded our first flight because we had to wait so long for a wheelchair. Then once we had it, there was a Chinese speaking person with us at all times until we boarded the plane. That helped because that one person could explain what was going on to Grace in her own language. This seemed to keep her from seeking everyone else’s attention to order around which would have led to her becoming more and more agitated.

The long layover in Beijing was helped by the many lounges we found that were virtually empty. They provided a place to sit and play quietly. We also had a wheelchair for our use and were escorted quickly past the busy areas to the calm ones. We wheeled Gracie around when we weren’t resting. Once on the plane to Chicago, we found another God-sized surprise for us. There were empty seats around us! Gracie had an empty seat in front and back of her, so if she kicked or rocked, no one would become angry. Also, there was an empty seat next to Deidra where Sophia could sit. That left Gracie and me with three seats together. She slept for long hours at a time because of all the space. Our prayers that Gracie would remain in a “bubble” were answered well.

Since coming home, Kevin, the kids, and I have seen huge leaps of progress from our Gracie. A lot of our time in China with Gracie was downright difficult. But now . . . we simply can’t believe the difference in her already. She is happy with our cozy little home. She enjoys and looks up to her brothers and sister and plays long hours with our other littles. She adores her oldest brother Ted. That doesn’t surprise us in the least as we commented in China that our guide John seemed like a Chinese version of Ted, and Gracie adored John. Gracie adores her daddy and me, too! The only one she is not too fond of is our dog Wendy. Wendy is a little hyper (understatement), and she scares Grace. Hopefully that relationship will get better as our other children love, love, love our puppy. Maybe one day Grace will, too.

Gracie melted down at our pediatrician’s office, but our wise and amazing doctor was patient while we calmed her down. The visit ended well. We are praying our visit to the neurologist will go well as it is so important to find out about Gracie’s seizures. We should know more about them soon and be able to tweak the treatment for them. So far we have not noticed any seizure activity even though things have been very stressful for her the last couple of weeks.

Gracie loves playing with her siblings. She loves sitting and eating with all of us, and she is developing patience in that area. Our darling new daughter loves talking, interacting, and cuddling with her new papa and me. She loves it when we pray and bows her head with folded hands held out in front of her. She loves going for car rides and quick trips to stores. We plan on taking her to our zoo this coming week as schools will be in session and it should be quiet. We plan on continuing to expand her world in a safe and loving manner, and we are excited to see how she will react to each new fun adventure.

It fills our hearts with joy to see her squeal with delight at the new things happening around her. When she realizes these are her clothes, her room, her family, etc., Gracie’s beautiful smile lights up the room. This is just the beginning. We know we have lots of issues to help her through, lots of doctors’ appointments, lots of hurdles; however, we also know we have a God who has brought us together and helped us bring her home. We know He will see us through all the hard spots. It humbles us that He would do that for us. It also humbles us that you all have prayed and supported us through our journey. If you would like to see our Gracie grow and bloom, you can follow us on our family website here.