Q&A

Ok, so I've been blog slacking big time but just wait because I have lots to fill you in on!  I'm also way behind on Q&A from comments so here you go...

 

Kathy said... I selected your blog for an award, see my blog to participate.

whatever to us said... hey you! Glad you've had a good vacation, even with an er visit thrown in the mix. swing over to our blog sometime, I nominated yours for an award :)

 

Both these bloggers nominated me for this award:

This is what you do to accept the award :-)
1. The winner can (and should, really) put the logo on his/her blog
2. The winner must link to the person from whom they received their award.
3. The winner must nominate at least 7 other blogs for an award.
4. The winner must place links to those blogs on their own blog.
5. The winner must leave a message on the blogs of the people they’ve nominated.

 

Thanks Kathy and Cathy!  I'm bad about going back and posting these... I really do appreciate it though!  I think I'm going to break the rules though, because since it's Ds awareness month I am going to nominate any blog that posts about Ds.  So, if that's YOU, please accept this award on your own blog :)  Of course that means I didn't exactly do #3, #4, or #5, but if you accept the award, please let me know and I'll link to you!

 

Shari said... I have been doing that same thing since I had my second child. Every season change I go through them all again. Sometimes I get sad because they grow so fast! How did you get all that done with four little ones around? :)

Um... I didn't.  It all stayed on the bed and on Thursday night this week I cleared it all off into baskets and bins so Shelley could sleep in the guest bed.  I still have nothing in the kids' drawers.  One of those projects that I got "done" but not completed!  Hopefully this week I can finish it up.  I hate having 1/2 done projects!

Angie said... Love the "bus" we're on our way to the big side too...how's the gas?

Gas isn't great but that's the downside.  I love it tho!  I think we got 13-15 highway on our trip.

Ruben and Jo Ann said... Hello  You have a very lovely family...God bless you on all that you do...To meet us go to www.torresfamilyadoption.blogspot.com...I understand you can't get anything done! Mine can be real home wreckers at times. Was wondering if you have a relative that is a Doctor? We have a Doctor Cornish in our hospital! We are in East Stroudsburg PA. I do his wife's hair! Take Care

Hey JoAnn!  I don't know that we have any doctor relatives, but  Mike does have family in PA, they're near the Delaware Water Gap, Jersey border.  No doctors that I know of tho ;)

Faith said... WOW!!! I'm so excited about Emma eating! WOOHOO!!
And did you ever hear of a diaper doubler? I tried to find a link on line but everything is for cloth diapers. I know they make them for disposables.

I've had a few other suggestions like this one and I think the closest to a diaper doubler that I can find locally is just an incontinence pad to put inside the diaper, or even a regular feminine pad.  I might just try it!

 

Lori & Family said... I have had kids who leak like that at night and I double diapered them. I used the current size diaper and then put the next size up over that one. Yoy can even use the store brand for the outside diaper as it is just a back up and does not matter so much.

I've tried this once or twice but wow, the number of diapers you go through!  I think this might work better with the outer diaper being like 3 sizes bigger because mine just leaked through both since the outer diaper wasn't that much bigger.  We did it for Micah when he was pooing through everything.

Anonymous said... Do you think that oral sensory issues can also play a part in Micah and Emma's feeding problems? I know that oral sensitivity due to lack of stimulation (proper feeding) can occur in institutionized kids as well. Do they mind if you brush their teeth and get into their mouths in other ways? Also, would specialized feeding therapy help them (although Emma seems to be progressing on her own!)? I know that the oral movements involved in eating solids are associated with speech development. Not like you have enough to do:)

Absolutely, I think stimulation is a big part and underdevelopment of the muscles in the mouth as well as an over-developed thrust for Micah.  Micah hates you to be in his mouth or brush his teeth but is slowly improving.  Emma generally doesn't mind tooth brushing but of course because I'm posting this today, she screamed through it last night.  She actually laughs most of the time...  I do some oral motor exercises with both of them and they have both now started speech, so they're getting it from all angles!

Mommyto2 said... Merideth we are praying for Emma. I called Renee and told her to give you our number. I am only about 20 min away and have the rest of the day free, so I can help out. The kids are welcome to come here and play so Mike can be with you or if you need anything just let me know and I can get it to you.  Robyn

Robyn, you are so sweet and thanks so much for offering this!  I'm glad we didn't need to take you up on it since we were just there a few hours but knowing that you were available was an ease to us.  It's great having such good friends spread across the country! LOL  Thanks again and it was so great meeting you and your family!

Anonymous said... Peg called us. Sorry Emma is not having a great day. Hope too it is nothing complicated. What state are you in? Is this Georgia? Love Gma

We were in Nashville, TN

Shari said... That is so sad and just tugs terribly at my heart. We are on hold with moving forward with adoption for personal reasons. Mainly financial.

I hope you'll take a look at www.reecesrainbow.org/newgrants.htm  There are always new kids being posted there and some have very significant grants!  Also, the Angel Tree Project raises grants for kids as well and some end up with small grants (or big ones...) that way.  God used our adoption as a time to scream from the rooftops that His provision is what we needed most!  He has provided all that we need and more!

Faith said... "with three 'online' friends who I can now say I've bed in REAL LIFE" :)
I usually don't *ever* point out mis-spellings on someone's blog but this one is just a little awkward.  I hope you're not offended!   Faith

Not offended in the least, thanks for correcting me!!  I must have been REALLY tired writing that one!  I corrected it as soon as you posted this so thank you!

Anonymous said... Oh gosh, I have not been online much, how scary about Emma's bruising, I am sorry to hear she is having another issue, I guess her platelet count was OK? She is on blood thinners? Praying

No, Emma's not on blood thinners and we don't really know why it's happening still..

Jaimie said... very cute! thanks for sharing all the great pics :) now I HAVE to know...what is that pink thing on Sara's shoe??? it almost looks like a childproof thing to keep her from undoing her shoelaces!!!

See below, Robyn answered for you :)

 

Mommyto2 said... Hey Merideth! Have fun in Atlanta. I grew up just outside of Atlanta. I would love your pictures of the meet up also. To Jaimie those are childproof ties on Sarah's shoes. She loves to untie and take off her shoes, socks, which then makes way for pants and of course the diaper! I got them at stride rite. They have bells on them and she loves to shake her feet!

I'll send them to you!  Just need to breathe a few times, remind me if I don't do it soon!!

Mommy to those Special Ks said... Aww these are great! Can you email them to me??? I'm so bummed I have nothing to show from that day! We had such a good time!

I'll mail them to you too! 

Anonymous said... what wonderful memories you have caught on camera.  I have to ask..are Micah and Emma birth siblings? they look so much alike, but then again, all your children look alike so unless you knew they were adopted, you would never guess...they are so beautiful..

No, Micah and Emma were at the same orphanage and both had Ds which is why we got them both.  Believe it or not it's really unusual for there to be birth siblings that both have Ds!  There is one case that makes it more common, if the children have translocation Ds, but otherwise it's very rare!  Which is also why I laugh when people ask if Brianna and Micah are twins. Of course I understand their question but can you even imagine the odds of having FRATERNAL twins (boy/girl) that BOTH have Ds?  And when I was 23 years old?  I'm sure it's happened somewhere, but when you throw in Emma- as a triplet- that's just insane :)

narretto said... How awesome...How long has RR been around....does A have any adopted children and how many if so???

Reece's Rainbow started in June of 2006 and is just over 2 years old!  It's still a "baby" as far as ministry length goes but it's been off to a wonderful start!  Andrea doesn't have any adopted kiddos now.  Her little one that gave her the passion and vision for Reece's Rainbow is her biological son, Reece, and he's 7.  She also has a 4 yr old son, Owen.

Mommyto2 said... Looks like they are having lots of fun. Glad you are enjoying your vacation. How is Emma doing?  Robyn

Emma did better through vacation and home, she's still bruising easier but not like she was so that's good!

Stephanie said... Wow! Emma is a charter member, huh? Where are the other 5? I hope you are having a fun vacation.

The other 5 'original RR kids' are Joey (now adopted, was at E's orphanage but transferred to a school before his adoption), Sergey who passed away 3 months after being institutionalized, Cody and Logan, now adopted, and another little one, Simon, who is also at E's orphanage and I had the joy of meeting- he now has a family coming for him too.  I wish they'd all made it home, but unfortunately the first Sergey is proof of the vision and mission of RR and the desperate need for more grants, more adoptive families, and more prayers for each and every waiting child.

Anonymous said... God tells you to be a tool for him and there are years where it doesn't seem fruitful then his plan comes together and his hand on the tool is revealed. Thanks Andrea we love our little grandkids. Love Marjorie

Just wanted to post this for Andrea :)  You rock :)

Mary said... Congratulations! That's so awesome! Let us know as soon as the book comes out so that we can buy it!!!!!!

I sure will... it's going to be a while though, Gifts II should be published in a year... or more!

Michelle said... i have a question that has nothing to do with this post but i can't find your email address right now...this orphan aid thing came up on my browser today, and i started looking up information on the torez orphanage that's so horrible. the pictures made me physically sick. so the question is... why can't children be adopted from there? granted it isn't the place most would look for their future child, but what's the harm? if you had been just a little bit later, Emma would be there with no way to get out. and yet she's the same girl that has come so far since coming home with you! i just don't get it. do you know why they don't let people adopt kids from there?

Hey Michelle, Torez is an institution that my kids would have been sent to (the exact one, actually, as it's in their region) but there's a few mixed facts in your question.  There has been one adoption from Torez and we have a few other families waiting to adopt kids from there as well.  Ukraine's institutions are not closed to adoption (Russia's are though) but some have just never had any adoptions (like the one Sasha was sent to).  Some directors may try to deny the adoption though, as was the case with us. But yes, Torez has been awful and hopefully is doing much better since the photos you saw.  Life2Orphans has worked there some to get it up to a better standard of living.

 

Beth said... When I read the title of your post I could hardly wait to read it (well, umm...not exactly true!).
My daughter has what we call an Industrial Bladder. She goes in the morning, and then again at night. It took us a long time to actually know if she was potty trained because she never needed to go. She'd go every time she'd change her clothes, and that was it.
If you ever are waiting for Emma to pee, try the hand in warm water trick, or just plop her in the tub. Works every time. I actually used the hand-in-the-water trick to help my kids potty train early on. If they sat on the potty for a long time and didn't go, I'd give them a little sensory help to get things started so they could see/feel cause and effect, and how it felt to "release".
Do you double sheet your cribs? I used to stack them 3 deep--waterproof mattress pad, sheet, mattress pad, sheet, mattress pad, sheet. That way all I had to do was remove the top 2 layers and I'd be ready for the next go 'round. Though I doubt that would have been helpful with the quantity Emma saved up for you!

Great ideas, thank you!  I am going to start trying her on a little toilet in the family room instead of the big potty because she flips out from the big one.  We'll see if there's any sense of knowledge of what to do on it, but I'll try the warm water too!  And the sheets- great idea!

Anonymous said... How about getting that you tube address out to the spanish speaking churches to run on Sunday mornings ?? I'm not computer savy but think it would not be too hard. Love, Mom PS beautiful job!

Thanks for the suggestion, Ali replied below :)

ali-llanas said... gracias Meredith, and for the idea of the spanish speaking churches

Thanks for making it Ali!  In Florida we have a lot of Spanish speaking churches and I hope we can get the word out ;)

 

Susan said...I thought Emma's face and limbs looked fuller in the pictures from your vacation - I am so happy for her, and for you.
My mother used to say that she bruised if you looked at her - turned out to be a Vitamin B-12 deficiency, remedied with a regular shot. Vitamin K is also important in clotting, I recall. Is Emma on any blood-thinners because of her heart? If so, might they need tweaking a bit? In any case, I am glad for the follow-up and hope it can be easily corrected.

Thanks for the idea, not sure what the issue is with E but she's not on any blood-thinners.  We have a cardio appt tomorrow (I think?) and we'll go back to the ped in another week or so and also do blood work at the same time.

Anonymous said...no image?

That's so weird that it didn't show up... *I* see it!... or at least I DID...  It was just a beautiful ocean picture, no great loss.  I'll put another one in there maybe :)

Krissy said... i had a question
when u brought Emma and Micha home
how long were thay and how much did each weigh?
what are there current weight and lengths
also what size cloths were thay in when thay came and now?

Hey Krissy, Emma weighed 17lbs and Micah weighed 11 when we came home.  E was 5 yrs and M was 18 months.  Emma was in 24 months length, 6 months waist, and 18-24 months shirts.  Micah was in 3-6 month clothes and fit in a few 6-9 months outfits.  Emma is now 27lbs, in 3t for length and for shirts (long torso) and 12, 18, and 24 months waists.  She came home at 31" and was 33.5" at one point, I don't have a current length on her but that's 2.5" of growth right there.  Micah was 69cm coming home, whatever that translates to in inches, and we know he's grown 1cm since coming home in height.  With 4 kids it's hard to remember who's which number (but we were told E's over and over again during her surgeries).  Micah is now in 24 months clothes for torso length, 12 and 18 months pants for those short little legs, and most of his shirts are 24 months.  Some shorts are still 18 months but most are 24.  Both kids are all over the place in clothes sizes which is kind of annoying since a lot of things are sold in sets! LOL

mom 2 many said... PLEASE tell me what you are giving her! My 8 year old is still less than 30 pounds!! ugh! She has a g-tube, but we have so many issues with that!!!  Thanks!  Carla

We've started her on "Ensure Plus" but I buy store-brand.  It's not bad tasting, vanilla chocolate or strawberry (tho she doesn't like the chocolate flavor).  There's 350 calories in every 8 oz and she drinks 10-12 per sitting!

Tommy's mommy said... Good news for both of them! Our son Tommy weighs the same as Emma and we give him 1 teaspoon of Miralax plus 2 teaspoons of Senna which the combination of the two seems to work really well. One helps with the absorption of water (miralax) and the other helps soften the stool (senna). I know that each child is different, but just wanted to share this with you as I found the dosage for miralax really confusing. We love your blog. Especially on good news days :)

Thanks for the suggestions and the kind words!  I enjoy your blog too!!  I'm WAY behind on all the blogs right now though...

 

Shari said... I am glad things went well! I know several appts. in one day can be exhausting for all involved. Also, for some reason since our computer crashed I can see the stuff on the right side of your blog. Could you send me your email address again? Thanks! :o)

I'll send it to you as well, but here it is too mkp1982@hotmail.com  Look forward to hearing from you :)

 

Faith said... Oh how, HOW I wish your blog had some sort of search function.

Does the header not have a search?  I guess it could be my browser, but at the top of the screen just above my blog header there's a bar that says "search this blog" on the left.  I thought it was there for everyone but now I wonder, is it just on mine?  Anyone want to look and help me out with that?  Otherwise I could search around to find a search tool that I can put on the blog.  Anyone have suggestions there?

Anonymous said... Wow, so Miss Emma is possibly going to walk someday. That is a huge thing. Miss our daily talks. Getting ready for Kristopher's event at school. Love, Mom

Miss you too, both of us have been busy!  I hope she might walk some day, it's a go-ahead to try anyway!

 

WHEW!!