2013- "A Year in Review"

 

January-  Miah started the year off with day surgery to remove a tooth that had erupted in her cleft line. She had avoided surgeries in 2012 but started the down the road of bone grafting in 2013.  The removal of this tooth was the first step in this process.

 



 

February-  The last week of February we headed south to Anaheim and LA for seven days of playtime. This year we stayed at the Del Sol hotel and enjoyed our quaint room with bunk beds for the girls. We were very excited to see cousin Alyssa and spend a day with her on the Parks showing her the sights and and foods of Disneyland. Miah discovered that she really likes Splash Mountain and any roller coaster she was tall enough to ride.  What a difference a year makes.  We also had the opportunity to spend a day with Miah's friend from China, Tian. We enjoyed a day with Tian's family exploring Legoland and basking in the joy of their interactions.

 

March-  This Spring Mackenzie participated in three dance competitions.  She performed a Tap solo, placing third at one of the events and was also part of a small modern dance group. She loved this experience and has already started practicing for her 2014 competitions. (This coming year she has a character ballet solo, tap solo and a duet with one of her closest friends.) This girl loves the stage!

 

 

April- We welcomed our first teenager into the house!  Mackenzie turned 13! She celebrated with some of her closest friends at 4cats.  The girls worked together a painting that Mack got to take home and hang in our home, as well as a smaller painting each.

 

May- "A Time to Dance" Our highlight each year is Creators Arts Centre's year end recital. This year was especially fun as all three of our girls were in the recital. Both sets of grandparents were also in town to watch their performance. So special when everyone is all together.

 

 

Notice Miah's purple cast in the above photo?  Another first this year for Miah!

 





 

 

June- Mack was asked to perform in a music video.  She was so excited!  We drove to Penticton for the day and she attended the shoot.  The producer was very impressed by her and said she was easy to work with and was fascinated by her eyes. He even changed the script so that they could feature her eyes in one part. She signed with a casting agent this year and looks forward to working in the industry in the near future.  She auditioned for a crayola commercial this year all well...too bad she didn't get that one, she could have paid off her dance fees for the year!

 

 

July- We started out our summer with a trip down to BC Children's Hospital for Miah to undergo her bone graft surgery. She was a trooper and was released to go home after one night.  They took a piece of bone from her left hip and implanted it into her cleft line. She recovered well, but that hip did give her pain for a couple of months post surgery.

 

August- "Spectacular Spectacular" Mackenzie was involved in her fourth season with Bumbershoot Children's Theatre.  This year they did a show that featured many numbers from different Broadway musicals.  The singing and dancing was amazing. Mack's highlight was a solo of "Naughty" from Matilda. we were all proud of her for stepping outside her comfort zone.

 

In August Miah turned 6! I can't believe how fast she is growing up. It is hard to believe that she has been home for four years now! We celebrated her by having a Monsters Inc. themed birthday party. She was super excited and counted down the days for months in advance! Her favorite present was a G.I.A.N.T. Stuffed Panda!

 

 

 

September- Back to School!  Miah started Grade 1, Madison grade 4 and Mackenzie Grade 8. Mack was asked to join the Senior Band and has been enjoying playing the trumpet with the high school band.  They have a band trip planned for Spring 2014 and will travel to Whistler and Vancouver.

 

In September Mackenzie was also asked to be a part of Bumbershoot's Apprenticeship program.This will open so many doors for her and gives her more opportunities to sing, dance and act...the three things she loves the most. Miah was asked to be a part of the competitive gymnastics team at her gym and she is beyond thrilled...she L.O.V.E.S. gymnastics and loves to show off her moves.  She is now training 8.75 hours a week and doesn't seem to tire of it at all. She will have her first competition in June of 2014.



 

October- We celebrated Madison's 10th Birthday.She decided that she did not want any gifts for herself and asked her friends to bring gifts for the kids at the New Day Foster home in Beijing.  Four of their kids had birthdays in November and they suggested Madison send gifts for their party.  Madison was thrilled to be able to send her package to China.  The best part was seeing photos of the kids opening their gifts. For Madison's party she has a themed mystery party where each child came dressed up as a character and had to read some clues to figure out which one of them "committed the crime." 

 

November- Both Madison and Mackenzie auditioned and received parts in Theatre Kelowna's Christmas Pantomime of "Cinderella and the Silver Twig."  They performed 10 shows over two weekends.  They had a great time meeting new friends and doing live theatre with adults.

 

 

December- Miah and Mackenzie had the opportunity to be a part of the live shadow dance performance at Trinity Baptist's Christmas Eve Services.  They performed during 7 services. Miah was thrilled to be able to be in a performance with her big sister.  Miah played the role of the young Jesus. 

 

Madison got her first pair of glasses in December 2013.  She will be starting school in the new year with a much clearer perspective.

 

 

We wish all our friends and family a very happy and healthy 2014.

Bone Graft Update

We just got back the first set of images since Miah's bone graft. (This photo is 5 1/2 months after her grafting)  The orthodontist seems to think it looks like the graft has taken, but he sent the image to the surgeon in Vancouver just to be sure. In the photo above, the graft area is in between the sideways and twisted front left tooth and the left eye tooth that is coming down on that sharp angle.

This xray also confirms the state of Miah's adult teeth...That front left adult front tooth may or may not be viable. We will have to wait until it comes though to see what it looks like.  But he thinks is it twisted and coming in sideways. He also discovered that she is missing an adult tooth on the upper right (the 4th one).

We go back in January to have her impressions taken in order for them to start palate expansion in the next two months.  The worry here is that expanding her palate post bone grafting is that it could break apart the graft area, causing her to have to re due that surgery...we are praying hard that doesn't happen.

Rejection?

Its been 7 weeks since Miah's bone graft surgery. Overall she is doing well.  She doesn't complain of any pain anymore and her hip has healed nicely. Yesterday we went for a follow up with her Orthodontist. This is what he saw....

See that bump right above her front tooth?  It appears that she may be rejecting some of the bone graft.  He stated that if there was a piece of the graft that failed, the body would try to get rid of it by bringing it to the surface. Our surgeon is on Vacation until Monday but he has been sent this photo and we have an appointment held for us in Vancouver later next week in case he wants to see us.  I am hoping that it is just an undissolved stitch that will come out and that she does not have to have another surgery. Anyone else have experience with this?

Gotcha Day!

Remember This???

 

 

Well here she is four years later!!!

 



 

She was so excited about Gotcha day and is quite proud of the fact that none of her sisters qualify for this special day.  It is hers alone to celebrate!  Since she is still having to eat mushy food she requested Peach Wave for dinner...a local frozen yogurt experience. She was thrilled to have dessert for dinner!  After that we took her to see Despicable Me 2, which she thought was very funny.

 

We love you so much Miss Miah!!!!!

 

 

Before you were conceived I wanted you. Before you were born I loved you. Before you were here for an hour I would die for you. This is the miracle of love!

Day 7 Comparison

Today we had a quick follow up with our Orthodontist. He admitted he was not the expert when it comes to this procedure, but in order for us to prevent another trip down to Vancouver, he took some photos and sent them to Vancouver to our surgeon. He said it looked good in terms of no infection.  Here is the comparison photo...one taken last week and one today.  You can see just how low the gum line is now by looking at that tooth on the right. I am curious to see what it will look like when the swelling comes down, or if that tooth will eventually be brought down lower with braces.

 

Today she is still bruised...it seems to be turning darker each day. Her nose also continues to bleed. The surgeon recommended we try some Otrivin to see if that helps.

 

 

Day 5

She is a trooper...woke up this morning, walked down the stairs herself and has been basically on her feet all day...except for the mandatory mother required nap time this afternoon.  Her nose is still bleeding during the day, but today she only had one dose of pain meds in the morning. The swelling is definitely going down although today there is some bruising starting under left eye. The treat of today was graham crackers soaked in milk until they were very soggy...yummy!

 



Day 4

Miah is doing really well today. She is on about half of the pain medication we gave her yesterday and has discovered that she can walk short distances unassisted.  She even went up and down the stairs a couple of times. She even jumped once while she was playing Wii....until Mommy ruined the fun and told her to sit down. Her nose still bleeds periodically but the swelling in her face is starting to go down.  The inside of her lips are still very dark blue and the skin on her lips has started peeling.

Her biggest complaint today was that she wants to eat some real food. Today, mashed potatoes with gravy are no longer good. She enjoyed a banana smoothie for breakfast and discovered that she really likes these Lil Kid fruit pouches from Heinz. She was even able to squirt it into her mouth independently.

What she really wants is cheese and crackers or chips and salsa...gonna be a while for those baby!

Day 3 post op

 



It was said that today will mark the peak in facial swelling. If that is the case, I think she has gotten off easy this time around. As you can see from the photo, she is still quite puffy on that left side. Her nose still continues to bleed, which they said is to be expected.  I noticed today that her lips look blue. At first I thought it must have been something she ate, but when we were rinsing her mouth after lunch, I lifted her upper lip a bit and noticed that the inside of her upper lip and gums are very bruised. I hadn't even thought about her being bruised inside.

She walked around a little this morning, putting more weight on her leg than yesterday. We joked that yesterday she was as fast as a snail, and that today she was as fast as a turtle.  She made her way to the kitchen table twice to do some painting...but we quickly discovered that she did a little too much activity and her pain intensified.  Her walking slowed down again and she was no longer walking flat footed, but on her tip toes and bending forward instead of standing straight.  She has been on the couch ever since.

She again enjoyed mashed potatoes and gravy for lunch and homemade shepherds' pie for dinner (well blended of course.) For snacks she had mashed banana, some rice pudding and strained pears. I feel like all I am doing is preparing food, spoon feeding her, cleaning dishes and filling syringes with meds. It makes for a full day.

The surgeon said that we should see a decrease in the swelling starting tomorrow. It only gets better from here...fingers crossed :)

The Boss!

 

 

48 hours since surgery and she is looking great! We have been expecting the swelling to increase, but I think it is actually going down.  Her upper lip is still quite swollen and that really restricts how wide she can open her mouth. She no longer wants us to ice her face so it must be feeling a bit better too.

We have nicknamed her "The Boss" as she can be very assertive when letting us know what she wants using one word demands  requests!  "Blanket," " Juice," " Hungry," "Popsicle," "Bathroom," and " Stuffie" are the most popular words in her vocabulary.  We hope we aren't creating a monster!

She is able to put a bit of weight on that left leg. She got up twice today and shuffled her way to the washroom.

She still has her sense of humor. Some of the cute things she has said the last few days include:

• She looked over at my cot in the hospital and says "You gonna be comfortable on that?" I said "Probably not" and she responds "Yeah probably not..."
• In the hospital she said "Mom can you try to not be so funny...just be your normal self. Its hurts to laugh."
• Laying in bed today I overheard her singing "My hip hurts, holy holy, my hip hurts, it hurts a lot."
• When we call her The Boss, she tries to keep a straight face, but there is a twinkle in her eye that reflects just how much she is liking her new bossy self.

Today she was able to eat a bit of soup with the noodles mushed up really well and some mashed potatoes with gravy.  She has never been a fan of potatoes, but today she said they tasted really good! I also picked up some toddler strained pears. She loved those. We are still giving her liquids with a syringe.  Her lips are still a little too puffy to master drinking from a cup effectively.

Day 1 Post Op

Overnight in the hospital went well...She was able to get a bit of sleep in between the nurse coming in every hour. Her nose bled quite a bit in the night as well.  She was given Tylenol every 4 hours in the night, some antibiotics and didn't need any morphine until mid-morning when we tried unsuccessfully to get her up to use the washroom. Her face is getting more puffy by the hour even with all the ice we have been using.  We were able to get her up on her feet once and she shuffled/hopped to the washroom.  When she stands it is a classic stork stand, with the left leg bent...

The surgeon came by and liked what he saw.  He was actually surprised that her face wasn't more swollen.  He discharged her and will see her again only if we feel she needs to be seen or if we have any concerns. He was great. He said we could call him anytime.  All her follow up will be done here with our orthodontist.  Basically he said the biggest concern is infection.  We need to be super diligent to keep her mouth clean, hence the rinsing guidelines and brushing instructions.  He said to watch that we don't see any white on the gum line as that would be bone and that the stitching could tear easy if the gum gets infected...he said not to worry so much about the graft itself not taking, but to be concerned of the affects of infection. She will have an x-ray done in 6 months and that will tell us if the whole graft was successful.

We drove home right away after being discharged...they gave her some Tylenol with codeine and she was a trooper for the four hour drive. We stopped once for a potty break and to get her a popsicle.

Once home she has some soup broth and we set her up on the couch to watch some TV...she didn't last long and fell asleep on the couch. 

Surgery Day

This morning Miah had a bone graft at BC Children's Hospital.  She was scheduled at 10:30 and they even got her in a little early.  The oral surgeon had three surgeries booked for today...all three were young girls having their bone graft surgeries.  This was one of  the reasons we chose this particular surgeon...he apparently does these procedures all the time. On the way to the hospital Miah kept telling us her new stuffed Squirrel was scared.  We kept reassuring the squirrel that God would be with him the whole time and Miah did her best to reassure him that he would be ok. Miah never admitted to being scared though...

Our pre op procedures were a little different than we were used to.  There was no meeting with the anesthetist prior to surgery day and she was allowed to drink clear fluids up to 3 hours before her surgery time. Having a drink when she woke up made the morning a little more bearable.  We only had to check in one hour before surgery time and they had a great play area set up in the surgical waiting room.  We were allowed to all come into this area as a family and wait with her.  Parents are allowed into the OR with their children if they choose...I didn't have to even ask. I was able to gown up (Miah said I looked even more funny than last time in my fancy blue hat), and walk her into the OR. I lifted her onto the table and within 2-3 minutes they had her IV in and she was asleep. They didn't even make her wear that hat she hates so much!

Her surgery took 2.5 hours and I was able to wait in the parents waiting area right outside the OR while Drew and Mackenzie toured the aquarium for a change of scenery. When the surgery was finished, the Dr. came to speak to me in the waiting area and sat down with me, going over all the post op instructions...a very long list of do's and don'ts....some of which include:

• Clear fluids for the first few days, then we can move to pureed food once she is able to brush her teeth well. He said this transition could be as soon as Miah can tolerate a good brushing after every meal. Soft mushy foods for at least three weeks and then on week four we can try some softer pieces that she can chew with her back teeth. He said it would be at least five weeks before she can bite into something like a sandwich with her front teeth and even longer for foods such as a raw carrot stick.
• No bathing for 1 week, then on week 2 she can start having showers...then on week 3 she can have a bath.
• Rinsing her mouth with salt water...up to 20 times a day. Brushing as soon as possible three times a day.
• She is on antibiotics for 10 days and medication for pain.
• Icing her face a few times per day to help with the swelling

I was able to sit with her in recovery. She never did wake up until we got transferred to her room.  Her pain was pretty well managed the first day with Tylenol and Morphine. She never complained about any face pain, only pain in her hip.

Grandma and Grandpa came by later in the afternoon as well as the Epps. Miah loved having some familiar faces come to visit. She was a little drowsy, but enjoyed the gifts she received.

Her face started to swell about 8 hours post op. The surgeon said that this would continue and that Monday (Third day after surgery) we would see the worst of it...after that, it should start to get better. She says that her "Cleft feels funny."  I am assuming that it is the swelling that feels different...or perhaps the stitches are bugging her.

Surgery # 7-Pre Op Photos

Tomorrow we head to Vancouver. Miah will be having surgery on Friday at BC Children's Hospital.  I'm pretty sure this is surgery # 7, although Miah says it is 10.  Maybe it feels like 10...poor sweet thing.  She has been VERY anxious this time. She talks about the upcoming surgery constantly and breaks out into spontaneous tears when least expected.  I think that last experience in the ER when she broke her arm is still fresh in her mind...the ER experience where they tried unsuccessfully to start an IV.

I'm planning on blogging our experience with Miah's bone graft in hopes that it can help someone else prepare their child for this same surgery, as well as document this process for Miah to better understand one day.

Miah's Upcoming Surgery

Miah is scheduled for her bone graft surgery on July 5th at BC Children's Hospital. Many of you have asked what this surgery entails so I figured I would post a bit of a description.

Alveolar Cleft
The cleft lip and palate are repaired as babies, but the alveolar cleft when wide should be repaired at a later time to avoid growth disturbance. Usually this is done when the permanent teeth are coming in. The cleft surgeons work closely with orthodontists in preparing for the procedure so that the teeth and gums are optimally positioned for surgery.



The procedure requires taking bone graft (usually some bone marrow from the hip bone) to fill the gap in the alveolus or gums. After the procedure, the patient needs to be on a soft diet for ten days and be careful in brushing the teeth not to damage the healing incisions in the mucosa of the gums. It takes about 3 months for bone formation to show on an X-ray and confirm that the bone graft has taken. Once this is confirmed, then the orthodontist can resume work on aligning the teeth.

We were told that if the graft is 80% successful that they will be thrilled, if 50-70% of the graft takes, there is a chance that it will have to be redone, and anything less will require a second go at it.  It will be a long three months of waiting to see. Please pray that it will take the first time as this is not a very fun surgery to go through.

"A child born to another woman calls me Mom. The depth of the tragedy and magnitude of the privilege are not lost on me" -Jody Landers

I read this quote on a friend's facebook status yesterday in honor of Mother's Day.....what a profound and accurate statement.  I often find myself at a loss for words and inability to express how I feel about the honor I feel that I get to parent this sweet gift from above, and at the same time still can't wrap my head around the loss that has happened in order for us to be where we are.  The word tragedy is the only one I can think of...what kind of a world do we live in where a mother cannot keep their child? I don't know the reason for Miah's abandonment, but I'm sure if falls somewhere in between the family not being able to care for her; either financially or not being able to legally call her their own due to government restrictions.

This past Tuesday Miah fell off the monkey bars at school and broke her arm. As she lay sedated in her hospital bed, I was overwhelmed with emotions and the thought that her biological mother should be here...that her biological mother would want to be here. It saddens me as a mother that another mother does not get the opportunity to comfort their child in a time of need.

 

The result- a broken arm and 4-6 weeks in a cast.  I have one very disappointed little girl who can't go to gymnastics and swimming lessons for a few weeks.  We also found out this week that her bone grafting surgery is scheduled for July 5th. She might be taking two months off from all those extra activities....we might have to find her a new hobby...

 

Disneyland

This past week we took our annual family vacation to Disneyland. We just don't seem to tire of this place!  Each time is a little different as the girls get older.  The first time we went we spent most of our time visiting Princesses and characters.  Now, we are often found in lines for the more thrilling rides and the animation academy.  I don't think we even saw a princess once this trip.

 

 

One of the highlights of our trip was that the girls got to meet their cousin Alyssa for the first time.  How fun it was for them to have an older and cool girl to play with.  It was much more fun to ride with Alyssa than just Mom or Dad. Alyssa is living in California working with YWAM. What a great opportunity for our girls to hear about what she is doing with her life.

 

 

The other highlight of our time away was the day we spent in LEGOLAND with Tian.  Tian and Miah were friends from China.  We were told by the nannies at the girl's orphanage that they were buddies.  It is always a joy to see these two girls interact with each other.  I hope that they will continue to cherish this special friendship forever!