Nothing more attractive to me than "my man" reading to his girls!
Officially re-adopted in the State of Illinois!!!
Finally, an update on the happenings here.
Libi's doctor visit:
The visit with the doctor itself went well. One huge relief for me was that the doctor did not think I was crazy for having Libi there. He was surprised that in 2 years genetic testing has not been considered or recommended. He has 3 syndromes he wanted to specifically rule out to start with. Being totally uneducated in the area of genetic syndromes; we do feel that Libi seems to fit the symptoms of one syndrome pretty closely. We continue to expect the Lord to guide us through this doctor to a better understanding of our sweet Libi…and ultimately to her healing!
About her healing. I was discussing through email with a dear friend, Emily, about our prayers for healing over our children. (Emily and her family adopted their precious little guy, Abe, who faces many challenges like Libi.) I expressed to her that my desires for Libi to be healed are really desires for her to walk and talk. I don’t think of complete “normalcy” for her. I think that is because we SEE her as NORMAL. We are okay with her challenges. My desire for her to walk and talk center around me. I want to be able to communicate with my daughter. I also want her to be able to walk so that she can be independent enough that we can always care for her. My friend Emily said that if God is most glorified through our kiddos just the way they are, then praise Him! We are great with that! SO expressed what Brad and I feel…
Libi Kisses…Libi seemed to like the doctor, puckering her lips up for a kiss most of the time. She is in quite a phase of “kisses” right now, and we are ALL loving it! The first kiss good-bye at school was about a month ago and I cried my eyes out when I got to the van. Do you know how amazing that was? To get a good-bye kiss from my little girl? So much was spoken in that sweet kiss to this mama’s heart. A true first “good-bye”, a true first “I love you”…how it sends my heart just revisiting that moment with her! Thank you God!!
Re-Adoption…We went through the formality of re-adopting Libi in the state of Illinois last week in order to get a birth certificate for her. We saw it as another opportunity to celebrate the gift of her. It was a little intimidating being in the court room and put on the witness stand. I had never had that experience before. Libi won the hearts of everyone in the court room, which didn’t surprise us. Brad and I laugh at the looks of empathy we will receive from people. If they only knew what a blessing a little child like Libi is they would look at her “longingly”.
Big Girl Potty and Crawling…Libi continues to make progress in both of these areas. We are so thankful for both of these abilities that the Lord has miraculously accomplished in her. Ready for big girl panties…we are SO thankful! What a miraculous work in our little girl!!
Haddie and Bonding…What’s new here? Well, a lot. Did you know when you adopt a child that the Lord can stir up a lot of garbage in your own life? The Lord has definitely used the birth of Haddie in my life to heal some hurts that carried some deep roots. Before Haddie I was very unaware of some of my “issues”. The problem with the process of this refining work was my focus shifted from this precious wounded daughter I had been given to my own wounded heart. The shift of focus was so much that I allowed my eyes to be totally on myself. (Not the first time!) Long story short: It’s not about me! Will I ever live this out as truth???? I feel that Haddie and I have made huge strides in the last week. She has felt the freedom to be “naughty” and I think that is great. Yes, I said, “great”. Not that I am enjoying it, but I see her pushing boundaries and displaying behaviors that show she is comfortable and more importantly, secure. I do see her look at me with eyes that long for more. More affection, more attention, more love. It seems that she cannot get enough. This is a hole that has been dug by many losses and hurts for her over 7 long years. Once again I think about that number, 7…it is the number of completion. It is the year of Jubilee! The year that debts are forgiven and slaves set free! This, the 7th year for our daughter will be one of completion and freedom.
SO…that’s all for now. Thanks for being on the journey with the Arnold’s! Our life is so much richer because of all of you!
Libi's doctor visit:
The visit with the doctor itself went well. One huge relief for me was that the doctor did not think I was crazy for having Libi there. He was surprised that in 2 years genetic testing has not been considered or recommended. He has 3 syndromes he wanted to specifically rule out to start with. Being totally uneducated in the area of genetic syndromes; we do feel that Libi seems to fit the symptoms of one syndrome pretty closely. We continue to expect the Lord to guide us through this doctor to a better understanding of our sweet Libi…and ultimately to her healing!
About her healing. I was discussing through email with a dear friend, Emily, about our prayers for healing over our children. (Emily and her family adopted their precious little guy, Abe, who faces many challenges like Libi.) I expressed to her that my desires for Libi to be healed are really desires for her to walk and talk. I don’t think of complete “normalcy” for her. I think that is because we SEE her as NORMAL. We are okay with her challenges. My desire for her to walk and talk center around me. I want to be able to communicate with my daughter. I also want her to be able to walk so that she can be independent enough that we can always care for her. My friend Emily said that if God is most glorified through our kiddos just the way they are, then praise Him! We are great with that! SO expressed what Brad and I feel…
Libi Kisses…Libi seemed to like the doctor, puckering her lips up for a kiss most of the time. She is in quite a phase of “kisses” right now, and we are ALL loving it! The first kiss good-bye at school was about a month ago and I cried my eyes out when I got to the van. Do you know how amazing that was? To get a good-bye kiss from my little girl? So much was spoken in that sweet kiss to this mama’s heart. A true first “good-bye”, a true first “I love you”…how it sends my heart just revisiting that moment with her! Thank you God!!
Re-Adoption…We went through the formality of re-adopting Libi in the state of Illinois last week in order to get a birth certificate for her. We saw it as another opportunity to celebrate the gift of her. It was a little intimidating being in the court room and put on the witness stand. I had never had that experience before. Libi won the hearts of everyone in the court room, which didn’t surprise us. Brad and I laugh at the looks of empathy we will receive from people. If they only knew what a blessing a little child like Libi is they would look at her “longingly”.
Big Girl Potty and Crawling…Libi continues to make progress in both of these areas. We are so thankful for both of these abilities that the Lord has miraculously accomplished in her. Ready for big girl panties…we are SO thankful! What a miraculous work in our little girl!!
Haddie and Bonding…What’s new here? Well, a lot. Did you know when you adopt a child that the Lord can stir up a lot of garbage in your own life? The Lord has definitely used the birth of Haddie in my life to heal some hurts that carried some deep roots. Before Haddie I was very unaware of some of my “issues”. The problem with the process of this refining work was my focus shifted from this precious wounded daughter I had been given to my own wounded heart. The shift of focus was so much that I allowed my eyes to be totally on myself. (Not the first time!) Long story short: It’s not about me! Will I ever live this out as truth???? I feel that Haddie and I have made huge strides in the last week. She has felt the freedom to be “naughty” and I think that is great. Yes, I said, “great”. Not that I am enjoying it, but I see her pushing boundaries and displaying behaviors that show she is comfortable and more importantly, secure. I do see her look at me with eyes that long for more. More affection, more attention, more love. It seems that she cannot get enough. This is a hole that has been dug by many losses and hurts for her over 7 long years. Once again I think about that number, 7…it is the number of completion. It is the year of Jubilee! The year that debts are forgiven and slaves set free! This, the 7th year for our daughter will be one of completion and freedom.
SO…that’s all for now. Thanks for being on the journey with the Arnold’s! Our life is so much richer because of all of you!
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