Praise Report

Micah had an appointment today. He grew 1.3 inches in 1 months and 12 days. I think this measurement was most accurate as it came directly from the endocrinologist. The biggest side affect he still has are his growing pains. He keeps saying ouchi mommy my leg or arm hurts. So I tell him those are really good pains because that means he is growing.

I put up a really neat site to the right of my blog about Growth Hormone Deficiency. I have learned so much from it. Another mom who has also adopted from ET has a son who has this problem too.

Facebook/blogging

Did you know blogger has 2 new features: Stats and Popular Posts? They are both really cool. I really like the popular post because it automatically brings up the posts on your blog that were most popular or rather most looked at.

I recently opened up a facebook account because my friend Deanne had her first court date and all my friends could see her baby before me just because they had a f/b and I didn't. I opened one. I know, lame excuse but it is the truth.

At first I was really worried I would spend hours and hours on there after the kids would go to bed but not so. I have been really proud of myself. The only reason why I think I don't spend hours is because I like to look at blogs so much better. The 2 things I really like about f/b is that you get birthday notices of your friends and I can look at their photos easier. Oh and people are writing up some corny stuff, just to write..

The one feature that I love most about f/b and hate most about blogging is this: When you are doing f/b you truly know you can see your site. I know I have had my blog private throughtout the waiting times of adoption but I guess I am at that point again. Did you know that there is this fantastic feature called "stats" and you can see who is all looking at your blog? I was shocked that my name was on the ET adoption blogs especially because I never gave permission. I was getting so many hits a day and suddenly I felt so invaded again. People staring at my precious ET kiddos, ugh!

So I was talking to Danica over the weekend and she was really upset as to who can all see my blog and she ask me to take all her pics down but she is a part of our family... btw she has ask me for a long time and I have been begging her not to. She is just really private. She is super private with her f/b too.

I dunno, I just wished that blogger had a cool feature like f/b where you have a friend list but they don't have to log in each time they want to see your blog. Anyways, if I were you, I would go on http://www.ethiopianadoptionblogs.blogspot.com/ ( yourself and see if your blog is on there.

So in the mean time I am just pondering if I am going private again just so I can keep my Danica's pictures. I bet I didnt' make much sense tonight, did I...? Been a long work day but I am rambling as usual..

AHOPE Store is Closing

I have always been a huge fan of AHOPE even before Micah came home. Sadly the store is closing down. Hehe, I am telling you now since I got my stuff, lol. Everything is marked 30% off. The shirts, especially the adult ones, are really good quality. They made by EDUN. They really have cute shirts for the kids and toddlers too. They are all true to size. I was amazed how the order was shipped the very next day. That lady does an amazing job at getting her stuff out the door. Often you don't find that when the items are being mailed from a home office. I have had really bad luck before with other organizations. http://www.ahopestore.com/

Family PIctures

Totally off subject but Micah is doing well today. Back to normal at last. This must have been a 12 hour drug, phew.

I thought it was time to take some family pictures since our last ones were taken in 1992 when we first came to Washington State.

I have posted a few on the blog but am leaving the main one out for when I am sending out Christmas pictures. Duh, please don't think I am ever on time for Christmas but the pictures just happened to be perfect timing.

I was very pleased with the pictures because this girl is just starting out of her home, super cheap so we just received a cd and I can print whatever I want instead of having to chose from certain pics and sizes.

I have heard this often but for the first time I have really noticed..... You can't tell how much weight you gain until you see your picture.. Ugh, its time to fess up and do something about it. I have fallen into the busy mother excuse and let myself go. Pretty sicko because I don't believe in that. As you can see I am hiding behind my family:) I had some really cute pics of Kevin and myself (face) but I am sorry to say but they will never make it on this blog, lol.

The only other thing is that Anastasia was not happy to have pictures taken and she pretty much lost all of her patience and her smiles will show it.. I just didn't want to leave her out. By the time we got to the girl pictures, she has had it and was already sitting in the car ready to go so that is why she is not in there.

Follow up

Thanks everyone for praying and keeping Micah in your thoughts. It means so much.

The root canal went well but the dentist said the chances are 50/50. He is on antibiotics now for 10 days and hopefully everything will drain nicely. If the abscess returns they have to pull the tooth for good. Its just dead.

I think more than anything today I am just in shock over the sedation meds they gave him. I swear I have never seen anyone really high but I have seen it on TV, it was not a nice picture. Especially seeing it on a little boy like that. The medication he got was not knocking him out but it was suppose to get his body relaxed when he shot the needle in his mouth. Boy and that he did. After the hospital he went into a deep sleep for 2 hours and once he woke up he was just crazy. He had no control over his body. He kept trying to get up and kept falling over and over and refused to sit down. He fell out of his bed 3 times because he was so restless. Now I have cushioned the floor so high that if he falls again it will be really soft. He didn't have any control over his bladder either. Poor guy he hates diapers. I ask him if I could put a diaper on him tonight just for sleeping but he said no and I didn't want to degrade him; I rather wash sheets in the morning.

I did not like this medication. When Micah had his surgery back in August he woke up and slowly but surely was coming together. This stuff he was wasted all day but I guess they had to use this to keep him awake during surgery.

I went back to work in the after noon and was really mad at Kevin because he did not tell me that Micah screamed for me all afternoon after I had left. I gave him specific instructions to call me immediately and I would turn around. I dared him to ever do that again. This was not good and I feel so bad tonight. I don't care to lose my job I'd rather nurture my kids when they need me. His voice is really hoarse tonight for screaming all afternoon.

Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day for him. I loved his siblings how they all came together and babysit him for the rest of the afternoon after they returned from school. Biruk and Misrak even cried when they saw him because he wasn't himself. They all just love each other so much.

Poor Micah can't get a break

Micah has had his big oral surgery back in August. Now a humongous bubbly abscess has formed right above his front tooth. At first the dentist thought of pulling it but I begged him to have mercy on my boy and try to figure out something else. Right now Micah sleeping on some strong pain killers and antibiotics and tomorrow morning the Dr. wants to try a root canal. I did not want him to pull his front tooth because by his bone age he is only 2-3 to that tooth probably wont grow back for at least 3 more years.

Please pray for my little man tonight that his root canal tomorrow would be a success and they don't have to pull his tooth.

As Morgan said to me before, it was good that he got out of AHOPE because I don't know how much longer he would have survived all of his needs he has/had with the medical care they have over in ET. Although always upbeat in spirit than, he was slowy wasting away.

I so dislike when my babies have to suffer. I wished I could take their pain.

Happy Birthday Amira

October 6, 2010. We celebrated Amira's 6th birthday today due to prior commitments yesterday. Amira and I will have our birthday date this weekend. A restaurant of her choice. She got a new helmet for her bike and pink legos. She got so tired of Biruk being possessive over his. I am glad to say that my baby is a health nut so for dinner she wanted salad. Well our salads are serious. We put everything in it. She had a sparkly lemon cake for desert.

Amira turns 3 in Ethiopia. Courtesy photo from her mommy Tigist.

Updates, School

The growth hormone treatment with Micah is going well. After about one week he wasn't screaming anymore but he had to have an audience. Now that he is on it for his third week, he doesn't get an audience anymore, lol. His buttocks has actually become pretty fatty so its nice to give him his shot right there and that is where he wants it. The nurse said the more fat you have to shoot in the less it hurts.

Micah has also started a 3x per week pre-school program. It was killing me to see him cry every day his siblings left for school. So he is just ecstatic to be in school. He already got the teacher totally wrapped around his finger. It is ridicules.

School conferences are starting this week. We had a really rough start with Amira but she now has become a model student after one week of being there. I sort of did the same bribe with her like I did last year and told her that her and I will have a date if she keeps doing well, and that is all she talks about is having a date with mommy. Its coming up pretty quick.

Misrak is doing extremely well, especially with math. She is so smart. She is struggling mostly with the English comprehension but how could she not being here for less than 6 month. Her spelling though is nearly perfect. Although her and Biruk are in different classes I have them do the same homework. Biruk does stuff from Misrak's class and vice versa. Biruk has 20 spelling words every Friday so I just take Misrak along for the ride. Misrak also has to journal every single day about a short book. I like it a lot because that is where her comprehension gets to work. I let her read the book first and than I read it back to her and than she writes about the book. Just about 2-3 sentences each day.

Biruk has been doing really well too. I think this year will be less painful for him because he has a very strict male teacher and that is what he needs. He keeps telling me, "mom he is just like you", lol. He has also been playing soccer for the season and is loving is with all of his heart.

There is one thing about Misrak that just came to mind. Twice while riding the bus, girls ask her if she is wearing make up. She said, "no iam pretty like that"... I said huh, Misrak?, you don't tell people you pretty and explained to her how she humbly needs to respond about her appearance or when people say she is pretty. It was so cute and innocent how she said it though. After looking at her amazing eyes, eyelashes and eyebrows today, she does look like she is wearing black eyeliner. So I finally understood why they were asking her if she is wearing make up. Plus her eyelashes just curl up naturally; like how people use that curling tool?

Short video of Micah

I have been trying to videotape the kiddos forever. Micah and Misrak's English is getting really good. Misrak was too shy tonight. Hoping to catch her when she knows I am not taping. Micah was actually really shy too because normally he doesn't stop talking, ever.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Neat Pictures

Misrak at Kidane 9/2009

Amira at the Ritmo 12/2008

Danica had a great idea. Danica is really into photography and just loved these backgrounds. These 2 pictures were both taken in Ethiopia at 2 totally different locations. Misrak's is at Kidane courtesy of my friend Courtney. Amira's is at the old Ritmo Guesthouse when I picked her up. Amira had the serious oompi pout going on where Misrak is just dazing like she always does. Anyways, so we took these 2 pics, made them black and white and blew them up to 8x10 pictures. They just came out amazing. We are going to put them on the wall side by side just like they are right here.

BEAUTIFUL

We just went to a Mercy Me/Jeremy Camp concert. He dedicated this song to the forgotten children; the orphans and the children in foster care.

Growth Hormone Treatment has started

This will be more a journal for me so I can keep track of Micah’s growth treatment.

Micah has officially started his growth hormones today. The nurse came to the house and taught us how to inject the hormones and work the equipment. It all seems quiet complicated right now but I am sure with practice it will become easy. Micah was screaming so hard. I think he was just afraid; he hates immunizations and that probably reminded him of it. Kevin and I decided to inject him in his buttocks because its nice and fatty. The nurse said its good where there is more fat. He will get a shot every day. He will be on the hormones most likely until he is done growing which will probably be till he is 18 or 19. Basically until his growth plates close.

On his birth records he will turn 5 on November 25, 2010. Per our re-adoption records he will turn 4 November 25, 2006.

Today he weighs 28 pounds and is 34 inches. Per the doctor, he is super tiny and totally of the charts. He is currently the size of a 2 year old. His bone age is of a 2-3 y/old. His clothes size is 2T and shoes size 6.

One of the big and painful side affects will be growing pains in his hips which normally teenagers get when they start puberty.

I know I sound selfish but now that it is finally starting I want my boy to stay little because he is so stinkin cute. Look at those hands and feet in the picture. I will never forget them. They look like from an infant. I had to take one last picture before they start growing. I bite these beautiful feet all the time.

My Micah, he is one strong soldier. I am so proud of him.

A few quotes

Nacho (his camp name) was Biruk's counselor during camp. I am not sure if he knows how much he touched my heart by saying what he said. We were talking the last day and I asked him if he would come back and stuff. Suddenly out of the blue he said:


"This camp is like being in heaven where everyone loves each other, there are no diseases where people treat you bad for what you have like her on earth. Everyone is happy".

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Danica and I also had a wonderful conversation during camp which totally made me cry and proud. We were talking about her past 2 relationship and how these boys were not too spiritual. We went on about talking about future prospects (husbands,wink Lisa) and she mentioned to me that she was looking for a certain quality of a man but more than anything for someone who was spiritually mature and she wanted to raise her children the way I do, God centered. Wow, I about fell off my feet. If you know my precious Danica and know how much she criticizes me disciplining and raising my ET'ians, I nearly fell off my shoes. I am so blessed to have a daughter like her and I am so blessed period.

Camp

We once again had an amazing time of 4 days of camp. The theme this year was LOVE, HOPE, COURAGE!

I made a little montage below. I didn't get many pics of the bigger kids as they were BUSY ALL DAY with their counselors.

I saw my friend Leslie and her daughters again who came all the way from Texas. My friend Courtney visited all day Saturday and we had a blast with them. Of course, I can always count on Lisa to be there and we finally had lots of time together talking since all of our kids had people stay busy with them all day.

In the end, Misrak's and Biruk's hearts were so heavy and they didn't want to say goodbye but it all had to come to an end.

We start to look forward to going next year again. For the children, this camp is better than a family vacation. As to Micah, he truly was every one's joy and all knew him by his first time. He pretty much had everyone wrapped around his little pinkie:)

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

First Day of School

Today was first day of School. The kids were so excited but especially Misrak. She LOVES to learn and cannot get enough. She always wants me to teach her more and more. Biruk and Misrak started 1st grade and we have Amira repeat Kindergarten. We felt that she needed to grow more to be ready for first grade. Frankly she will proudly tell everyone that she is repeating Kindergarten. Unlike last year, Amira had an amazing day too and made her teacher really proud. Micah was not very happy staying at home. I have him on a waiting list for 2 pre-schools going 2x week just so he can get out of the house.