Totally amazed...speechless

That describes Sydney's doctors...they said they never dreamed that she would be where she is now. And all I can say is...Praise The Lord! She will need a follow up appt. with the ortho surgeon in 6 months and the neuro surgeon in 1 year. She'll be going for a genetics appt. next for her NF1, probably in a month or so. She'll have scans to evaluate her tumors. There could be some new clinical trials available. Today we celebrate! Again! Thank you for praying...please continue:)

In Christ,
Sandy

12*12*12

Happy Gotcha Day! Can't believe it's been 6 years. I had written another post explaining
Sydney's illness but decided against it. This is a day of celebration! Six years ago she was an orphan. Today she has a Mommy and a Daddy(6 brothers & sisters too!) Last year she was in a wheel chair...today she is walking and running! Praise The Lord! Thankful for this day:)

 Tomorrow she has a follow up appt. please join me in prayer for her.

In christ,
Sandy

an update...

Sydney had her Ortho follow up appt. yesterday. Everything went well and "looked" good:) She'll go back for another check up in about 3 months. Sounds like the next surgery might not be for a while(whatever that means), we'll take it! Thanks for your continued prayers.

In Christ,
Sandy

just a small update...

Sydney is doing great! Yesterday she was able to go to church! What a blessing:) Today she was able to get up by herself and has no complaints of pain! Blessed indeed.

In Christ,
Sandy

Home!!!!!!

What a blessed day yesterday was! God is good! We were able to come home yesterday evening! Sydney did great (as usual)! Everything surgery wise went just as Dr. C hoped it would:) She is very sore as expected but otherwise just great! Thank you for all of your prayers. She will have a follow up appt. in about 6 weeks. Details about the next surgery coming then I suppose. For now another step has been taken. We rejoice in God's great mercy upon Sydney.

God is good, the Gospel is true, and Jesus is at work in me and all around me.

In Christ,
Sandy

Getting ready...

for tomorrow. I can't say that I'm looking forward to tomorrow but I can say that I am peaceful about tomorrow. When I look back on all that God has done for Sydney, I can't help but smile.....truly amazing:) I remember some of the early conversations with doctors regarding her diagnosis, I remember seeing her films for the 1st time, I remember when she could no longer walk, I remember my Savior, my God, my Lord. I remember His promises, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5, I remember," And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28.

Please join me in prayer for Sydney as she has another surgery. I pray that it will serve to add yet another blessing on her life, may it be for her good and God's glory. We'll keep updates going on Twitter. Surgery is scheduled for 7:30 (arrival/prep time 5:30). Prayerfully we'll be home over the weekend and at Ashland Avenue on Sunday.

In Christ,
Sandy 

A BIG thank you.....

At the aquarium!

to JC & Irene. This week they treated Sydney to lots of fun just for her. Something you don't get much of when you're one of six;) Sydney is truly blessed to have such wonderful people and so are the rest of us:) Thanks again!

In Christ,
Sandy

update...

1st of all....Sydney is doing great! Loving life without the halo:) She loves our new church and all of her new friends!

She is scheduled for her 1st lengthening June 29th. This will require an overnight hospital stay (maybe 2) but is typically done on an outpatient basis. But since this is the 1st, they schedule it inpatient to see how she responds. Please remember her in your prayers and give thanks for what God has done for her. This time last year she was starting to lose function in her right leg. He's brought her a long way!

In Christ,
Sandy

3 weeks...

ago that Sydney got the halo off! And what a blessing it's been. Praise The Lord!!!! She's doing just fabulous. The neck brace is such an improvement over the halo that it really isn't a big deal at all. That's about it....

In Christ,
Sandy

Praising the Lord for this......

Sydney.....

Sydney.....

Prayerfully she'll get out of the halo today and into a minerva! Please pray for her......

In Christ,
Sandy

Praise God!

Rejoicing with a sweet family at the birth of their sweet baby! Congratulations John and Jennifer!

Minerva...

This seems to be what Sydney's doctors have in mind for her transitional brace. It's called a Minerva brace. Not sure if  this can be fitted the same day or if she will need measurements before having the halo removed. But we are all excited to start preparing for the "transition"! I know that Sydney is, she's been amazing during her "halo" period. Please pray that her back will begin to heal and that her transition out of the halo will  be yet another blessing!

In Christ,
Sandy

Happy Birthday Sydney!

Happy Birthday Haley!

I have finally taken the time to get the pictures from camera to computer! Here are a few from my Haley girl's 10th birthday!

Someone to remember...

As we prepare to celebrate Sydney's 8th birthday, I'm reminded of her birth mother and the sacrifice she made for Sydney. Some people are so quick to jump to conclusions regarding birth mothers..."how could they abandon their child?". Yes, indeed Sydney was "abandoned". Her "finding" date was February 19th, 2004.She was found in the early morning hours of a small, very rural village in Duyun, China. We don't really know Sydney's date of birth, only God and her 1st mother know. I'm sure that she thinks of her often especially on her birthday. It was estimated by "authorities" that she was about 10 days old, thus assigning her a "birth date" of February 9th. Lest you think that her mother was some uncaring soul that just left her baby, think again....Long before I became Sydney's mother, long before any of you who have come to know and love her, long before we loved her, her 1st mother loved her. She sacrificed, she risked everything in "leaving" Sydney. In leaving Sydney she risked her very life so that Sydney would at least have a chance.

Sydney also has a 2nd mother, Mama. Mama was Sydney's foster mother for much of her young life. Sydney was in an orphanage for a few months and was then placed in Mama's loving care until she came home with us. Mama loved Sydney, that was apparent to anyone.  I'm sure that she thinks of her everyday and especially today.

Join me today in not only celebrating Sydney's birthday but in praying for her 1st  and 2nd mothers, wherever they are. Pray that the Lord will reveal Himself to them and that they would come to know Christ as Lord and Savior.

God has had His gracious and Sovereign hand on Sydney all along, give Him praise for that.


In Christ,
Sandy

Birds in the Wilderness: The halo.....

 is still on, but overall Sydney's Drs were very pleased with her recovery but there just isn't enough bone regrowth to safely remove the halo...She'll go back in march for a CT scan and follow up - maybe then?

In Christ,
Sandy

Please keep Sydney in your prayers today.  We go back to Cincinnati Children's for her check-up.  Hopefully they will give us an idea about getting the halo off.  She is doing great and has not complained one time about her condition.  I think we could all learn something from her , "Do all things without grumbling or disputing" (Philippians 2:14).  We praise the Lord for her continued improvements and pray He will keep His hand on her.  It's in your hands Lord. "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God." (Ps 20:7)

Thank you for all of your prayers and support!

In Christ,

Chad

"...while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

Happy Birthday Cole!

Hope you had a Merry Christmas!

Christmas 2011

1st day home

 

Coming home! December 23rd 2006

"Gotcha" Day 2006

December 10th 2006 ( a look back)

We had a great day today sightseeing in Beijing. Here is a picture of our group from our adoption agency (AHH) on the Great Wall. It is hard to believe that we were able to not only see, but climb one of the wonders of the world. It was definitely a steep climb. Willie, Neil, Cole and I went up to the first guard station and it was a challenge.

These pictures don't even capture how steep these steps actually are. I was very proud of Cole and Neil for climbing as high as we did.
Earlier in the day we went to a jade factory and learned how to choose the different grades of jade. There was some beautiful pieces in the shop, but most were out of our price range, plus we didn't want to lug around a bunch of heavy jade for the next two weeks.
After we left the jade factory we went to eat at an authentic Chinese restaurant. The food was very good. As you can see from the picture, it was served family style, which is fine, but they gave us plates the size of small saucers. So I had about 20 servings.
Fish heads anyone??
We had some interesting bus trips through the City. You would not believe the way traffic is here in Beijing. Cars, bikes, pedestrians, mopeds, scooters, buses, trucks--all serving in and out of traffic at their will. Suprisingly not too much road rage, just a few horn honks here and there. There were several times when I saw two cars side by side in the same lane!!
Beijing is a bustling and growing city. There is construction everywhere, especially with the Olympics coming in 2008. That should be very interesting. The people of China are very hospitable to foreigners . They are very fascinated by the kids, because they look so different than the children here.

Praise God!

PT has been placed on hold until the halo comes off! No brace, no heel lift, no walker, no e-stim. The wheelchair has been parked! Here are a few pictures from the Christmas Play. With love and prayers.

In Christ,

Sandy