Just keep waiting, waiting, waiting!

Dax singing "Where is my Hairbrush"

Dax, Alyx, Savannah, and Graci hanging out in Alyx's room

Alyx is teaching herself to play the guitar-we have heard several songs so far.

I took this picture so I could get the valance on Alyx's window that she made herself this past week.

The new favorite game in our house if Hungry, Hungry Hippo-everybody loves it- old and young, big and littles.

Graci among the bubbles!

Ironically it has been three months and five days since our dossier was logged in the Ministry of Women's Affairs (MOWA) in Ethiopia, it has also been three months and five days since Savannah's accident. We marvel at God's timing on things and His irony. It is also amazing how much life changes and a few short years or even a few short months. Just two years ago we were on our way to Guatemala to pick up Dax and Graci had been home just about five months. This adoption wait is sure a lot different than our first one. I remember going to the computer every day and sometimes hourly to watch for updates and any word of encouragement that our time was getting closer. I would sit and hit refresh over and over again, hoping the numbers would change and I would have hope that we were a microscopic step closer to hearing about Graci. Now, we didn't even know that our dossier had made it to Ethiopia until a month after it was logged in. I go days with being so busy and preoccupied with the kids that I forget my phone could ring any minute telling us who our babies are. When I receive an e-mail from our agency, my heart skips a beat, because I forgot that we could be hearing any day now. It is just funny how things are different. It will be a great surprise when we get the call that our son and daughter are waiting for us. No doubt it will be a surprise and knowing God he will throw some more irony into that day. So we wait and pray for our babies patiently and faithfully. Graci, on the other hand, does not forget that we need to go get her baby sister. She is accepting that a baby brother comes with her sister but she mostly wants the sister. She asks regularly if we are going to her China to pick up her sister. We explain again and remind her of where her sister is and how we wait for God's timing. Of course she responds to everything with "why" and the conversation goes for a long time until I say "how about we pray for your sister". We are getting ready to go on a trip to Pennsylvania and see some of Graci China sisters. As we have explained the trip to her and who she will see, she gets very excited and then asks if as long as were on the airplane can we just go to her China and pick up her sister. So the never ending conversation starts over again. It's great!

A Season

Savannah

Savannah with friends Kaitie and Gretchen

Graci trying really hard to close her eyes and pray.

Our beautiful girl!

Tahdahhhh!

Graci and Dax love Daddy horsey rides!

It has been three months since Savannah's accident. We have pondered that and thought about it being the length of a season. I would have to describe the past three months as winter turned to spring. As we watched what seemed lifeless and hopeless turn to life and beauty. God has inspired our whole family and many others with Savannah. In many instances in life we don't journal or make ways to remember the hard times and how God brought us through. I think that is why Savannah's accident and story has brought so many people to see God at work. Because we can all remember where we were on April 21st or when we heard about the accident. We all remember how we felt and how it hurt. And we all remember how we hoped, prayed, and pulled for Savannah. It is so good to look back on the valleys so we can see how we were brought through. As someone put it on my facebook, we have had a lot of fiery darts thrown our way and they keep coming. But God in His infinite wisdom, grace, and mercy has given us July 21st, three month anniversary, to remember that He never lets us go.

Finding our new normal

Tuesday was a long but accomplished day. It started with the guardianship hearing to name us (mom and dad) as Savannah's guardians. This is just temporary until she is congnitively able again to handle her own decisions and business. Of course, when we filed for guardianship Savannah was non responsive. But it took so long for the court to get a hearing and get it done that she was able to testify for herself. She said happily, my mom can be my guardian. Those of you that follow facebook know that I have been a little bitter about this process. But it is over and done and we move forward. Savannah also started outpatient therapy yesterday. She had a physical, occupational, and speech evaluation. She will go to therapy three times a week for only 2 hours and 15 minutes. The majority of her rehabilitation is going to depend on her working at home. We have set the goal that she will need to do 45 minutes of each discipline each day. Plus 45 minutes of contributing. For an incentive we have decided that she will not go on facebook, watch tv, or text until they are all completed. Today she did awesome! She walked the whole day without her walker, did her excercises, played games with the littles, got them breakfast, showered, cleaned up her room, and wrote letters to her friends. We are going to Pennsylvania in a couple of weeks to visit our friends from China and Lee's son, Shawn and his family. So, Savannah is setting some goals for the trip that she is working toward. Also, she really wants to go to California to camp in August. This is still a maybe but she wants to work hard toward that as well. The rest of summer and starting fall is going to be hectic. We are trying to see how everything will fit in. This time of year is tough anyway with school and everything starting up. It is just going to be a little trickier trying to fit in therapies. So we continue to work on our new normal and help everyone find their groove.

Saturday-a day of recovery

Best Friends!
Loving the water

Happy to be swimming

Feeling much better today

Savannah facebooking and texting this is where she spends the majority of her day

Today was kind of interesting for us all. This is the first Saturday, since Savannah's accident, that we were able to just do normal Saturday things. Everyone was happy that we had no agenda and nowhere we had to be. It was literally a day of recovery for Alyx because she spent last night suffering the effects of food poisoning. I was in panic mode last night because I thought it was a virus that would soon sweep the entire house. Praise God that it appears to be just food poisoning. Alyx is sore, weak, but overall she is doing well today and recovering. After being up a lot last night it was nice that I (mom) got to sleep in this morning and the littles got to do usual pancake breakfast with daddy. I also realized today that today was needed for us to recover from the week. Even though we didn't have near the schedule we have had prior, we have found ourselves tired and unmotivated. After careful analyzation of our laziness we decided that it must be this awful heat. I have underestimated how much work it is to load all the kids in the van, load the stroller and wheelchair, unload everybody and the stroller and wheelchair in 116 degree weather. So everything has been way more effort than I realized. I think we all just have to find our new groove in our new normal. It will take time but we are confident that we will get there. The littles also have been really tired, again we underestimate this unbearable heat. They have been swimming and playing outside for hours each day and they just crash at night. Last night we had friends over and Dax actually asked to go to bed while they were here. Savannah has been practicing her walking without using her walker. She is very balanced and can go short distances by herself. We look forward to starting outpatient rehab on Tuesday. It will be good to get into a routine and have regular therapy again. Right now the majority of therapy Savannah gets is facebook and texting. Her left hand is learning to type and text rapidly. Some people ask about Savannah's double vision and eyesight. Yes, she still has double vision and trouble with her eyes. This will more than likely continue for the next few months. We are hoping it corrects itself like everything else has. If not, it will require surgery to correct. Alyx is teaching herself guitar and doing quite well. She can play several songs and is currently working on 'happy birthday'. We have just enrolled Alyx in Arizona Virtual Academy. It is an online public school. She will begin 8th grade in August. This is totally different than the home schooling we are used to but we feel God has provided this for us. There is no way I can pull together the planning needed to home school Alyx next year. This way is supposed to take less time and everything is prepared for us. We are really excited and nervous to start.

One week post hospital

We went back to Barrow Neuro Rehab today so Savannah could visit all her therapists. Although they were just doing their jobs they did them very well. They have impacted Savannah's life immensely and she will forever be grateful to them. Again, they were only doing their job but they did it with such personal care and formed a relationship that is very special to Savannah. Then we went to the Ronald Mcdonald house to drop off some things we took and pick up some things we left. The littles wanted to stay at "Mickey-Donald's" house and they were sad that we had to leave. Savannah was emotional and bummed about saying goodbye again at the hospital. So overall it was a bittersweet day.

Yesterday we had a lot of fun swimming at Grandma's. Savannah did great going under the water and using all four limbs to swim. She loves the pool and we are hoping that she will get to do aquatic's therapy at the new rehab center. Also, Dax and Graci held onto a noodle and kicked around the pool for the first time by themselves. I hope we can get a lot more swimming in this summer. Before Savannah's accident we were going to do swim lessons this summer but now I think we will just learn it on our own.

To put it all in one place

I (Tami) have decided to set up a family blog to have everyone all in one place. Instead of updating each babyjellybean site for Graci and Dax and the two new littles, and updating caringbridge for Savannah we will do it all here. Plus, Lee and Alyx and I were feeling left out because we don't have a site. We are on facebook though. Savannah can followed and chatted with on facebook as well. If you are new to our family story please check out caringbridge.org to catch up on Savannah. At this time, we are awaiting the referral of a baby boy and baby girl from Ethiopia. We also have been home for five days now with Savannah. Savannah spent the last 11 weeks in different hospitals as she is recovering from a tbi (traumatic brain injury). She is home now and doing very well. We still have a long road of rehabilitation ahead of us but Savannah is strong, determined, and positive. God's timing is always perfect, we don't see it or understand it, but by faith we believe it and live by it.