I just got an e-mail from the Cohen family!! Their schedule got switched and they actually went to the orphanage today.....soooooooo, I have great news about Elli and PICTURES! I have included a excerpt from her e-mail where she describes Elli, as well as the slide show below...she is going to tower over Anna! I guess Anna will get Elli's hand me downs ;-)

Thank you so much to the Cohen Family!!!

Marcy,

Our schedule got switched around and we went to Qingyuan today! Elli is very shy, but she is a big, healthy looking girl. She was afraid to be near us except in the arms of her auntie, whom she seemed to be quite attached to. We lured her into pictures with a lollipop. She ran back to her seat, where they were doing an art project - so we know she can run! We left her room and went to the one next door and she came to peek at us and then wave goodbye and and blow kisses to us. She is precious!

Well, obviously, she is gorgeous, which we knew, but she is healthy and appears to be well taken care of, which is a huge blessing. I am glad that she is attached to a caretaker. Kids need that and it helps with the bonding process following the adoption. I called Rodney and told him about the update and how much she has changed...he will be home shortly ;-)

Apparently she loves doing art, so I now know what to include in her suitcase for the trip...lots of "artsy stuff!" Harris, you are going to have an art partner! I don't know if you noticed or not, but the auntie that is holding her has on a shirt with "Half the Sky" logo on the side. This is a great organization that does so much for the children in orphanages throughout China. They were so active in the recent winter storms ensuring that the children had heat, food, water, diapers, clothes, medicine, etc. They have a program at Elli's orphanage. They are great!

The kids have all looked at the pictures and think she is so cute. Parker is a little obsessed with the fact that she has a lollipop, what kind is it, do you think she dropped it, etc. You know sugar is a very important subject to the 3 year old. Anna, she is more concerned with the flowers in the pictures. That is her new favorite word, so while I am pointing out Elli, she is pointing out flowers!

So, so, so thrilled to find out that Elli is doing well. Updates are always bitter sweet. Happy she is being taken care of, but then the feeling of desperation to get her home deepens.

Sending love & hugs to that chubby cheeked princess, Elli,
Rodney, Marcy, Carter, Jacob, Parker & Anna Mei

Up and Running...

First, I want to thank everyone that prayed for Anna. She has done so good. The third and fourth day were pretty rough for her, but she has really bounced back. Her swelling is nearly gone and the drooling/mouth drainage has stopped. We still have some yucky nose stuff, but that is fading. We are so thankful for how she came through everything and how she has really healed quite nicely. She is one determined little girl.

Anna is feeling and looking much better

Anna woke up on the first Monday (day 3) very fussy. She couldn't be satisfied. She would cry for a toy, get the toy, throw the toy and then lay back on my chest. She still wasn't really eating any "food", just drinking. On Monday, she really didn't want to drink. Thankfully, Parker spent Sunday night with my sister-in-law, Thank You Shanda, so I was able to sit for hours just holding her. She slept some, but mainly, just wanted to be held. We stayed downstairs in the living room, it was quite, cozy, and we just snuggled all day.

On Tuesday, it was pretty much more of the same, but better. She was still very fussy, but she really wanted to play with Parker. She would play for a bit, then wanted to be held. She was drinking better, but you could just tell she didn't feel good. She didn't mind me putting her down, as long as I was close by. I was still pretty nervous about her hitting her mouth on something or Parker hitting her mouth. I took the lightsabers and hid them, but you know, when you are 3 and totally obsessed with StarWars, everything is a lightsaber! I stayed very close as they played to make sure no "dueling" occurred.

After Wednesday, things started getting much better. She began eating soft food much better. I know her appetite wasn't completely back yet, because she would only eat small amounts. But, at least she was trying to eat. Her mouth still looked very "sore" to me. I could only get small glimpse inside her mouth and I wasn't about to force a look. She still had quite a bit of drainage from her nose, which resulted in lots of dried drainage in her nostril. I tried to clean it all very gently because she acted as though it was pretty sensitive. Since we obviously can't clean her mouth or brush her teeth, her breath is pretty severe!

Parker tells us on a daily basis, multiple times, that "Sissy stinks!"

Even stinky she's just gorgeous!

I had been feeding Anna some baby foods, which she ate pretty well. Towards the end of the week, I began to puree whatever it was we were eating. She started eating that much, much better. I was initially afraid to do it as it might have too much salt or spices and in her sensitive/raw mouth, it would hurt. Well, by the end of the week, it was on! She started eating like Anna....pigging out!

Anna is still in her NoNos (arm restraints). But now, she really doesn't pay them any attention. I will take them off to give her arms a break or to clean them, they get nasty pretty quick, and she will stick her arms out straight to help me put them back on...no fussing. She has managed to take them off multiple times. On Sunday, she took one off and it took me over 15 minutes to find it. She has thrown it in front of the toy box in her room and then dumped toys on it. Not until I started picking up the toys did I finally discover the restraint. When I found it she started grinning and ran out of the room....this has played out multiple times as a game.

This is for you all (grandmas and aunts) who ask, "Why doesn't she have on socks?" or "Where are her socks...her feet are cold."

I promise I put socks on her feet...it just doesn't last very long!

On Monday, we went back to Louisville for her 1 week post-op visit. The surgeon told us he was happy with how it has healed and come together. He removed the two little "knots" in the stitches on her side and told us he wanted us back next week. He said that likely we can loose the arm restraints then if she continues to heal well. Maybe then we can start regular foods too. I hope so because she chases Parker with her mouth open and hands outstretched. He had a little bowl of Fruit Loops and she was chasing him around. He stopped and told her, "No Anna, your mouth is cut". Of course, that didn't stop her, she just screamed and continued the chase. Don't worry, she isn't being tortured, I got her and gave her a snack too, it just wasn't Fruit Loops, it was baby food fruit :-)

While I am obsessing about her hitting her mouth, she is jumping off the bottom step!

Can you see the mischievousness now?!?

Carter and Jacob are on Spring Break this week, so needless to say, our house has been hopping. They are really good with Anna, but she has learned the art of "messing" quite well. Of course being the apprentice of Parker, she was destined to become a master. So the day has finally came that I hear, "Momma, get Parker and Anna out of our room!" Or the famous excuse of "I didn't do it, Anna and Parker did." They told me it would never happen, but I knew better. Anna has definitely come into her own right as a toddler. She is sassy, spoiled and as rotten as they come. You put her and Parker together, who has a long list of adjectives we could use to describe him, and you have yourself a destructive duo! There isn't a room in the house untouched by these two...definitely partners in crime. What am I gonna do with 3 toddlers?!?!

"So what can we get into next?"

A couple that is adopting from Elli's orphanage is in China now. They just received their daughter on Monday and are hopefully traveling to the orphanage for a visit on Friday. They are going to try to get us an update and pictures of Elli. Hopefully I will have them on Saturday and of course I will share. I am sure that she has really grown quite a bit since the last pictures were taken and will probably look totally different. I am anxious to hear about her and to see her growth.

Happy to have my sweet girl almost back to normal & sending love to Elli,
Rodney, Marcy, Carter, Jacob, Parker & Anna Mei