Brennna News

Three weeks ago today we had one of the most overwhelming and terrifying days of our lives. It was also one of the most important because it was the day we met Brenna. We arrived at the Guangdong provincial adoption center along with many other families from all over the world. Just a few minutes after our arrival we were told that Brenna was in fact there and they brought her out to us. We were overjoyed to see her finally, but we could tell that from her point of view, this was a traumatizing day. She was so sick and looked so bad--we can't express what went through our minds. A few minutes after holding her, the nanny and nurse who'd brought her told our guide that she'd been hospitalized for one week and had just been released three days before. That began the crazy ups and downs of that week. Our parent hearts began fighting for our daughter that day and we are so thankful she's ours. She is a joy to watch as she gets better and learns about the world. She is granting us the privilege of getting to know her little by little.

Today as we think back on that hard time just a short time ago, we had a very different experience. We had our big appointment with the local international adoption clinic. We spent about 2.5 hours there between a nurse, social workers specializing in attachment and bonding, and a pediatrician. It was awesome! It's so encouraging to go where people understand what we're doing and can give us practical advice on how to best parent our daughter.

We got great news overall--she now weighs 15 pounds!!! That's 4 pounds in 3 weeks. Unbelievable!!! She's still the size of a 4 month old, but she's huge to us!! All of the tests that have come back so far are all normal!!! The main parasite they were testing for was negative. There are still other parasites we're waiting to hear about, but so far, so good. She does not have any problems with growth hormones or celiac disease. Her thyroid looks great and even her iron is good. The only other tests we're waiting for is all that they screen for in the newborn screenings. We'll see but we don't think they'll find anything. With that said, she was basically a healthy baby at birth (around 7 pounds) and then has been underfed for the last 18 months. Most likely she had a virus that put her in the hospital before we got her. I am being very careful in what I write on this public post, but as a parent it's so surreal to realize all of this...

With that said, our precious girl, our Brenna, our "Shao-shao" is doing very well! She is getting stronger every day and sits up for long spurts on her own. She gets around best by lying on her back and scooting around. She is rolling onto her tummy more and more which is GREAT! The doctor thinks she'll be crawling within the month. As far as attachment and family bonding goes, she's doing much better than the therapist would have expected considering all the deprivation she's experienced. She is quite a remarkable little girl if I do say so myself!!!

She LOVES the water! We went in the backyard yesterday to swim in our little pool and she LOVED it! She loves baths now, too! She splashes and kicks. She now rolls her arms to patty-cake and has signed "more" a few times. She loves to feed herself the things she can and is eating a ton! She also plays peek-a-boo with things--so cute!

It was great to hear some more tips from the therapist and know that we're doing what we should to give Brenna the best chance to learn what family means--it's still hard at times, though. We were encouraged to do as we thought--to limit her interactions with others until she knows us. This is so hard b/c we want to show her off and we know others already love her and want to meet her. But the therapist reiterated that if we do certain things now, it will pay off exponentially in the future. So, if you happen to get to meet Brenna and wonder what you can do to help, you can constantly redirect her to us when she tries to interact with you. All food, goodies, toys, etc, should come from us. Interact with Micah--he needs it! We'll also not be taking her out in crowds for about a month. We promise that you will get to meet her when the time is right. Enjoy the pics!