Free at last, Free at last! Fever Free at last!

Praise the Lord!  Lilly has been off of her antibiotics since last Wednesday morning, and had some labs drawn yesterday to check for any signs of remaining infection.  Labs were CLEAR.  We are so happy, elated, thankful, relieved! 

We are praising the Lord that our long ordeal with Staph aeurous is, it seems, over, after a long 8 months.  As Dr. Campbell said, it has been a "bump in the road" of her regular scoliosis VEPTR expansion surgeries, and now that we are through this, we can resume her treatments for straightening her spine and expanding her thoracic cavity.  She is scheduled for re-implanting her hardware on 10 April--so we are now working hard on getting her to gain some weight prior to her next surgery--and will continue regular expansions thereafter, Lord willing. 

On a side note, she is still sporting 3 "steri-strips" from her last surgery in December.  These are the little strips of tape that cover the stiches where she has incisions, and we are instructed to let them stay on until they fall off on their own.  Lilly does NOT like anyone to mess with her steristrips, and she dreads bathtime because (like a bandaid in water), they tend to come a little bit loose and flap around when we're rinsing her hair.  Mommy does not like to let the steristrips just kind of hang out indefinitely when they are barely hanging on (like a tooth hanging on by its last little thread) and just wants them off.  Solution?  The "Steri-Strip Fairy" has begun to make some nighttime calls to Lilly's bedroom, leaving a penny for each steri strip that comes off (two pennies if Lilly allowed someone to peel it off, which, apparently, is NOT incentive enough).  Only 3 steri strips to go!! 

We are so thankful that she is healthy prior to our trip to China--our worst fear had been that she would continue to be feverish and fighting infection while we were away.  Now we are just dealing with anxiety over the prospect of Mommy and Daddy being away for so long...praying that she will have peace in her heart and will feel completely safe and comfortable with everyone who is lined up to stay with the kids while we're away.

Here, by the way, is the little girls' room now that we have unbunked the bunk beds in preparation for Isabel's arrival.  When they're both older we will re-bunk them, but for now this seemed safer and they can see one another at night.  Lilly is so happy that she will soon have someone sleeping in the same room. 

Consulate Appointment Confirmed!

This is really happening, folks. 

We are officially a part of Travel Group #1824, and will be headed to China in less than two weeks.  We will be meeting Isabel Faith exactly two weeks from TODAY!  Wow! 

Here's a little reminder of what we are looking forward to seeing:

I am SO ready to give this sweet girl a hug and share a smile in person!  I'm hoping we'll get to see some of her beautiful smiles upon meeting her, but preparing myself for the real possibility that she'll be terrified of us and need some time before the smiles return...

I am working on finalizing our itinerary now, but is will likely look like this: 

• 10 February:  depart Dulles for Beijing, arriving the evening on Saturday the 11th.
• 12 February: head to Zhengzhou, provincial capital of Henan Province (same city where we met Lilly) with our travel group (who will have already spent a few days touring Beijing--we're skipping it this time)
• 13 February:  meet Isabel!  Begin the bonding process...
• We will have a few days in Zhengzhou to process her passport application, then head to Guangzhou for her medical exams and her visa paperwork.
• 23 February:  Consulate Appointment in Guangzhou, where we'll take our oath.
• 24 February: Receive Isabel's immigrant visa.
• 25 February:  Arrive home to begin the adventure of being a family with 4 children, including virtual twins.

We are also working on our line-up of awesome family members willing and ready to come stay with Jared, Anna, and Lilly while we're gone.  I think it's going to be one big party at our house while we're gone! 

Later I'll share some reflections on the many thoughts, fears, and emotions I'm full of...for now I'm off to try to focus on the daily tasks--like laundry and walking the dog--that don't seem to care that we are getting so close to a monumental family event.

The Problem with not Blogging Very Often...

...is that when you finally reach critical mass and REALLY need to draft an update, it's hard to know were to start.  Bullet points are always handy at a time like this:

• I cannot believe that it has already been a month since Christmas.  (I haven't even posted Christmas photos yet.  Yikes.)
• I cannot believe that yesterday was Lilly's last day of antibiotics following her December surgery.  (Please join us in praying that she remains fever- and pain-free as we get farther and farther out from her last dose).
• I cannot believe that the second quarter of school is wrapping up this week.  (High school has a steep learning curve for Mom and Dad, not just Jared.  Sheesh.) 
• I cannot believe that we are leaving for China--Lord willing--in roughly 2 weeks, pending confirmation of our Consulate Appointment.  (I have piles of things mounding in my bedroom, awaiting the suitcases being brought up from the basement...) 

Can YOU? 

2012 is off to a fun and frenzied start.

So, let me take care of my negligence in posting photos from Christmas....

Dessert Spread at my house on Christmas Eve...

Girls in their jammies Christmas morning
.

Nana, Pap Pap, and Uncle Doug

Presents at Uncle Justin and Auntie Lita's house on Christmas Day.

The kids perform a Christmas scripture reader's theather--somewhat begrudgingly (but with lots of talent...)

Quick photo op with Dr. Campbell just prior to headed to the OR...doesn't Lilly look happy to be here?

Getting ready for surgery...happier now that the doctor has left the room...

Tanya getting some Lilly lovin', AUntie Allison and me looking on at the fun...

More fun at Aunt Judi's house...

Anna hanging with Uncle Jer and Uncle Doug (Uncle Jer is sporting 5-year-old cousin Peter's brand new hard hat...nice!)

So that is just a few of the photos...we had a fabulous holiday, spending it like this:  

• Christmas Eve at our house with my family;
• Christmas Day at my brother's house with my family (Lita cooked up an amazing spread and Nana came through with the German Chocolate cake)
• The day after Christmas at my brother's house to celebrate my mom's birthday (and got to see the geezer dance...will try to post video if I can track down a copy...); 
• Then headed north to New Jersey.  Jared and Anna stayed with cousins and aunts and uncles and Grammy and Pop Pop while Lilly, Tom, and I headed to CHOP for her surgery. 
• Surgery went well--they removed the remaining portions of her rods on her left side in the hopes of getting out any remaining bacteria.  She recovered quickly, and we were headed back up To Grammy and Pop Pop's by Thursday for the fun Cantilina Christmas festivities over the weekend.

Christmas and New Years' now behind us, we have been back in the swing of school, swim team, instruments, band, winter track, and a few fun add-ons that were Christmas presents (archery lesson for Anna and rock climbing lessons for Jared).  For me, I have jumped back into Bible study and basic household management and personal fitness routines.  For Tom (who, by the way, is now a Colonel-select--woo hoo!), work is revving up and he is hitting his stride.  Life has been full and rich.

After another fun weekend with my family to celebrate all the January birthdays, Jared turned 15 and then I turned, well, I had a birthday too. 

And the best birthday present of all was that we received our Travel Approval (TA).  This is the final approval before we GO GET ISABEL!  Because the approval was mailed on the final business day before Chinese New Year began, we have to wait until all the offices in Beijing reopen before we can get our Consulate Appointment (CA) confirmed.  This is the date around which the entire adoption trip is built. We should have a confirmed Consulate Appointment sometime early next week and we can then book our airline tickets.

Tentatively, it looks like we'll be heading to China around the 10th of February, meeting Isabel on the 13th, and heading home around the 23rd or so.  I promise not to wait until we're home from China to update the blog again...I will post our actual confirmed dates once we have them.

I have some new photos I'll share of Isabel, along with an amazingly cool story:  

I was serving as a timer for Jared's indoor track meet two weeks ago, and, while passing the time waiting for the meet to start, I checked out Facebook on my iPhone.  There was a message from a cyber-friend who was, at the time, in China with her newly adopted little boy and girl.  Her little girl happened to be from the same orphange as Isabel.  This I had already known. 

But here's the really cool part.  My friend and another family in their adoption travel group had gone to visit the orphanage in Luoyang with their newly adopted children.  When they walked into the room where Isabel was, she was all excited and ran up to see her little (newly adopted) friend who was with her new mama and baba.  My friend and the other family spent quite a bit of time playing with Isabel, snapping photos of her, and even praying over her that she might have a family coming soon.  What they didn't know at the time was that Isabel is the little girl WE are waiting to go bring home!  When my friend got back to her hotel room and logged onto Facebook, she noticed a new photo of Isabel that I had posted (from our agency). 

(isn't that smile SO sweet?)

Recognizing her (really bad) haircut, my friend was so excited to realize and let me know that she had just spent some time with her!  I was thrilled to hear all about their visit and see their photos. 

I was also thrilled to know that someone had taken the time to pray for her.  And to know that she is witnessing her little friends going home with wonderful new mamas and babas who might look and sound different than what she's used to, but who take the time to smile and play and even pray when they visit.  Oh how I pray her ayis are taking the time to talk to her about the huge changes that lie ahead and to look through the photo books I have sent of our family so our faces look familar to her. 

Merry Christmas from CHOP!

The past week has been a blessed and busy blur. Cooking, cleaning, present wrapping, baking, laundry, and packing for a road trip and a hospital stay. We enjoyed a wonderful time with my family on the 24-26th (Christmas Eve at our house, then Christmas Day after church at Justin and Lita's house, then a surprise birthday party for Nana on the 26th on our way north). We then braved the traffic and headed to Tom's folks in New Jersey, where we left Jared and Anna with cousins, Aunts, Uncles, and grandparents; Tom, Lilly, and I departed New Jersey at 5am on the 27th for a 6:30 show time in surgery reception at CHOP.

She was in the OR for about 80-90 minutes total; then transferred to the PICU for overnight observation. While she was in surgery, Tom and I busied ourselves in the waiting area pulling together a digital photo frame filled with photos of many of Dr. Campbells' current and former patients that I had gathered via a new VEPTR facebook page to give him as a thank you from all of us. It was a wonderful distraction while she was in surgery, and we finished our project just before Dr. Campbell emerged to let us know all had gone well in the OR.

He removed the upper portion of her remaining left side VEPTR, as well as the rib-rib VEPTR on that side, in the hopes that any remaining bacteria that might have been harbored there would be removed. Surgery went well, and we were soon able to go to the PICU to be with her. She spent most of the afternoon and evening in a groggy semi-conscious daze, awakanening more fully in the evening (as I was feeling ready to crash). Her pain was managed well with morphine at first, and by late night we were able to manage the pain with oxycodone and tylenol by mouth. She got lots of IV fluids overnight as she was quite dehydrated, and by 4am-given all the sleep the day prior and the need to empty her bladder--she was pretty wide awake and hungry. After some snacks and early morning TV, she dozed back off for about an hour or so until the lab showed up for blood draw and the various residents began their rounds.

As for me, I did not sleep much at all Tuesday night, between construction noise outside our window and the inevitable bells and alarms throughout the night.

Today, Lilly continued to make great strides in her recovery---no more IV fluids or meds, no more need for pulse ox monitoring, and she even walked from our room to the play room on our floor to play for a bit. Much of the day--other than a late afternoon nap--she was alert and active, with minimal pain always managed by oral pain meds. Tonight before bed, she developed a very itchy rash under her dressings and the mesh tube that holds her dressings in place, so we added some benadryl to the mix. Hoping she's not developing an allergy to the antibiotic.

We moved downstairs to a regular floor, with a wonderful private room. No pulse ox monitors or any other type of monitor is attached to her, so I am hopeful for better sleep tonight. We are also hopeful we could be discharged as early as late tomorrow...almost certainly by Friday sometime. The infectious disease team that is offering their expertise to Dr. C feels that she doesn't need any further antibiotics upon discharge; ultimately it will be Dr. C's decision how long or whether she continues any antibiotics for the next few days or weeks.


While the timing of surgery over Christmas break eliminates any missed school and makes care for the older two a lot easier, it is a little stinky for Lilly to have to leave behind newly unwrapped gifts and toys so you can spend your Christmas vacation in a hospital room. Jared and Anna, for their part, have been having a great time in NJ...shopping with Grammy, playing with cousins Peter and Naomi, dining/movies with cousin Tanya and her new husband Jeff, and today spending the day in New York City with Uncle Rob, Aunt Wen, and cousins Keiran and Kaylla. Thank the Lord for wonderful supportive family. Grammy and Pop Pop came to spend a few hours at CHOP with us today as well, which Lilly enjoyed.

What Lilly is most looking forward to, however, is the coming weekend at Grammy and Pop Pop's,when the Cantilina clan will celebvrate Christmas a week late and exchange gifts and eat great food. SHe mentioned it to her nurses today, and one of them asked if he could come get some presents too! It has been fun to see some of our nurses from previous hospitalizations (Tom keeps asking if we can get frequent flyer miles)...

We are graeteful for wonderful care here, and are thankful for all of you reading and praying with us.

Cantilina Christmas Letter 2011

Merry Christmas 2011 and Happy 2012!  

Photo Update

Lots has been happening here between Thanksgiving and now.  I have been bad at regular updates here, so let me catch you up a little:

 A chance to catch up with dear friend, Susan House Schrock, for dinner and some shopping...so cool that we live a drivable distance from one another for the first time in many many years!

A visit from our dear friend Gracie--and a night out at the Cheesecake Factory and Jared's football game.

 I thoroughly enjoyed the fall colors this year--it has been so many years since we've lived somewhere with four seasons!  (though it doesn't quite feel like winter here yet)...

Tad nearly pulls my arm off when he sees geese or ducks swimming in our neighborhood ponds.  He wants so badly to jump in, swim to them, and retrieve them.

 Thanksgiving held a "friendship feast" at Lilly's school...

Thanksgiving dinner at Justin and Lita's house....mmmmmmm....turkey...

 And a visit to Mount Vernon with Justin and Lita's family and Nana, Pap Pap, and Uncle Doug on "Black Friday".

ooopps...back to November briefly...Lilly enjoyed having cousins Delaney and Elianna spend the night on Thanksgiving evening...while Jared and Anna stayed with Joshua and Abby

And, in December....

 

 Tom was selected for Colonel (one year "below the zone" or one year early), and will pin on his new rank in 2013.

 We visited the National Harbor with Tom's sister Judi, her husband Doug, and our niece Brittany to experience "Christmas on the Potomac"

We cound teh long-lost "Awakening" sculpture...

We went to see "ICE!" which is ice sculptures carved by artists from China.  This year's theme was "Merry Madagascar", featuring cartoon figures from the kids' movie.  I was thrilled, however, to see the final room displaying a nativity scene with the Christmas story being read:

 .Lilly loves her Brittany!

 Tom, Jared, and I spent quite a lot of time rehearsing Christmas music for the Christmas orchestra at church...

 And we've done a bit of ice skating at a local ice rink--Reston Town Center.  The girls' school had a "skate night" and Anna invited her friend, Rachel, from China, to join us. 

Anna also chose ice skating for her December family date night...fun!

 The girls and I have been doing a lot of Christmas baking...and they worked hard on chocolate covered pretzels to give to teachers and neighbors as well as our annual gingerbread nativity scene...

 And today, being the first day of Christmas break, will be filled with cleaning the house and continuing to prepare goodies for tomorrow's Christmas Eve dinner and dessert!  We are excited to be hosting Nana, Pap Pap, Uncle Doug, Uncle Justin and Auntie Lita, JOshua, Abby, Delaney, and Elianna at our house for Christmas Eve.

THen Christmas Day we'll go to Justin and LIta's house after church.

Then the 26th we'll head north to New Jersey to drop off the big kiddos while Tom and I bring LIlly back down to CHOP on the 27th for surgery to--=Lord willing--finally clear her of this nasty lingering infection.

Looking ahead, January will be full with lots planned for the weekend...and we are hoping to have our Article 5 and travel approval for China prior to Chinese New Year.  Our trip to bring home Isabel could, Lord willing, be as early as early February.  Though I realize the timing (all in God's hands) could slip and it might be late February or early March before we go...  We got some new photos of her yesterday so I'll close with one of those!

I-800A Provisional Approval is in the House

After a busy day of decorating for Christmas, making grocery lists, taking the dog for a long run, preparing dinner early so it would be ready after my typical afternoon marathon in the car with the kids, and then running around from doctors to pharmacies to labs to swim team to track practice to the grocery store to home...then getting dinner on the table, eating, clearing the table, cleaning the kitchen, hanging ornaments on the tree with the kids, getting everyone tucked in, making tomorrow's lunches, and FINALLY sitting down with a cup of decaf green tea to decompress with my man, I realized I had not yet checked today's mail.

And I had a nagging feeling that I should go out in the dark to bring it in.

SO glad I did. 

There it was--the envelope from Homeland Security, containing our all-important I-800 A Provisional Approval for Isabel's immigration to the United States.  Lots of alphabet soup in the adoption world...but what this means is we are in the final stages of the adoption process before the actual travel.  Hoo--Ray!

Just scanned it in (realized after the fact that Tom was only joking when he suggested getting right onto the computer and scanning it in so it's in our agency's inbox first thing tomorrow) and e-mailed it off. 

Then I realized I had to let all of you know these details.

Now--at long last--to bed.

'night.