Here is the latest medical update....We saw Dr. Daniels a few weeks ago - ENT - and he gave us 3 options. #1 - we can leave Reese's ears as they are. #2 - we can have prosthetic ears made for her which would look fairly real but would have to be redone every couple years because of fading, etc. and would be screwed into her head. #3 - we can have cosmetic surgery done in which cartilage would be taken from her ribs and skin grafts from her inner arm with a minimum of 10 surgeries to remake her ears. With all three of these options she would still most likely need a hearing aid. The aid that they would use would be a Baja. It has small titanium screws that go into her head right behind her ears. The hearing aid then just snaps on to the screws. This is far better than the one she has because it is bilateral. After much consideration and wisdom from Kendall - "Dear Jesus, help us to remember that you made Reese's ears like they are for a reason" - we have decided to leave her ears as they are, since she is a girl and can wear her hair down, and get the Baja. Reese had a CT scan done this past Thursday to determine the thickness of her skull and to check out her inner ears. Our next step is to have the screws put in. The doctor also wants to remove her tonsils and adenoids. she is a very restless sleeper and has a very narrow throat. He thinks she will breathe much better if we do the surgery. So, hopefully they can do the 2 surgeries together!
On a different note, we were able able to go to a Chinese New Year Gala last night. It brought back a lot of memories of China. There was singing, dancing, martial arts and acting. The girls loved it. Here are some pictures of the girls all dressed up for the Gala.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Reese now knows what presents are all about. When she was given her first present she set it down next to her, still wrapped, and said thank you.( with out opening it) she had no clue what to do with it. That is no longer the case. But she gets just as much pleasure out of watching others open their gifts as she does her own.
Her teacher and the parents of the others in her class are a little surprised at how smart she is. she is always asking what letters are and wants to know how to write everyone's name. She can identify the letters in her name and mom's and tell you what they say!! Smart little kid!
God bless this little girl and we thank Him so much for putting her into our world. I cannot believe she has been here for 6 months already - even though it feels like she has been here forever!

LET IT SNOW!!
Now mommy may not be too fond of snow but the girls sure don't mind it. Reese didn't know quite what to expect at first. Every step she took to the bus she would shake the snow off of her boots. Now she thinks it is great. She played outside yesterday with Kendall and came in saying "ow, face hurts!" It was bright red and wet - it was about 20 degrees outside. Then she turned around and went right back out!
Enjoy the pictures!!

Ok, I had to throw a little Halloween diddy on here. Reese loved trick or treating with her sister, dad, grandpa and cousins. It rained but they didn't care. They had a riot.

Reese has finally gotten her hearing aid!!! She actually got it and we had to have it refitted and were without it for another week. Hopefully it is here to stay now. She is still getting used to it but wants to wear it most of the time. She just loves the fact that she can hear! She is trying hard to pronounce her words better but it will take time I think. I don't think that people that are not around her much would be able to understand her yet.
She is loving school and riding the bus. She stands outside every morning and says "where's the bus?" Her school has a support group for the families of the hearing impaired kids. Jeff and I kind of giggle at that....Reese is a normal 3 year old. We don't even think of her as having any sort of special needs. We don't require a support group for our other kids and they have their own issues too - so why Reese? I guess some parents are very disillusioned when they don't get a "perfect" child. We just love our kids for who they are.
Reese is finally becoming a daddy's girl. With mom being on crutches, daddy has taken over and she is loving it. He feeds her off of his plate, taught her how to chew gum, wrestles,puts her on the bus...and he can't kiss mom without giving Reese a kiss too. She is always asking where he is when he is working. She is even letting him put her to bed...BONUS!
More medical updates will come as they arise....

As I pull up our blogspot, I see that the last post was August 15 - what a slacker I am. Things are much busier with 2 rugrats! Reese was supposed to get her hearing aid on Wednesday but they called me the night before and said that it was backordered. big bummer for us all. hopefully it won't take too long. But on the bright side, Reese started school this week. We enrolled her in an oral deaf program nearby and she goes weekday mornings. There are 4 other little girls in her class and her teacher says that she fits right in. She can stay in this program as long as necessary - until we feel she is ready to mainstream into a regular classroom - hopefully by kindergarten. It is very nice because she can even take the bus and we don't have to travel as much.
There is my quick update - now off to work and the girls to Ama's.

We have now seen the plastic surgeon and as long as Reese's hearing aid gives her adequate hearing he wants to wait until she is at least 10 to do surgery. He said that the surgery all rides on how compliant she is - at 3 she will not be. There are a lot of tubes and suction involved and if she pulled one out, the surgery is history. There is no second chance. So, she should have her hearing aid in the next couple of weeks and we shall see. There is a possibility of her getting involved in some special stuff right now to help with her language development - since it is delayed for a few reasons. I have been told by the specialists in town that there are tons of options - from oral to sign. She will be evaluated for that in the next couple of weeks too.
In the meantime, the child has become a waterbug. In the last couple of weeks, she loves to be thrown in the pool or jumps in on her own off of the side. She has given up on the swimmies and just likes her 1/2 life vest. It is amazing. My dad said the other day, " is that the same girl we brought back from China?"
Reese loves to torture her sister - typical 3 year old - and is doing great with her sign language. We never have to question what she wants. Show her once and she's got it.
Reese started day care last week and loves it. She goes while I sleep after work and really enjoys playing with the other kids. I am so thankful that we found a good, Christian provider. She is a friend of a friend and is great and very close by - 2 minutes.
We shall see how often the updates happen now - I will do my best.
Blessings!!