We have been home now a little over a month. Christmas has come and gone. Hope loved the Christmas tree and all the decorations. She wouldn't open any of her Christmas presents but Hannah and Holly opened them for her. She does love playing with all of her new toys!! Our granddaughter Emma was born on December 31st. Hope is now an aunt to 10 nieces and nephews.
The first few days after coming home Hope would only go in a few rooms of our house but each day she would venture a little further until finally she had explored every room. The little girl who didn't like to walk much is now walking and running all over the house! She is quite comfortable in her new home. She loves to hang out in Hannah and Holly's pink room!! The girls are very good with Hope. They love dressing her up in princess dresses!!!
Hope is a quiet loving little girl. She loves to be held and rocked. She smiles alot and has learned to give kisses. We love to hear her laugh! She does not really talk but does make noises and occasionally says mama and dada. It is unclear if she understands what those words mean. She does look at us when we say "Hope" and responds appropriately to the word "no". This would indicate she does have some hearing. She has learned alot of new things in such a short amount of time. Within a week of arriving home she had learned to feed herself soft fingerfoods. By the following week she had learned to use a spoon and fork. It was very special to see the excitement and pride in her eyes when she realized she could feed herself! She has even learned how to eat a McDonald's hamburger :-). To some that would not seem like a big deal but for Hope that is a great accomplishment! She did not know how to use her mouth to bite off pieces of whole foods when we first got her (no not even a cookie, a chip or a cracker). She even had to learn how to chew her food. She does not like to try new things but we make her taste new foods anyway. If she likes it she will then eat it herself. If she doesn't like it she finds ways to let us know. She has also learned to drink from a beginner sippee cup. She just hasn't learned to drink from it while sitting up. She will always take her cup and find somewhere to lie down to drink it. We are working on teaching her to drink from a regular cup at meal time. She gets excited when it's time to eat now and it's cute to watch her push up her own sleeves. When we first brought her home we would roll up her sleeves during meal time because she has a habit of wiping her mouth off on her arm. Hope has already gained a couple of pounds. Considering that she only weighed 23 pounds when we got her, had never taken any initiative to eat on her own, had always been fed by someone and could only drink from a bottle these latest accomplishments are nothing short of miraculous. She also sleeps all night in her crib!! Praise the Lord!!! She loves brushing her teeth and taking a bath!!! We really have made great progress in so many areas that make our everyday routine so much easier!!
Hope was seen by our pediatrician on December 21st. He referred her to the ENT doctor and pediatric ophthalmologist. He told us that after these appointments he would schedule her to be evaluated with an occupational therapist for an "attention problem." We went to the ENT appointment this week and had a hearing test done. Hope did real well in the sound booth during the first round of sound testing but when they repeated the testing she "zoned out" so the tests were inconclusive. She is scheduled for an ABR hearing test under sedation next week. This will determine whether her auditory nerves are working properly. She will also have a CT scan done on the ear with microtia/atresia to find out if she has a middle and inner ear. Hope's ENT doctor believes she has autism and will be referring her for an evaluation of this after the ABR and CT scan are done. We thank the LORD for this very special little girl and we are proud she is our daughter! We love her very much! It is our hope and our prayer that she will someday be able to hear and speak with understanding but even if she doesn't we know that the Lord has a special plan for this precious little girl. Thank you for following our journey! May God bless each and every one of you!!
