Family - A Gift

One of the hard things with adoption is making sure your other children feel connected and loved even though so much attention is being placed on the new member of the family. This is even difficult with older children. You still want to communicate love and appreciation for all of your children. 

Last Thursday was the last day of school so I made a lunch date with Abby, our eleven year old. I left Jaelynn with Katie and Abby picked the restaurant. We ran a few errands and then had a nice lunch together. 

Thursday evening David and I drove Matthew to Orlando to pick his girlfriend from the airport. Her flight was scheduled to arrive at 7:28, but because of a missed connecting flight and bad weather her flight did not arrive until about mid night. Ordinarily this would seem like an inconvenience, but it was actually some sweet time spent with our son Matthew who is now in North Carolina working at a Christian Camp for the summer and then when he returns he will be leaving for college within a couple of weeks. We talked about his senior year, the camp ministry he will be involved in, his girlfriend, church and his future. We also enjoyed spending time with Matt and his girlfriend on Saturday when we drove them to North Carolina to camp. Thank you Katie for taking care of Jaelynn so that your Dad and I could make the quick trip to NC and back.

On Wednesday we took the three girls to Adventure Island Water Park. Abby has been wanting to go there and Jaelynn was excited to go swimming in the lazy river. We had a great day and are hoping to make it back there before the end of the Summer. 

Today was an exhausting day. Jaelynn had an appointment with a spine/ scoliosis doctor. Her appointment was at 8:40 and we were there until after 2 PM, but I think we got a lot of answers. She had several x rays and a Cat Scan. This doctor is now going to talk to her neurosurgeon and I hope to hear from him next week so that we can put together a plan for treating her issues. Her case is very complicated (what every parent loves to hear), but we felt confident with this doctor and will continue to trust The Lord to go before us every step of the way. As we left today the doctor thanked us for the challenge. 

At one point today as the doctor was examining Jaelynn and looking at her test results, he was just baffled by what he saw. I felt a sense of panic and then I read some lyrics to a song that Chris Tomlin sings and that a little friend of ours has been singing the last couple of days:

 I know Who goes before me

I know Who stands behind

The God of angel armies

Is always by my side

The One who reigns forever

He is a Friend of mine

The God of angel armies

Is always by my side

So thankful for the one who goes ahead of us every step of this journey.

On difficult days when Jaelynn is not being the sweet little girl that you see in all of the pictures, I have to remind myself of all that God has done and is doing through this little girl. The thought of her not being in our family or not having a family at all immediately eliminates any frustrations I might feel. As God continues to write Jelynn's story I feel privileged and humbled to be part of it. 

Thank you to all of you who have prayed for Jaelynn and or the rest of our family. We appreciate everyone of you! We will keep you all posted on what the next steps will be.

Exciting Times!

Today has been a significant day in the life of our family. First of all our son, Matt, graduated from High School with highest honors, summa cum laude. He was chosen to be the commencement   speaker and did an awesome job! After graduation we celebrated with an open house/ party. We are so proud of the young man Matt has become and are excited to see how God uses him in the future. He will be home for another week and then he will head to North Carolina where he will work once again at Camp Grace as a counselor. He will get home the first part of August and then soon after start his new adventure at Clearwater Christian College. We will be saying goodbye to both Katie and Matt as Katie will be heading back to Clearwater Christian also. 

Katie completed this year of college at home through taking a full time load of classes via the Internet and driving to Clearwater a few times every semester for classes. At this point she is still on track to graduate a semester early in December 2014. 

Abby will complete fifth grade this week and it will be off to junior high for her. I can't believe she is old enough already! 

Another significant milestone in our family is that Jaelynn has been home exactly six months today. It seems like yesterday we were waiting for her file from China. She continues to be a perfect fit as an Altman and she is looking forward to starting kindergarten in the fall. We see a spine specialist as well as her neurosurgeon this month and will decide when she should have surgery on her spine. Not many details on this yet, but would appreciate prayers as we make decisions. 

Now to back track a week... Last week we were given the opportunity to go to Nashville for the 10th anniversary of Show Hope. Show Hope is the organization that provided life saving care for Jaelynn while she was still in China and they also provided our family with a grant to help with the cost of our adoption. We had such a sweet time, reuniting children that were once  orphans. It was so neat to see children that once played together in an orphanage in China playing together in America with their families looking on. A former pre school teacher and doctors who cared for the children in China were there also. It was also a great time meeting friends that I have only talked to on the phone, Facebook, and email. A weekend filled with some precious memories.

We are still amazed as we look back over the last two years and see how God has worked in the life of our family. Thank you to all of you who have played a part in our journey. A year ago it did not seem like we would ever be at this point. God is Good, and God is Faithful!

An Altman Update

It is hard to believe that 4months have gone by since we arrived home from China with our daughter, Jaelynn. It's is hard to believe that she hasn't always been here. She seems to blend in so well with all of the family.
Last month Jaelynn had surgery on her feet. One of the purposes of the surgery was to correct her feet so that she will be able to wear shoes, something she has never been able to do. We are so excited to go shoe shopping! Another purpose for the surgery was to possibly get her up on her feet. Since she has no feeling in her right leg it means getting her up on her left leg. We are not sure yet if this will happen, but we are taking things one step at a time and praying. Though she will never be able to walk like you or I, we have been encouraged to hear the doctors talk about the possibility of her using some type of walker and leg braces to walk with. We will know more about whether or not this will happen as time goes on and as she continues to recover from surgery. Please pray for her as she will be getting both casts removed in two weeks.
Jaelynn continues to LOVE Sunday School and is learning stories and songs and making friends. She loves to have her nails polished and wear dresses, especially pink ones. She likes to eat cheese grits, pizza, spaghetti, and ramon noodles and enjoys drawing and writing her letters as well as play with dolls and barbies. She likes Disney Junior, all the Disney princesses and Taylor Swift's Red CD. She is looking forward to starting kindergarten in the fall, we even visited her school to show her around. I really like kindergarten in our city. It is a separate school from the elementary schools, so she will be with all small children her first year of school.
Show Hope will be celebrating their 10th Anniversary in May with a big picnic and concert in Nashville. We really wanted to go and meet the many people who have been such an encouragement to us throughout our adoption, but had decided that financially it was not feasible for our family to make the trip. However, God miraculously provided and we will be going to celebrate. We are so excited about meeting so many adoption friends and for Jaelynn to get to see her best friend from Maria's Big House of Hope. It will be so sweet to see those two together again. There will also be others there that she spent time with in China. A special thank you to those of you who helped put this trip together for our family, you have no idea how much it means! Thank you for being such a blessing in our lives.
It's hard to believe we are entering the final weeks of the 2012/2013 school year and that our son Matthew will be graduating from high school. Such mixed emotions as he prepares for the future. Matt will once again be working at Camp Grace in North Carolina this summer as a media specialist and counselor. He has been accepted at Clearwater Christian college for the fall semester. He is still praying about what the Lord wants him to major in. We are so proud of him and his desire to serve God and others and for the hard work he has put into his school work. He will be graduating at the top of his class (number 32 out of approximately 340 students).
Abby is finishing up her fifth grade year and will begin middle school next year and I don't want to talk about it!She is growing up way to fast but she is still a little girl. She is enjoying the role as big sister to Jaelynn and she is finishing her final year in Awana at church and is working toward her Timothy award.
Katie is finishing her sophmore year at Clearwater Christian College. She did her sophmore year on then internet at home so that she could be home for Jaelynn's homecoming, but she will be back in Clearwater in the fall. If her schedule works out the way she is planning she may be finished with her senior year in about a year and a half.
We would appreciate prayers in the coming months as Jaelynn continues to have medical tests and treatments.

Three Months Home!

We have been home with Jaelynn now for three months. It's hard to believe that all of the months of anticipation are finally over and we are trying to settle into a routine as a family of six. Jaelynn is doing marvelous and continues to amaze us. She is funny, smart, stubborn, sensitive and so much more.

We took Jaelynn to The Magic Kingdom as a late Christmas gift and she loved it. She is in love with the Disney princesses and is collecting as many of the dolls as she can. She knows just the people to ask to buy these things for her too. She has decided that her daddy and I can buy her Belle and her nanny and papa will buy her Cinderella and Tiana. 

She loves to go with her siblings to the park and see the turtles in the pond and to swing. She has started to stay in Sunday School without me and is loving it and I am actually enjoying it too. She is learning and enjoying singing with the other children songs about God and how He loves her.

A couple of weeks ago we were able to attend the "Empowered to Connect" conference with Dr Karyn Purvis. So much valuable information and a great time with other adoptive parents. We were also able to meet several of the staff from Show Hope. So many of these people had prayed specifically for our little girl.  

We are in the midst of seeing several specialist and scheduling surgeries to help Jaelynn with some of her challenges. She is scheduled for surgery next week on both feet, ankles, and one hamstring. This surgery should make it possible for her to wear shoes (probably with braces). She has requested a pair of light up shoes! She will be in casts for several weeks, which should be interesting. Following this surgery we will meet again with a neurologist and a spine doctor and will likely have some surgeries in the future for other issues. 

Having three children prior to Jaelynn who are totally healthy has made this process of evaluations and hearing what the doctors say harder than I imagined. It has been a whole new level of stress that I knew would come, but on many days it leaves me feeling inadequate and relying more and more on The Lord for strength. Please pray for our family as we tread these new waters and that we would be able to provide Jaelynn with everything she needs. 

We are as certain as ever that God chose Jaelynn to be our daughter and are honored to fill that role. As most know doing what God calls us to do is not always easy. Though the last couple of months have been full of joy, excitement, and love there have also been many times of worry, anxiety, and fear over everything from Jaelynn's  health needs, to wondering if we are parenting our adopted daughter "the right way", to finances, BUT God is good and continues to be faithful in everything.  Thank you to everyone who has and continues to encourage and pray for us along the way. God used the prayers of people like you to bring this incredible little girl to her forever family! 

Month One of Forever.... part 2

So I thought I would share some fun facts about our sassy little girl, Jaelynn.
1) she speaks very good English
2) she likes her hair long and does not want to get her hair cut. (We like it long too)
3) she is a good and neat eater
4) her favorite movie is Snow White
5) she loves chocolate. I don't mean that she likes it, she goes nuts for it!
6) she sleeps in her bed in the room with her sisters
7) she picks up words from us all the time. I made the mistake of calling her a knucklehead, now she calls everyone a knucklehead! If you happen to see her and she calls you this, please don't take offense. She says this to everyone.
8) she likes to be told she is beautiful. She likes the word beautiful better than pretty. She smiles big when we tell her she is beautiful.
9) she is stubborn
10) she has perfected the "stink eye"
11) she has a sense of humor
12) she is super smart
13) she likes Spnge Bob Square Pants
14) she likes to be in charge of the remote comtrol
15) she is not afraid of our dogs
16) she loves to tell us stories. Sometimes the stories are in Chinese, and about her time MBHOH
17) she has a very good memory
She is loved immensely by her family!

Month One of Forever

After carrying Jaelynn around in our hearts for 14 months she was placed in our arms one month ago today. I can't believe how quickly the time has passed! Jaelynn has brought much joy and laughter to our family. She is adjusting well to her family and has taught us more than we have taught her.
I believe her adjustment with our family has gone so well because of the wonderful care she received at Maria's Big House of Hope. From the Ayi's (Nanny's), to the medical staff, to the pre school teachers, and many others that love the children there, it is very obvious that Jaelynn was loved and cared for well. This was evidenced in our conversations with Jaelynn when she told us stories about Ayi's, sang songs and shared what she learned in pre school, and by how she cares for others.
We have been sure to talk to Jaelynn about her life at MBHOH and to ask questions, so that she knows we care and are interested in her life there. She has told us stories about her Ayi's and has corrected us when we don't do something the way her Ayi's did, because after all that is the right way! It is easy to tell that she was loved and that she loved her caretakers. I am so thankful we were able to meet some of these Ayi's when we visited MBHOH. Visiting there is one of the most precious memories I have of our trip.
Jaelynn's medical care at MBHOH was nothing short of wonderful. She speaks often about the nurses that took care of her. She has told us about Mariah (a nurse at MBHOH) and how she was the one to tell Jaelynn about her forever family and give her the first package we sent her. David and I sang "Jesus Loves Me" to Jaelynn in the evenings before bed and she told us that Mariah had also sung that song to her. Thank you Mariah for not only caring for our little girl until we could come get her, but also for loving her and singing truths to her. It is quite apparent that she loves you too. When we visited MBHOH with Jaelynn we were able to meet Dr Martin and his family. Dr Martin is the doctor on staff at Maria's. He has been there for about a year and a half. I so appreciate him and his wife for their kindness to us when we visited. It is easy to tell that your whole family cares deeply for the children. We also met Jona, another sweet nurse who took care of Jaelynn and that Jaelynn speaks of frequently. We'd also like to thank whoever made the decision to let Jaelynn keep her wheelchair. It not only made it easier to get around, but it also helped Jaelynn to have something that was hers when she came to us.
We have had fun sorting through Jaelynn's pre school papers and I don't think she could have had a better pre school teacher than Rebecca McCoy. I continue to be amazed at the things Jaelynn learned in her pre school class. Her English is phenomenal and she knows all of her shapes, colors, letters, numbers and alphabet. She even knows how to sign the alphabet! But more than the things that Rebecca taught in class, I am thankful for the love she showed our little girl. Our family will be forever grateful for all you did for Jaelynn.
Other people I'd like to thank are Mikey... Jaelynn can not speak of you without smiling.
Abby Akridge, I know I have told you this already, but God used you and a blog you wrote to stir our hearts to adopt Jaelynn. You will always have a special place in this Mama's heart.
Katie McGunnigaI (Mai Ya Xin), thank you for being a good friend to our girl, she loves you!
Steven Curtis and Mary Beth Chapman.... Thank you seems inadequate, but Thank You!
I know there are many more people and if I have left you out, I am sorry. There are so many people who have made an impact on our little girl and that warms my heart and I haven't even touched on the people who were a blessing to me throughout our adoption process. That will have to be another blog. We are very blessed!
Pray for Jaelynn, she has an appointment at Shriner's on January 16 for an evaluation. I'm praying big prayers, because we serve a Big God!

psalm 68:6 "God makes a home for the lonely"

Thanksgiving in China

Thanksgiving in China!
We have had our daughter, Jaelynn, for 4 days now. The best word I can use to describe her is joyful. We have heard so many giggles in the last few days and we are loving it.
On Monday morning the twelve families in our group loaded up on a bus and headed for the Registration Office. Our children were coming from about six different cities in the Henan province. When we arrived a couple of children were already there waiting. The children from Jaelynn's city had not arrived yet so I went around the room taking pictures of other families receiving their children. Some children showed no emotion, some screamed, and some seemed happy and content. This was the most intense yet beautiful thing I have ever experienced. It was such a mix of emotions. Most of these children were between 20 months and 28 months and didn't understand anything that was going on. On one hand I felt so badly for them because they were so frightened, on the other hand I was so happy that these precious little ones had a mama and a baba now. One of my favorite "Gotcha Moments" was a little girl, around 2 years old. Her father came to China alone to get her and she just cried and cried for a good thirty minutes. Her daddy took her outside and comforted her. When he came back in she had settled down nicely and was even smiling and she has not quit smiling since. I think she has her daddy wrapped around her finger... If you saw her I am sure you would say, "how could she not?" About forty five minutes after we arrived at the Registration Office we were only waiting on the children from Luoyang and then a van pulled up. My heart jumped and then I saw her, my daughter! I stood by the door and when she saw us she recognized us from our pictures. It was a moment that one cannot adequately describe and also a moment that is meant just for a little girl and her mama and baba.
Monday we spent most of the afternoon in our hotel room getting to know each other. A huge blessing is that Jaelynn understands us very well and she speaks English very well. She has had fun trying to teach us some Chinese. She is incredibly smart. I have asked her who taught you that several times, and almost without fail she responds "Rebekah". Rebekah is the pre school teacher at Maria's Big House of Hope and has done an amazing job teaching and loving these children. I will forever be grateful for what you have done! In the evening we walked about a mile to Wal Mart with several other families in our group. Wal Mart in China is certainly different than the Wal Mart we know.
Tuesday we had to travel to the city where Jaelynn is from to apply for her passport and we also were able to visit Maria's Big House of Hope. This was a highlight of our time here in China. I have always wanted to visit here and especially since Jaelynn spent over three years of her life there. I walked in this building and it took my breath away. This special care facility cares for some of the sickest babies and children. We met the nannies that have been taking care of Jaelynn and Jaelynn was able to show us her friends. It was so touching when one little girl who could only lay on a pallet on the floor smiled really big when Jaelynn got close to her face. We met Dr Martin and his family and they were so very kind to us as they showed us around the facility. David and I felt that this visit helped give Jaelynn some closure.
Wednesday we walked to Wal Mart again with some families and then we had lunch at Pizza Hut. Jaelynn loves pizza.
On Thanksgiving day David, Jaelynn, and I walked through a large park near our hotel, ate lunch at McDonald's, and had dinner with some of the families in our group. Not a traditional thanksgiving meal, but we enjoyed it just the same.
Today we are all waiting on our children's passports to be delivered and tomorrow we fly to another city (Ghuangzhou) where Jaelynn will have a visa physical examination and her picture taken. We are looking forward to arriving at the next city.
It has been such wonderful experience to watch God knit the hearts of these little ones together with their families. It has been fun getting to know people who have been on similar journeys to bring their children home and to know that when we left the Registration Office on Monday there were twelve less orphans in the world. So happy and grateful that our family could be a part of welcoming one into our family. We have truly seen a picture of the Gospel this week as so many children were given the gift of a family and as they learn every day what it is like to be part of a family.
Thank you for your support and prayers. Please continue to,pray for Jaelynn as she adjusts to her new family. You all are going to love this girl!