Our journey to our daughter: December 2009

......I was handed a trembling and sobbing tiny baby. It is still hard to believe that that little wisp of a girl is the same fiesty wild child that we know and love today. She has come so far in such a little time. But has it really only been 6 months? I can hardly remember what life was like without her here and she now acts like she has been a part of us forever. She is turning into a little chatterbox and is absorbing her new language like a sponge. She is now able to count to 10, is saying complete sentences and is learning her colors. She is able to change the settings on any cell phone or camera faster than anything I've ever seen. Whenever she does something that she feels derserves praise, (such as throwing away important papers, or changing the television channel in the middle of my favorite show) she emphatically yells "you're welcome!" until I say, "Thank you". Ava is finally letting us say a few Chinese phrases to her without throwing a fit. I still don't quite understand why she was so resistant to it initially, but I would love for her to retain some of her Chinese language, even if it's a tiny bit.
I will update soon with Christmas pics and her medical report from testing that was done in St. Louis a couple of weeks ago and again this morning.

Whew! A lot has happened since my last post! Firstly, we finally were able to make our annual Disney trip, albeit a little late. We had some priority, ahem, business to tend to this past summer. We were thrilled that we were finally able to bring along our little princess, though! Ava was a little overwhelmed initially with all of the new sights, sounds, and usual controlled chaos of Disney, but by the end of the week, she was right into the swing of things. We had to peel her off all of the characters after her initial reluctance. It was an amazing week with our family, my sister and her family, and my mom and step dad. We look forward to our next trip in June.

On our drive home, we stopped in Nashville, TN for a visit with some families from our China travel group. It was a mini-reunion, of sorts, and had a fabulous time catching up with them all. It is amazing how strong of a bond you form with people you've known for just a few months!!! I had always heard about it, but don't think I truly believed it until I experienced it for myself.

We also had to find a Quick Care clinic in Nashville for little Ava, another UTI, and she was very uncomfortable. After getting a prescription for a $300 antibiotic, YIKES, we were finally able to return to our home sweet home.

Our Thanksgiving this year was especially sweet with our new addition. We discovered that Ava loves turkey and dressing, HA. It has also been fun introducing her to our traditions of Christmas. It took her awhile to figure out why we suddenly had a huge tree sitting inside of the house. She would just look at it inquisitively and try to pluck any and every ornament off of it.

Another milestone occurred the first week of this month. Ava turned 2 on the 5th!!!! She had a ball at her party we hosted at our church and for once LOVED being the center of attention. The presents were a new concept for her, but once she got a taste, there was no stopping her. Her birthday also brought about some bittersweet thoughts of a woman half a world away who was no doubt wondering about the precious angel she was forced to give up. I wish there was some way for me to thank her for the miracle she created in this tiny girl. I want her to know just how loved her baby is today and how truly happy she is. I just pray she will somehow know all of this.

Okay, now for an update on Ava's latest health issues. We went to Cardinal Glennon last Thursday for bladder function tests. We were SO pleased with the level of service we received at this wonderful children's hospital! We were told what we had suspected all along...Ava has a neurogenic bladder. The nurse specialist with the urology department and SB(Spina Bifida) clinic sat and talked quite awhile with us and discussed our plan of action. We return on the 28th for further testing to see at what level her bladder is functioning. We did find out that her kidneys looked perfect, praise God! Her Dr. said she is most likely a candidate for a new surgery performed for this condition but will be done when she's closer to school age. Considering the severity of neurological damage her congenital diagnosis often brings, this little bladder issue seems so minuscule. The nurse said her SB issues were so minor compared to so many others and she was a very lucky little girl. We are so thankful God has protected her and brought her so far in such a little time .

The more I've gotten to know our Ava, the more I'm convinced that she was created to be a Stubblefield. From the second that her little heart began beating, the moment she took her first breath, she was meant to be a part of our family and nothing but the hand of God could have brought us together! We love you now and forever, baby girl!

These are four amazing and beautiful