Updates from the First Week of 2012

Life here is busy, busy, busy.  We had a great holiday break, but we are all glad to be back to a routine.  Here are some updates in no particular order.

• Kenzi saw our pediatrician again and she gained 2 pounds in 2 weeks!  All of her lab work was normal, so the doc was very happy about that.
• Kenzi sees our cleft team on January 17th.  We should have a better idea of how many surgeries we're looking at to repair her lip and palate.
• She has an evaluation scheduled with Early Intervention on February 6th.  They will evaluate all areas of her development.  I'm fairly certain that she has no delays except for speech.
• Jacinda turns 4 (!) this week.  We're starting to look into options for preschool for her for next year.  With her speech delay, it's hard to know what will be best for her.  Especially since there's no way to know what her speech will be like 8 months from now when preschool starts!
• I started back to work today.  I'm teaching a few online courses at our local community college.  My department chair is trying to talk me into working some part-time hours in one of the Math Labs on campus, but child care would cost as much as I would make.  So I think I will have to tell him no.
• Luke has been doing great in Kindergarten.  He struggled at the beginning with some things, but he has settled in nicely.  This month, I need to get with his teacher because we've had some concerns about his fine motor skills (writing, cutting with scissors) and she wants to talk this month so that we have time to do something this school year if we need to.  He has worked hard and is improving, so I'm hoping he has caught up.  We've also been working with the Gifted teacher at his school to keep an eye on him and see if some of his difficulties in school are because he is "bored".  Our school system evaluates everyone for the Gifted program in 1st grade, so we're learning about the process so we're ready!
• Kenzi still much prefers her mama.  She is getting a little more used to daddy, but it's a VERY slow process.
• We're definitely starting to see more of her personality.  Overall, she's happy and smiles at everyone!
• I've been pleasantly surprised that we've had nothing but positive comments from people.  I wasn't really sure how people would react to seeing her cleft lip.  But no one has stared or even given her a funny look.  Random people come up to us and tell us how gorgeous she is.  So that's been a nice surprise!
• I have recently been appointed as the Changde Assistant Coordinator at Love Without Boundaries (LWB).  I'll be helping out with a school that LWB operates in an orphanage in Chnagde, which is in the Hunan province in China.  I'm SO excited to be doing this.
• We are rearranging our house to make our former guest room into a part-playroom and part-sewing room.  The big kids need a place where they can have their tiny toys so that Kenzi doesn't eat them!  So we're purging and organizing, which is great!

Whew!  I think that's it for now.  As you can see, life is a little chaotic these days.  But we're hanging in there.  Thanks to everyone to who has helped us out!  My neighbor takes Luke to the bus stop in the morning if the girls are still sleeping.  A friend bought us some special sippy cups for Kenzi - they are way expensive and she wanted to help us out.  Another friend bought a water sling for me so that I could take a shower without holding a slippery baby in my arms.  She had it sent directly to my house, so it was waiting for us when we got home from China.  Several friends have brought us dinner!  Aaron's mom is helping us out with watching the big kids while Kenzi sees the cleft team and has surgery.  We're so thankful that her job is flexible enough that she can help us out.