Giardia update and Let it snow...

Praise, praise- Henry's test results came back negative for giardia! Woo-hoo.... His tummy is now adjusting to being parasite free.

It snowed in the south again. Igor enjoyed another snow day!

My sister was here when it snowed. Henry is finally getting comfortable around dogs!

The Tooth Fairy, Spring & Chalk

Instead of going to art class Igor and I met the tooth fairy.

Igor has often wondered about the tooth fairy- how big is she? is she a she? does she have wings? How does she sneak into the house without anyone noticing?

Our local college had a dental health awareness event for children so Igor and I went. Igor was very nervous when he saw the tooth fairy. After decorating a huge tooth and making a wand he decided the tooth fairy was approachable. I was able to snap a quick picture. Did you know that the tooth fairy has a magic tooth brush instead of a magic wand?

Normally, I'm always with Henry so it was this was a special mommy and Igor time.

We've had some very mild weather lately. My flowers are in bloom! Spring should be in the south soon. Except they are predicting snow again? We'll see....

It's been so warm Igor has taken his drawing outside. In the spring we go through boxes and boxes of chalk.

Has anyone made made chalk? I'd love to know how hard it is to make and what your children think of the home made chalk. Are you able to make bright vibrant colors? We love Melissa & Doug Chalk because the colors are so bright but it's expensive.

The Primal Wound

In my never ending search to help Igor deal with the past I read The Primal Wound, Understanding the adopted child. I wish I could say, "This is the book with all the answers!" but I cannot. This is a book for adults who were adopted and feel wounded. If you are a parent of a hurting adopted child it's a sobering look at adoption... but one that I am not in complete agreement with. The author only interviewed "broken" adult adoptees (is that a word?) who were in need of counseling so it is not a balanced look at adoption. I spoke to an assistant professor of psychology last week about the book and she confirmed that this is not the book I should be reading to help Igor. As I read the book I felt my hope being sucked out of my body and that is not what I am looking for.

Last week I read- At Your Word Lord and I was delighted when I read this: "Children who are adopted often need special prayers and visualization.... A child who has lost his or her mother, though rejection or death, often suffers deep wounds that need to be healed, no matter how happy they are in their adopted family." I felt as though the author was speaking directly to me. I felt hope wash over me. The author offers a suggestion on how to pray for adopted children who are hurting. Many of you know our precious little boy and have being praying for him. I ask that you would join us in praying for Igor in a very specific way. Pray/ask Jesus to heal Igor's memories from conception, birth, separation from his birth mother and any perceived rejection on Igor's behalf. Ask Jesus to heal any hurts from his time in the orphanage.
Mark 9:23 (NIV) ......Everything is possible for him who believes.

Insurance, Henry's first hair cut, Igor's paintings, Birthday

On Thursday our insurance was reactivated!! Praise, praise, praise!!

Henry went for his first haircut on Friday. Babushka was with me to document the haircut with photos. I am learning the barber shop protocol. Is it first come first serve? Which barber cuts little kids hair? Can you wait for a specific barber? What days are the busiest? A gentleman who owns a clothing shop next to the barber's shop was hanging out at the shop. He taught me where it sit, showed me the barbers who cut children's hair, etc... He was very helpful! The barber, Mark, was awesome but Henry was scared.

Here are Igor's latest paintings

Did you notice that the flowers were smiling?

Friday was Rob's birthday. Here are boys helping daddy open presents.

Henry, Igor and our Insurance

Henry loves his flavored medicine! He opens his mouth as soon as I remove the bottle from the refrigerator. If your child tests positive for giardia I highly recommend going to a special pharmacy which will compound and flavor the medicine for your child. We are on day 2 1/2 of the medicine but we can see a difference. YAH!!

Last night at dinner we were talking about orphans and orphanages. I asked Igor if he wanted to paint a picture for an Orphan's Ticket Home Gala. He said, "Sure but I want to draw a picture right now." Here's Igor's picture of a mom and dad with their adopted child. According to Igor the letters next to each person is their made up name because Igor doesn't know this family. I don't know why the dad only has two teeth but I love the fact that each family member has a heart and they are all holding hands. The belly buttons made me smile.

I have talked to the insurance company more than I would like to admit. I finally spoke with a woman who really wanted to help me sort the situation out. She spoke with several departments and supervisors but we still do not have a resolution to the situation. She said they have 30 days to review the documents. So we wait....

Henry started his medicine!

The pharmacist called this afternoon to say Henry's prescription (for giardia) was ready for pick up! Yippee! The medicine smells very tasty- grape bubble gum. Henry took his first dose with dinner. He did not spit it out which is a wonderful thing. We cannot wait for Henry to be healthy!

No Antibiotics this weekend....

The doctor called me last night around 5 PM to say the pharmacist would call me late Friday afternoon to confirm Henry's prescription was ready. Evidently it would take all day to compound and flavor the medicine. I hadn't heard anything at 4PM today so I called the pharmacy since they closed at 5PM. The woman said they had no record of the prescription. I called the pediatrician's office and they said they'd call me back. It turns out the pharmacist misplaced the prescription and cannot fill it until Monday or Tuesday. The doctor's office called the hospital to see if they could fill the prescription tonight but they cannot not fill it until Monday. It appears that compounding pharmacists don't work weekends or after 5PM in our town. There is no way Henry will take the medicine without the flavor so we will wait.

When I was changing Henry's diaper this evening Igor came in the bathroom and threw up on the bathroom floor. This is unusual for Igor because he has only thrown up when car sick. Before Igor went to bed last night he said he thought he had bugs in his tummy... hmmmm.... He was fine when he got up this morning for school. I called the pediatrician's office right before they closed (I'm pretty sure they recognize my voice when I say hello). They are going to test Igor for giardia and also for norovirus which is making the rounds in our town. Igor said he felt better after he got sick so I'm not sure what's going on with Igor's tummy. He will sleep with a trash can next to his bed just in case.... I will be bleaching doorknobs, handles, knobs and counter tops after everyone is asleep....

Oh, and the last big thing that happened in the last 24 hours- Our Health Insurance company wrote us a letter to say they canceled our policy. heavy sigh... Of course it's a terrible mix up. I hand carried paperwork to the insurance company today hoping to get it straightened out. They informed me that they can take up to 30 days to review the paperwork and reinstate our policy.... Uh, 30 days really doesn't work for our family. I plan on calling them everyday for a status until this is resolved. I know it sounds a little over the top but we really cannot be in limbo land for 30 days.