Ugh...Mom's Sick

I have never figured out why kids in China always pose this way. But they do...every time.
These two seem to be good buddies. Pretty cute.
Any guesses as to the ingredients in this soup? Sure looks like there's plenty of it!

This has been a long week as I have been fighting the crud. Andy has had it, too, but somehow he has managed much more gracefully than I have. I started to feel bad last Thursday. Really just laid around all weekend. Ended up at the Dr. on Monday and now finally, I think there is a light at the end of the tunnel. We have both had a great deal of congestion, so snoring wars at night have not added to our needed rest. It certainly makes me thankful for my normal good health. It also gives me greater compassion for my children when they are sick.

And I can't help thinking about our little guy in China. Who gives him a cool cloth when he has a fever? Or makes snow cones for him to eat when he is sick? Who sits in the steamy bathroom with him if he has a cough? Soon, the answer will be me...his Mama. I am eager for opportunities to show him love and care that he may never have experienced before.

We got some new pictures this weekend...very fun to see. We are fascinated by him, of course, but the background is also fascinating as we try to imagine what his day to day life is like. There are some newer pictures showing his spine as well. They are quite sobering. We are thankful for the treatment that he will receive, but we know it will be a long road. He will need an expandable rod in his spine which will be surgically expanded every few months until he is done growing. Ugh. But how wonderful it will be for him to be able to stand straight and have room for his lungs and heart to grow.

Our agency is estimating seven to nine months until we can travel, so we are hoping for the seven end of the spectrum. It is possible that we could have Christmas, Kimberly's Birthday and Xiao Chuan's birthday all while we're in China! Our homestudy is nearly done and lots of other paper work is in the works. We are all eager to have him home.