About Liya's Seizures

Ever since I posted a status update about Liya's seizure activity on Facebook, I have had a ton of emails and phone calls from startled friends and family.

So I figured I should tell the story from the beginning to put things in perspective.

When we were matched with Liya back in the summer of 2009, we knew only that she had lost all of her toes to frostbite...and that she had some right-sided weakness. The doctor who reviewed her file mentioned that she might have had a stroke that caused the weakness. So we were prepared for that issue as well. We researched hemiparesis and hemiplegic cerebral palsy, and learned that a large percentage of CP kids also develop seizures due to damage to certain areas of the brain. We hoped that Liya wouldn't be one of them.

Shortly after meeting Liya, and while still in China, we noticed she would do this "shiver" thing. She would immediately realize she did it, and we soon nicknamed these episodes "Jerks". We didn't want to have her say they were seizures until we knew in fact they were. 

So for months once home, Liya would let us know whenever she "Jerked". It happened occasionally, maybe once a week or so. I took her to the neurologist, and he didn't seem very concerned. I pushed the issue, and he finally wrote a prescription for an EEG.

Of course, Murphy's Law had to happen, and we found ourselves without medical insurance for several months. During that time, Liya started having different episodes. She would freeze wherever she was, put her hands over her mouth and then run for whoever was closest to her, screaming as if she had seen a ghost! We weren't sure if it was seizure activity or maybe she thought she was going to throw up. These episodes soon took over as the more common ones, happening weekly.

About a month ago, Liya had several episodes in just a few hours at school. It so happened that she had JUST been accepted into Children's Medical Services, a government funded insurance...like Medicaid, but for kids with chronic medical conditions. 

So I got that EEG scheduled, and that is where we are now. A few weeks ago Liya started a new type of episode, where she tenses up her right arm, is unresponsive, and her eyes cross. She does not know that those ones occur and always just picks up what she was doing before it happened.

Tonight, she had an episode where both of her hands shook uncontrollably for about 15 seconds. This is the first one we've noticed where BOTH sides of her body were involved.

Liya's Neurologist has been out of town until today, and he will be looking at her EEG tomorrow. I am pretty sure that the results will be abnormal, and that I will be getting a call tomorrow. If this EEG is normal, I will be getting a second opinion.

I will update here as soon as I know something!!

Photoshoots Today!!

As I mentioned before, Liya and Nathan are boutique models. What that basically means is that boutiques on both Facebook and Etsy send them clothes and accessories, and in return we send them back pictures of their product for them to use in advertising.  Both kids have their own fan pages on Facebook (heavily monitored by yours truly), and Liya especially has enjoyed quite the "model status" lately. Today, we need to shoot pics for 3 different boutiques. One shoot will be both Liya and Nathan together, and the other 2 are of just Liya.
I used to pay for photoshoots, but at the rate Liya gets booked I can't afford to do that anymore! So I bought an entry-level DSLR camera, a lighting kit and a background stand...and well, let's just say I don't completely suck at it, LOL!
Liya loves doing shoots now...she hated it at first. Now she begs almost every day "Let's do pictures, Mommy!". She is sitting beside me now, asking!
Wish me luck b/c it is hit or miss with this Diva;)

Everybody Loves Liya;)

Had to share this pic, taken by the uber-talented LeighAnn Monaghan of Soul Search Photography . After spending an hour with Miss Liya, The Diva, she posted this pic as her Facebook status:

We love you too, Miss LeighAnn!!

Then & Now

We Are Home!!

We are home, and adjusting to the jet lag and time change. Jake and RJ are on Florida time (of course, they didn't travel), and the rest of us are on China time. Roger and I are taking shifts with the kids for now, and I am up with Nathan and Miss Liya. I will post more soon (including pics) and I promise I will update Liya's website soon, too! The second week in China just kicked my butt! I was so busy and stressed that I did not have time to post anything to the travel journal on the website.
I shall redeem myself soon. Right now, I'm about to put 2 little sleepy ones to bed:)

We Are Going To China!!

Last Friday, we received our Travel Approval from China!! Our Consulate Appointment is scheduled, and our flights are booked.
We will meet Liya Faith on Monday, April 19th! Yay!!!!!
I have decided to chronicle our travels in China on our Baby Jelly Beans website. Please join us there as we travel to our Princess Liya Faith:)
www.lovingliya.com
Password is faith.
See ya there!!

In The Home Stretch, And New Pics Of Our Girl:)

Tomorrow will be 2 weeks since our Article 5 was picked up. We were told by our agency that the wait should be 2 or 3 weeks from Art 5 to TA. I am sooo hoping it is this week!! What's the hurry, you ask?




That would be my motivation for wanting to hop on a plane to China....like, yesterday!!
I just can't wait to hold her in my arms.....

Liya's Shower

My sister-in-law and mother-in-law threw us the nicest shower for Liya today:) We are so grateful for the thoughtfulness they put into every detail. They even brought a picture of the chinese symbol for "daughter" to the bakery, so the baker could put it on the cake. Priceless!
They also got Liya the most beautiful monogrammed diaper bag I've ever seen!
Stacey and Delora.....you guys ROCK!

I Spoke Too Soon!

Well, slap me silly and call me Susan...we got our I800 approval letter yesterday!! I guess the officer I spoke with on the phone last week took pity on me and approved our case:) That was nice of her!
Our agency rep is optimistic that we will travel at the end of March...awesome!!
We are coming for you, baby girl:)

Hurry Up And Wait....Immigration Style.

So, we are waiting for I800 approval right now. I found out today that our I800 has made it into the USCIS building, but our officer is out of the office until Monday:(
Our form won't even be marked as received until HE gets back, even though it is there NOW. Ugh......just ugh.
I know I shouldn't complain, since our process has been so smooth since the beginning. I need to just suck it up. Besides, it could be worse. He could've been out until next Friday.
Remembering the big picture now.....vent over;)
On a wonderfully positive note: found out today that my awesome sis-in-law Stacey is throwing us a shower!! Yippee....I'm so excited:)

My Name Is Amy, And I'm A Shopaholic....

Shopping for my daughter is FUN!
Some of my recent purchases:

Papers Signed!

This is a bit late, but I wanted to post pics of us signing the LOC/LSC/LOA,or whatever you call it. We call it one step closer to our precious daughter! Waiting on I800 approval...

This WAS the week after all!!

MySpace Widgets

Could This Be THE Week?

MySpace Widgets

As we near the "average wait" time for our LOA, I find myself thinking,"Could this week be the week we receive that precious document?". I keep looking for signs everywhere I go. The reason for that is pretty neat. You see, one morning while on my way home from work, I passed a family of wild pigs along the side of the road. I thought that was odd, to say the least. We live in central Florida, and I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen wild boar here. But these were pigs, as far as I could tell, not boar. They were smaller...maybe just baby boar? Who knows? But Liya was born in the Year of the Pig. Could this be a sign? Within 48 hours of that sighting, we had our PA! So to me, that was definitely a sign.
I have never seen those pigs again, and I drive the same way to/from work 5 days a week. I keep looking for them...hoping to see them again.
Maybe I need a new sign? It's too cold for ladybugs now. Maybe a penguin?
Does anyone know where I can get an XL penguin suit for hubby??

Day 68

Nothing new to report on the adoption front. We are at day 68 waiting for LOA/LSC. Our agency rep told another family logged in on the same date as us(Hi Johanna!) that she guessed we would get our LOA mid to late January. That means in the next 2 weeks or so! Trying not to get my hopes up, though.
If there's one thing I've learned during this adoption journey, it's to expect the unexpected.
We are still trying to get Liya's room ready. Hopefully we can get more done now that the boys are back in school. I can't wait to start decorating...girly stuff, finally!
Since I have no new pics of Liya for you today, here is the picture that I first saw of her, when she was listed as Alexis on Rainbow Kids. She was about 15 months here. I love that she has a cookie in each hand. Mommy's little two-fisted eater;)

Day 52, and Family Pix

Here we are at day 52 of our wait for LSC/LOA. I thought it would be a good idea to post a few pix of Liya's big brothers for your enjoyment;)
First up is Jake, her oldest big brother. He is 14, and a freshman in high school.


Here is Liya's middle big bro, RJ. He is 7, and in 2nd grade. This pic shows his true personality! He rarely sits still for pix, lol.


Last, but never least, is Nathan. He is 4 years old, and in Pre-K. He is the most excited about having a little sister. At least until he realizes he has to share with her, lol!


Put all 3 together and, well....you get this:


Liya is gonna have so much fun!

Day 39, and update on Liya. 2 new pics!!

This morning I received an email from Angela with Ladybugs N Love www.ladybugsnlove.com
It was an update on Liya, with 2 new pics and answers from her foster family to 10 questions we asked them.
First(of course...duh!) the pics. Are you ready for some adorable cuteness?


Ok, now for her update:
*If* these measurements are correct, we have a "big" little girl on our hands, lol!
Height-38 inches
Weight-39 pounds
She has 18 teeth:)
We also learned that she loves oranges and vegetables (yay!), is completely potty trained(we will bring a few dipes jic), has ditched the bottle, and loves to play with other children.
She looks very healthy and happy, and we will forever be grateful to her foster family for taking such wonderful care of her:)
Oh, and check out her little shoes. The character on there is from her favorite cartoon, "Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf". We have already bought her a few Pleasant Goat things, but now I want to buy more.....Hubby, hide my credit card!!

Day 30

Nothing new to report. Day 30 of our wait for LSC/LOA.
Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Hubby had to work all afternoon, and met up with me and the boys at my inlaw's. We had fun:)

15

Today marks 15 days waiting for our Letter Seeking Confirmation (LSC or LOA)for Liya Faith. We know we have quite a wait yet ahead of us, but at least there are 15 days behind us now:)

Today is day 9 of our wait for LOA/LSC. For those of you not adoption lingo savvy, we are waiting for our official letter from China, approving us to adopt Liya Faith! Once we get past that hurdle, we just need to wait for approval to travel and get our girl!

The wait for LOA varies widely. Some families are waiting more than 100 days, while others wait only a few weeks. The average seems to be aroun 80 days.

So, 9 down....and about 71 to go!!