Deck the Halls with MRIs, orthopedic visits and urologist appointments.

Our hearts are bursting with joy and thankfulness this Christmas. We have been waiting for so long for our baby girl to come home to us, and finally we can celebrate this beautiful season as a family of 4. Our Mei Li will be enjoying Christmas for the very first time, this year. She has quickly learned who Santa is. I don't know if she understands the "present" thing. But, she calls Santa "Ho, ho, ho!!" Today, Anna Grace and Mei Li had their picture taken with Santa. Mei Li literally climbed down out of my arms and sprinted down the red carpet to Santa! She climbed right up on his lap and put her fingers in his snowy white beard! I got it on video. You can see it in my video feed at the top.

More importantly, Mei Li is showing all of us the true meaning of Christmas. Besides knowing that Christmas is the day we celebrate Jesus' birthday, she loves her family so dearly. She doesn't have an extensive list of wishes and wants for mom and dad and Santa. Instead, she talks about how much she loves her family. She will say, "My mom, my dad, my sister. . . my family". That is what means the most to her. We tend to take family for granted. . . just a given. But, for a little girl who has lived all of her 4 years in an institution without the love of a mother and father, she does "not" take the love of her family for granted. She cherishes it. . . more than any new toy or gadget. She is a breath of fresh air for all of us. And, her beautiful spirit and clear perspective is teaching us all to look at the world and all the blessings the Lord has given us with a new set of eyes.

Mei Li loves to sing and her favorite song is "Jesus Loves Me". She is precious to watch and listen to when she launches into this song. You can see the video in the feed at the top right.

Monday, Mei Li has her MRI of her total spine. She will be put under for this procedure. And the results will determine Dr. Blount's game plan for surgery for Mei Li. Also, on Dec 28th, Mei Li goes in for a test on her bladder to determine its level of funtion. We know that she is 100% continent at this point. But, with her special need, incontinence is very common. And, Dr. Blount needs to establish a baseline. I'm not sure if she will be put under anesthesia for this test, but I am guessing she will. The results of these two tests are important for determining our plan of action for Mei Li and her surgery on her spine.

Today, we took Mei Li in for a follow-up with Dr. Khoury. Her foot has been hot and swollen for several days and she has been running about 100 degree temp in the evenings the last 4 nights. Dr. Khoury did lab work on her and x-rayed her foot. It appears she has a small stress fracture on her toe. Bless her heart. Her bone density is compromised due to her lack of walking, but she needs to walk in order to build her bone density.

Even though there are so many Dr. appointments and tests, we are incredibly thankful to have our precious daughter home. And, we are thankful we have the medical team available to take care of her needs. Her future is bright, now. And, our family's future is brighter than ever because she is now a part of us. :)

Merry Christmas to you all!! I'll update when I have more news.