More Steps to Success!

Mei Li taking a wagon ride to the car after her surgery. That green popsicle was like a security blanket. She didn't care to eat much of it, but wanted to "hold" it. :)

Sleeping peacefully in her own bed after her surgery and wearing her Bravery Bracelet that her Mama B gave her.

Friday, 11-11-2011, was a big day for our Mei Li. Dr. Khorey operated on her Achilles Tendon and removed old scar tissue from her little ankle. Her little foot popped perfectly into place, and is now casted for 4 weeks while it heals. Then, our Mei Li will be in day and night braces for about 1 month. After that. . . our little girl should be able to walk "normally"!!!!

Mei Li did beautifully the day of the surgery. She was NOT happy being at the hospital, and the nurses and docs that entered her room wearing scrubs before the procedure were not warmly welcomed by her. She has had experiences in hospitals in China earlier in her life, and something tells me they were not ones that left good impressions. . . especially given our Mei Li's good nature and propensity for loving everyone she meets. She clearly does "not" love people wearing hospital fatigues. . . with one exception. . . her Daddy!! :) They gave her Versed to relax her and make her "not care". But, when it was time for the nurse to wheel her down the hall to surgery, Versed or no Versed. . . she was crying for Mama. I wanted to be with her so badly. You see, our Mei Li was abandoned in a children's hospital waiting room in Shanghai. We went to her "finding spot" while we were in China. It was not a nice hospital like the ones we have here. It made me very sad to think she was left there. . . But, I admire her birth mother for having the courage and the wisdom to take her to a place where she would surely be found and have an opportunity to get her medical needs met. I applaud her for taking the chance of getting caught in an effort to give her daughter a "chance" for hope and a future. I wish her birth mother could know that she is in America, is deeply loved by her forever family and is having her medical needs taken care of. I'm sure she must go to bed at night wondering if her baby girl she left in that cold, gray waiting room ever found a family? Ever received medical attention for her little turned-in foot? Or, for the fatty tumor on her spine? Is she happy? Is she healthy? Is she loved by someone? Does she have a good future ahead of her? I wish Mei Li's birth mom could know that the answer to each one of those questions is an emphatic "YES"!! There is no way for her to ever know that on this earth, since there are no records of birth parents for children abandoned. So, I will pray that Mei Li's birth mom will know in her heart and have a peace that only the Holy Spirit can provide to give her the assurance that she did the "right thing" for her baby girl 4 years ago in that Shanghai hospital.

In the meantime, we have one big surgery down!! And, Dr. Khorey seemed very pleased with how it went. Mei Li still does not have feeling in her toes at this point, but they gave her a nerve block in her ankle for her surgery. So, we believe that is why she is not showing signs of "feeling" yet. In the next day, she should be able to wiggle her toes and "feel" again.

On the 21st, we have an appointment with the neurosurgeon to assess the meningocele on her lower back. I have a suspicion that there will be another surgery and hospital stay required for that. I dread her having to experience another hospital visit, but I am so thankful we live in a place where Mei Li can get primo medical care and have her needs met by such amazing doctors. She is a resilient little girl, and she'll make it through.

And, coming out on the other side of the surgeries. . . Mei Li's life will be forever changed!! And, as for her future?. . . the sky is the limit!!