Before the chicken "pops" hit

I have already apologized for exposing our friends at play group to the chicken pops. Here is just a couple of oh so cute "before the pops" photos!

Chicken pox in the house!

For those of you who have older kids before kids were vaccinated with the the chicken pox vaccine and you kids got chicken pox, you wondered "where did they get the chicken pox" Well...I do know where Cali got the chicken pox, from ME! :-((((
Last week or so I got shingles. My two older kids had the chicken pox, so I knew they were safe. The next three had the vaccine, so they were safe. According to Cali's titers (sp?) she had the chicken pox in China so she should have been safe but....good morning today a nd Cali has chicken pox. Please pray that is not too severe..Thanks!

Thank you Greyson!

When you have many children the unexpected is bound to happen and everyone has to pitch in to help. Yesterday was one of those days. Madison had a doc appt and Greyson was out of school because of a snow day. Normally I would have dropped the little girls off at my mom's house but since Greyson was home, I left the girls with her. The doc's appt took 4 hours, to my surprise. Greyson did a great job with the girls so I wanted to recognize her and thank her. I know my sweet Greyson checks my blog so...Greyson thank you for...yesterday and everyday, for your servant's heart, you have come a long way my baby!!!!! I love you!!!!!!

Snow Shoe, WV

We had a fun time in Snow Shoe, WV. Peter and Greyson skied and Lily loved tubing. Cali likes things better a bit warmer and slower than the tubing. She and I went down once and that was it. I give her credit for trying but she made it very clear she was not going to do it again. We had fun watching all the other folks. We had some snow a few days later at home, which made Lily proclaim that Christmas had finally come. When I was taking down all the Christmas decorations Lily was sure Christmas was not over since it had not snowed yet. So now I can officially put all Christmas decorations away for next year.
My two little girls are growing up. I had not made a real fire in the fire place since the winter before we brought Lily home. Then came Cali, just could not trust their curiosity around the fire. Since we had temps in the teens and we were stuck home because of the snow and ice, I decided to make a fire. I love the smell and tending the fire.
A friend of mine is India now helping out in a special needs orphanage. Her blog is on my list if you would like to peek into her world. She has an incredible heart (she was Cali's "mid wife" during her "delivery" to us). She is just falling in love with the kids over there. Her blog is called Precious in His Sight

Where will they go?

Dear Lord,
I know you have a plan and you are in control. That is one thing that I LOVE about being saved by YOU. I no longer am in control, I am free to rest in your arms. Please Lord where will all those beautiful orphans of Haiti go? Who do you want to hold them, where are their forever families. I can not stop thinking about them....

Love Without Boundaries

Check out Love Without Boundaries...
Ofcourse this is very personal to me since Cali is a beautiful Cleft child.

The Issue

For unknown reasons, Asia has the highest incidence of babies being born with cleft lip in the world. Due to cultural beliefs in China that children born with cleft bring shame to a family, thousands of children each year with cleft are abandoned and end up as orphans. Sadly, many cleft babies in orphanages pass away due to an inability to feed, mainly caused by ineffective bottle propping and busy orphanage caregivers being unable to hand feed failure to thrive infants. We have personally seen hundreds of cleft babies struggle in an orphanage setting, often with fatal results. In 2008, we realized that by creating specialized Cleft Healing Homes for these fragile children, we could save lives every day. Many of the babies who enter our homes are in critical condition, often weighing just 8-9 pounds at 8 months of age. We believe so fully that no child should pass away simply from being born with cleft lip. Every orphan deserves a second chance at life and a family to love them.
The Plan

LWB was the 1st foundation in China to set up a healing center specifically designed for orphans with cleft. Our two current homes, staffed with specially trained nannies, have saved many babies’ lives. LWB provides cleft lip surgery to the children in our care as soon as they reach the required weight, and then we advocate for each child to find a permanent home through adoption. Our dream is to open a Cleft Healing Home in every province in China so that no orphan with cleft would have to struggle to survive. Winning one million dollars would allow us to open additional regional centers, providing TLC and medical care to the most vulnerable infants. In addition, we would work towards decreasing the stigma surrounding this special need in rural villages through community outreach. With education and support, we believe we could actually stop children from being abandoned, preventing children with cleft from becoming orphans.
The Outcome

The outcomes of this innovative project are clear. We would save the lives of orphans with cleft, as in our current homes, children who have arrived in critical condition are now thriving. We will also shorten the wait time for surgery and increase the adoption rate, as 95% of the children discharged from our homes have their adoption paperwork filed with our advocacy. We believe our cleft healing homes will make a long term impact on the surrounding communities in China, as we work to show the world that every child, regardless of their needs, deserves love. We know overcoming the stigma surrounding children with cleft will be a gradual process, but we believe it is an essential goal. As we open more life-saving centers, more orphanages can know there is a safe haven to send their children who are failure to thrive. LWB has local staff and hospital partnerships already in place throughout China, allowing us to begin implementation of this project immediately.

Cali's yearly cleft clinic appt

We met with the cleft team at UNC Chapel Hill today. It was a long day but Cali did incredible. We met with the plastic surgeon, oral surgeon, speech, social worker, psycologist,dentist, ent, and Cali cooperated so well. I was most curious about the speech assessment but the speech pathologist said she was right on for her age. She did add that in some of her words she has retained a Chinese acsent (sp?). They again talked about her lip revision and bone graft but it is in her future, maybe the next 2-5 years. So all is good on the Brannon front...

Did it hurt?

Every once in a while one of my kids does something or says something that throws me for a loop this was one of those conversations-remember she is only 4....
Lily-Did it hurt when I came out of your tummy?
Me-(After the initial saddness of the question)No, Lily remember you were born in China. You were not in my tummy.
Lily-Whose tummy was I in?
Me-A lady in China.
Lily-What was her name?
Me-I do not know.
Lily-Was it Xi XI (she was our guide for both adoptions)
Me-No sweetie, remember she was our helper in China
Lily-Oh yeah, that's right and then Lily runs off to play.

I try my best to always answer her questions as honest as possible and as age appropriate as I see fit but wow it is hard. I am so thankful for my Lily and how I wish I cane take all of her pain away BUT what an incredible opportunity she has to be part of literally two worlds in one life time. One day we will visit China again for her to see where her roots began.

Christmas Wishes 2009

Dear Blog Friends,
Not sure how much time I will have to get on the computer in the next couple of days but I did want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. As usual this time of year brings so many emotions.
I think of Mary. Such a young girl she was when that angel appeared to her. How frightened she must of been yet so obedient. Where would we be if she turned away a child that was not "hers"or "planned"? We would all be lost with out a savior to call our own.
I look at my girls from a far off land that only God could have chosen for us. They have come so far in this year that they have shared together. They have grown to be sisters and Lily says best friends.
I look at all 4 of my teenagers and the paths that they are embarking on. The road is not always smooth or easy but it their road, their journey. I pray that through out this coming year that they continue turn toward Jesus,our perfect father.
I pray for those during this Christmas season that are lonely, sad, cold and feel alone. I pray that they search and find the comfort, joy, warmth and eternal life that Jesus shares with each of His children.
God Bless you all this Christmas season!

Little Girl

Little Girl written by greyson

There you sit opening your presents
With family and friends around
While across the world there's a little girl
The room is filled with crying babies
Needing a mother
They think that a mother would be the best present ever
One little girl thinks about Santa
While the girl on the other side of the world thinks about how grateful she is to have a mother
After the season one by one
All the mothers lined up to get their precious babies

This poem was written by my sweet Greyson. What a great Christmas gift from her heart. I love her from the moon and back!