Yesterday marked our three month anniversary with Carissa Joy Le. We are just amazed at how much of a perfect fit she is for our family and we couldn't imagine life without her. She has such a fun, sweet and loving personality. She loves giving hugs and kisses, and giggles with delight at the funny things Ryan does. She has only been with us for a short while but it seems like she has always been a part of our family. She is almost walking but like her big brother is hesitant to let go. She has resorted to the "monkey crawl". She calls Ryan her "brubber". She loves to now play with her "babies" and "bear bears". She has recently started to play imaginatively, pretending to eat and feed us. It is soooo fun to see her little personality blossom and can't wait to see what Christmas and the new year will bring.

Suckers anyone??

Last week, Ryan got one of his suckers out of his Trick or Treat bag and Carissa pointed to her tongue.  We decided to see what she would do with a little Dum-dum sucker.  She really loved it and did well with handling it.  I would only let her have one in the high chair or she would have it every where.  She was highly disappointed when it disappeared and was all gone!!  There is always a first for everything!!

Let's Cook!!

Since Carissa likes to know what I am doing at all times, I decided to introduce her to some kitchen utensils to keep her occupied while I am cooking.  She had quite a bit of fun - so much for toys!!

Nap Time!!

Last week she was finishing up her lunch when I was on the phone.  I thought she was unusually quiet and when I walked into the kitchen, this was what I found.  Too Cute!!

Playing in the leaves (or not)!!

Ryan and I thought it would be fun to rake a big pile of leaves for them to play in.  Well, she would have none of it.  It's obvious in the pictures that she did not like them at all!!  We even tried to throw them in the air but to no avail, it was a short romp in the leaves this Fall.  Maybe next year!!

Carissa and Ryan Playing at the Park

After I went and voted, I took the kids to the park to play. The weather was so warm and beautiful and here in Michigan, you grab the nice November days and run because you know the cold is coming soon. Today it is snowing as I am posting these pics.

Carissa is like Ryan in the fact that she doesn't like to swing. See the progression in the pictures. She did, however, love the slide and the teeter totter. She also watches intently as Ryan plays his Nintendo DS so he gave it to here to see what she would do. As you can see, she seems to really enjoy video games also. Too Cute!!

Carissa's First Trick or Treating

We took Carissa downtown Grand Haven for her first Trick or Treating experience. We went with some of our homeschool friends this year. We have had this tradition of visiting the downtown stores since Ryan was Carissa's age and have only missed one year. When Ryan was in 2nd grade, we were living in West Virginia that year. Later she had fun visiting a few of the neighbors but mostly helping mom pass out candy. Ryan decided to be a dog house (or pretend he was "in the dog house"). People kept asking him what he did to deserve being "in the dog house". He had fun with that, but the costume was a bit large for some of the doors. He and his dad painted Carissa's car seat box and then he and I embellished it a little. We decided Carissa was going to be a lady bug this year, since ladybugs are a sign of good luck in China. Had to keep up with the Chinese theme this year!!

Pictures of Baby Dedication

Baby Dedication on October 26, 2008

On October 26th, we had a baby dedication at our church along with three other couples. Carissa, of course, being the oldest and the other two born just a few months ago. Pastor Eric made a point to share each of the meanings of her Chinese name, given by the orphanage, and her American name, given by us. She is truly a blessing and a Gift from God. I would do it over ten times if I could. We couldn't imagine our life without her. Pictures are post above. I am having trouble downloading them directly onto the blogger sight so I have to send it through my e-mail.

Visit to the Pediatric Cardiologist

We visited the Pediatric Cardiologist a week ago. She had an EKG done then the next step would have been a Sonogram. The Dr. looked at her EKG and listened very closely to her heart and did not even hear a slight murmur or anything that would alarm him to do further testing. Her EKG was also completely normal. The medical report that we received (done when she was about 3 1/2 months old) said that she was diagnosed with a shunt at Interatrial septum and for us to recheck at one year.

We are happy to say that this is not even an issue and her heart is completely health and normal.

Pictures will be posted soon!!

Update from Carissa's visit to the Audiologist

Yesterday, Carissa had a hearing test with an Audiologist at Devos Children Hospital in Grand Rapids. They had to give her oral sedation which made her sleep for about 2 1/2 hours (the test only took 30 minutes). We received great news regarding her hearing capability, which we were not surprised about since she tries to repeat things we say.

Her right ear is completely normal and the left ear, which has the deformity, was also receiving sound and causing brain waves during the test. This indicated that she has hearing in that ear and the cochlea is in place. Since the ear is covered, we don't know if she has the ear canal that connect to the inner workings of the ear or not. That will be determined by an MRI. They can make an ear canal if not. She has her first visit with the pediatric plastic surgeon the first part of December. They don't usually do repairs to the ear until 6-7 years old (according to what I've read). We will find out when we see the physician in December.

As far as her heart murmur that was also diagnosed with her special need, her physician said that he did not hear anything that would concern him. We also consulted with a Pediatric surgeon yesterday that was examining Carissa before her hearing test. She couldn't detect a heart murmur either. We are seeing a Pediatric Cardiologist next Thursday just to make sure since her Chinese physical from when she was 4 months old stated this condition. We want to make sure we cover all bases.

She is such a healthy little chunk, weighing in at 24 lbs. and 30 inches. She loves to eat!!

We love her soooo much and can't imagine life without her. The three year wait was worth it! Now that it is over - HA! HA! - I can now say that!!

MORE PICTURES!!

Pictures from Carissa's first month at home!!