A year in the making.

April 30th marked our 1 year home with Willow. I put together a video and we celebrated with ice cream but there is so much that pictures can't show.
 They don't show her bravery at times when she is unsure and asks me, "Mom, should I?" This as she sits at the top of a slide or stands on the edge of a pool.
There have been those times where I have to tell her she will be having surgery and she says "scary" and there passes that look in her eye where I know she is remembering China surgery. She will often then tell me something of her past and it is never good. But she doesn't complain because she doesn't know she should have expected better from the adults around her. I am the one who rants inside.
  Today we are in Omaha at a 2 day clinic for O.I. involving x-rays, bone scans, meeting with her surgeon and a OI specialist and finally getting her IV infusion of a med that helps her bones hold onto bone cells it wants to get rid of. I notice she is more leery of the needle and I think this is a good sign. I think it means that normal for her is not pain anymore. She still has the pain of broken bones (she has one now that I suspected but wasn't sure of) but adults hurting her is not expected anymore.

She has learned so much that it is a temptation to think she is ok. But she lived in an orphanage for 5+ years and much of that time in a medical setting (I.e. in bed).  Her mind is sharp and she is a quick learner but she still struggles with many things. She knows words but still struggles with their meaning and has to ask over and over again what it means. Her newest word is consequence.
  Her mind races so fast that she often stutters and we have to slow her down.
  She always struggles with self control reaching out to grab or push a button without thinking. I know she tries hard but when she is under stress (medical appts) She often reverts to this behavior.
   She is so good at picking up on others emotions. When I am struggling to try and do everything life requires, she'll ask me "Did we hug today?" Then I get a big hug and realize what a great heart she has.