First, the BIG news everyone has been asking about.
Polina will have surgery on her right foot on August 1st. We are so blessed to have decided to get a second opinion and found Dr. Sinclair at Mercy Children's of Kansas City! He will remove the ankle bone from Polina's foot as it rests on top of her foot rather than to the side. This surgery will make it so that her foot will no longer slant and will make an L-shape. This will allow her to keep shoes on her feet (WOO HOO!) but more importantly, it will allow her to attempt to stand on her feet following the next surgery to fix her broken legs. Hopefully that surgery will take place before the end of the year.
It is still unknown rather Polina will be able to walk or not. It is going to depend on how strong her thighs are, and we won't know until after these surgeries are completed and we start trying. One thing everyone knows is that this girl has got the WILL! She wants to walk and she does what she puts her mind to!
In other news, Russian TV send a camera man to meet us on our last trip to KC. Below is a link to their story. It's around 11 minutes long and it's all in Russian. Even if you can't understand Russian, I encourage you to watch, look at these children, and let your heart be broken for what breaks His. Put your life in perspective, and find a way to help families that are adopting children from similar situations, rather it be through financial, spiritual, or emotional support.
http://tvrain.ru/articles/Po_tu_storonu_zakona_kak_zhivut_pervie_zhertvi_zakona_podlecov-345874/
I hope Polina gets her wish and she is able to walk. May God continue to bless you and your family.
ReplyDeletegood news about surgery!
ReplyDeleteLike your pictures so much! She is like a cheerleader on the top one )
I received good news today that some of the children who lost their prospective parents due to the ban are being adopted including acute special needs children with CP, HIV, TB and Downs Syndrome. They are being adopted by European families. I'm friends with some of them and apparently special needs adoptions to Europe are increasing. European families have watched American families adopt children with special needs and how they've been able to handle it and they're more open and willing to adopt children with special needs now. 2 children that I know of are home and another one will be home within a month. Families are standing up to bring these children home and give them a family and adoptions by European families are increasing in number.
ReplyDeleteHi, this is a version of the same video with english subtitles. It will be great if you share this link with your european friends to increase chances of these kids http://youtu.be/GbD_MiAiVmM
DeleteWow! So there is a possibility of standing and maybe walking!
ReplyDeleteIt defies belief that she'd broken both her legs while in care and nothing has been done about it. Heck, it was probably unnoticed at the time :(
Good luck with the ops!
I am so happy for Polina! I wish you good luck with her surgery and want to see her walk. I have a feeling it will happen...
ReplyDeleteLana
Hi Kendra, I ve been following your blog for half a year and I'm really happy that Polina is part of your family now. I'm a linguist and I'm very interested to know how fast she picks up the language and what it is like to communicate with her.
ReplyDeleteI have watched the video from your link and I've done English subtitles so that more people can understand it. I will definitely try to promote it among my acquaintances in Europe and will be grateful if you do the same. I hope that you excuse me for a link to your blog which I mention in the end of this video, without asking for your permission first. I can remove it if you are against.
Here is the video with subtitles in English.
http://youtu.be/GbD_MiAiVmM
Natalia,
DeleteThank you so much! I will make a new post with it and share it on FB. I don't believe we are FB friends, but you are welcome to add me as I post more there about Polina than I get on here. She doesn't speak Russian anymore except for phrases I know. She speaks completely in English and unfortunately doesn't understand a lot of Russian anymore either. She will be in a regular kindergarten class in the Fall. She knows her shapes and colors and is learning her letters and numbers.