The Herman Family

Friday, April 19, 2013

Kunshan

Here is a little information about where Lilly is from in China. We have been researching her town, so she knows a little about her heritage. We also want to know what to expect when we get there.

Where Kunshan is located in China

Jiangsu Province

Lilly is from a town called Kunshan, which is located in the Jiangsu province. It is about 358 sqaure miles in size and has 650,000 people. It does not have its own airport, but is situated between Shainghai and Nanjing (two larger cities) and can be accessed by train or bus. Kunshan is a travel destination for its beautiful scenery. Yangcheng and Dianshan Lakes are known to be beautiful. Yangcheng Lake is known for its supply of Yangcheng crab, which is an area specialty. It is a fresh water lake and has salmon, whitefish, eels, turtles, and shrimp. Another culinary specialty in the area are Ao Zao noodles. Tingling Park, which is 140 acres, is also a popular destination. It is situated below the Kunshan Mountain. The park is filled with Kun Stones, which have a jade-like texture, but are in various forms. The Eight Immortals flower is very rare and unique to China and can be found throughout the park. They are special because they are formed by eight smaller flowers surrounding a center. The flower is as big as a saucer and white as snow. Every April and May, the flowers are in full bloom, which apparently, is a sight to behold. The Lotus flower is also a must see in Tingling Park. Located inside the park is a museum for the Kun Opera, which originated in Kunshan and is known as the 'Father of Opera' in China. There is also a monument to Gu Yanwu, a Chinese philosopher from Kunshan. Lilly's Chinese last name is Gu in honor of this philosopher. (All the girls in the orphanage have been given this last name). Gu Yanwu's former home and tomb are also located in the park.

In recent years, more and more businessmen from Taiwan have invested in Kunshan and many hotels, restaurants, and attractions have been built as a result. Kunshan is subject to subtropical monsoon climate, enjoying abundant sunlight and plentiful rainfall all year round. The average temperature is 59 degrees year round.

Kunshan Center

Eight Immortals Flower

Yangcheng Crab

Kunshan Mountain & Kun Stones

Lotus Flower

Kun Opera

Gu Yanwu (Chinese Philosopher)

"every man is responsible for his country's rise and fall"

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Cleft Palate 101

Today, Dave and I met with Lilly's plastic surgeon and nurse. It was a very educational visit for us and answered MANY of our questions. It also eased our fears to meet the man who will be performing Lilly's surgeries. This is new territory for us, but we feel like we will have a good team working with us. For that, we are so very thankful. So, here is what we learned.

What does Lilly's cleft palate look like?
Lilly has a cleft palate III degrees. This means that both Lilly's soft and hard palate are opened. However, she doesn't have a cleft lip and her gums are in tact. Even though we do not have an actual picture of the inside of Lilly's mouth, the nurse was able to show us diagrams and pictures of other patients based on the description we have been given. Lilly's mouth looks most like diagram on the top right.

What does this mean for Lilly's eating?
The fact that Lilly is 19 months old, and hasn't had surgery yet, is a good sign that she is eating adequately. According to her paperwork she is mostly bottle fed. The nurse gave us a special bottle for cleft babies. Lilly has been using special bottles in the orphanage. The bottle we were given will help control the amount of air she swallows with each gulp (cleft babies tend to swallow extra air while drinking) and the nipple will be situated in the right position under her palate opening to help with swallowing. We are hoping that we can transition to a sippy cup. The nurse said we can expect her to be able to eat soft foods. Other than biscuits, we are not sure what solid food she has been given. We will introduce her to solid foods as soon as we can, but will continue bottle feeding during her transition time. We know to expect food to come out of Lilly's nose.

How many surgeries will she have and when?
Lilly's first surgery will most likely be in August. Dr. Mlakar would like Lilly to be home for three months before her surgery, so she can get settled in first. She will have a follow up surgery three months after that. The first surgery will take extra skin from the inside of her cheek to help close the opening in her palate. The second surgery will separate the skin from from the cheek and palate and will also check both palate and cheek to make sure they are healing properly. This method has been proven to help significantly with speech issues. These surgeries should keep her from having extra nasal speech. Her surgeries will take place in the morning and she will be admitted to the hospital overnight. She will be able to come home the following evening, once she is drinking well on her own.

Besides surgery, what's in store for Lilly?
In September, Lilly will be part of the cleft clinic. The cleft clinic is a way for all Lilly's physicians to meet together, look at Lilly, and make a collective plan for her care. She will be seen by her plastic surgeon, a speech therapist, a pediatric dentist, an orthodontist, an ENT doctor (cleft babies tend to have ear infections), and a social worker (who helps navigate insurance). They will let us know what we can expect for Lilly's care both short and long term. We may meet the speech therapist before the September clinic, since he/she will help us with feedings if necessary before Lilly's first surgery.

Lilly's medical care is only one aspect of her adoption. It is good to know what is ahead for us medically, but we also need to focus on her emotional health. We are also preparing for her attachment. I am reading a great book right now called The Connected Child. It is full of great information. I will have a book review in a later post. We also hope to have an adoption process update soon, as we anticipate our Article 5 tomorrow!