What a Friday!!

Well, Friday (yesterday) was quite the day. As you know from the previous post, the angry ankle was taken care of! The surgery went well for Jodie but, as the surgeon said, there was more in there than anticipated. He removed 2 dime-sized bone spurs, all 7 layers of scar tissue and did another procedure to improve blood flow to some joint articulations. The did a nerve block on the whole leg so yesterday was quite the day with Jodie not feeling anything in her leg but feeling like she was dragging something with a big, stiff boot on it. The boot will protect her ankle and she should be just getting out of it when Shen and I return from China. By the way, all of the above happened while I was flying back from England after conducting a program for Estee Lauder at Oxford. The angel who took care of Jodie to and from the operation was Kathy Brewer, whom we are so thankful for. As God would have it, I arrived at the door from England just five minutes before Jodie and Kathy returned home.
Shen's bedroom is basicall all decorated. We thought you would like to see what his room looks like so his picture is attached.
We hope you all have a wonderful weekend!
Jack and Jodie

The Angry Ankle!

Well, this is going to be an unusual entry but this is definitely part of our journey. For those of you who know Jodie, you know that she has quite the athletic and active background. In all those years, her ankle has taken quite a beating and we just found out this morning that it needs to get taken care of. Here's the diagnosis as we heard it from her doctor reading the MRI: There is lot of scar tissue from all the previous damage, 7 layers of scar tissue in fact, the cartilage is bruised and may need some subchondral drilling to help it heal, and there is some tissue erosion to the bone that needs repaired. On top of this, there is a bone spur that has broken off but he thinks it is far enough back in the joint that it won't be a problem.
This is all going to be done with arthroscopy (unless he NEEDS to do more when he is scoping the joint). She will need to be in a boot for three weeks and the doctor thinks she can move around pretty well in the boot. We decided "sooner than later" with Shen arriving here on September 18. So, this angry ankle surgery is happening this Friday (8/29) so the healing can be well along by the time Shen hits the U.S. We got the crutches out today and fitted them for her. So, with humor in our hearts that this is yet another little adventure from God, I am attaching a picture of my adorable wife (Shen's mom) and her crutches. Enjoy!!

What a weekend!!

This has been one busy weekend! I put together two strollers and got the carseat in the car. As my neighbor pulled out of his driveway, on his way to church, he yelled, "You'd better get ready!!" Jodie did a major overhaul on our basement area where Shen will have his own little play area. Then, I was out and about doing errands of all types, one of which was trying to find a camcorder so I can record some the great events that will happen while in China with Shen.

On another note, we had another angel helping out this weekend (Mike Myers - see the picture with this post). He built shelves in our garage, child-proofed all our drawers and cupboards, placed all the outlet covers on, putting pass-through doorknobs on all the doors so Shen can't lock himself in or out of a room, and hung blinds in Shen's room.

We pray that all of you have had a great weekend!

Until next time,

Jack

The Preparations Continue

Yesterday (Friday), Jodie went on an excursion to the mall with another angel in our lives (Joannie Myers). The list of things they got for Shen, our home awaiting his arrival, and just overall preparation "stuff" was incredible. And, they did it. The list is now down to one page!

Just to give an idea of what they did, here goes: The got new outlet covers for all sockets (and placed them in), got child locks for all drawers/cabinets that Shen can reach, got a table and two throw rugs for his room, various games, dvds, coloring books, crayons, for Shen and daddy to play with while in China together, new child thermometer, bicycle pump (so we can keep exercising once he's back), a booster chair for the kitchen table, kid's "learning" toothpaste, a kid's DVD player (for China AND the plane ride home), a magnadoodle game, little playdoughs, window cling-ons for the plane ride home (we are gonna decorate our seat area :)), kids headphones, red tissue paper to wrap our China gifts for the orphanage, bags of chocolate for gifts for the nannies and our guides in China, and a lot of neat things from IKEA to decorate Shen's room. WHEW!! Jodie and Joannie knocked it out of the park yesterday! And, today, Joanie's husband, Mike (another angel from God) is helping with the child locks, etc.

Connor and I are off on our own little Saturday Journey today to get some DVDs, books, crocs, and, oh yes, a Mandarin-English pocket dictionary for me to have.

I am attaching a picture of the list as it stands now. Like I said, it is one page but it's a BIG page. Enjoy!

A big week of preparation

This has been one incredible week of preparation. It started with an angel from next door (our neighbor, Margie) who went clothes shopping for Shen. She came back with a stash of stuff that I will be taking to China. The fun part is that she got Shen a Chicago Bears warm-up suit so, picture this: A little 3-1/2 year-old getting off a big plane after about 26 hours of flying, wearing a Chicago Bears track suit.
Jodie has been incredibly busy! She put together some packets that our family and extended family are going to be receiving. The purpose is to prepare you for being in Shen's life. She also set up Shen's first Pediatrician appointment for the week he is back and she had a conversation with the school district so we can get assessment information. The one thing we want to do for Shen is help him get started off on the right foot. And, finally, we have discovered that there is an international adoption play group for children between 2 and 6 that is only about 5 miles from us.
We feel so blessed in this entire journey!!!

Mommy's day out

Mommy had quite an afternoon this past Sunday, preparing Shen's room for his arrival in less than a month. Jodie went to Target and used all the gift cards she received at her shower to buy Shen a beautiful blanket, some toys, a great "frog" soap dispenser that bobbles, and a lot of other things that he will need. Then, we sat in Shen's room for about an hour just thinking and reflecting on what was about to happen in our family. We shared all the cards she received and went through all the gifts she received. We are so grateful to our family, extended family, and friends. You are all a blessing to us!! Shen's room is really coming together and Connor loves it!

On another note, we took our Golden Retriever, Charlie, to Doggie Boot Camp for two weeks. He is a great dog but is still a puppy with "puppy" characteristics, like jumping, mouthing, thinking that the cats are prey, etc. We really need him to become more disciplined during these two weeks so we are hopeful.

What the trip will look!

We thought we would give everyone a sketch of what the upcoming trip is going to look like. We wrote this to our family from Shen's perspective. Enjoy!!!


To my new Family!

I hear that a lot of you have been asking questions about me so, my new mommy and daddy (you know them as Jodie and Jack) wanted me to introduce myself to you. My Chinese name is Shen Guo Zhan and I am going to keep my name Shen. I am over 3-1/2 years old, with my birthday being October 25, 2004. I was abandoned at birth and was found on a bridge in Shenzhen City, China, where they say I was alone for two days. I have been well cared for at the Shenzhen City Welfare Institute for my whole life and the nannies have been wonderful to me. We get along great and they even wrote in my medical records that they think I am a little leader. I will hold the hands of the younger kids when we go outside and I always try to help clean up after playtime and meals.

I was born with a couple of little issues. I had a cleft lip and a cleft palate but, after two successful surgeries, the majority of the problems seem to have been corrected. I still struggle a little with speech but mommy and daddy have promised to help me with speech therapy.

I am so looking forward to being with my “Forever Family” in Algonquin, Illinois, and I CANNOT WAIT to meet my new brother Connor! Daddy is flying over to Guangzhou, China on September 5, arriving on Saturday, the 6th. He and I will be introduced on Monday, September 8 (they call that day “Gotcha Day”), and then I am his forever. While we are in China, getting to know each other, we plan to swim a lot together, go to the zoo, play matchbox cars, and just get connected. Daddy will get my Chinese papers near the end of the first week (around September 11 or 12). The next week, daddy meets with the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou on Tuesday, September 16. Then, get this, he and I go back to the U.S. Consulate on the next day (9/17) for a “swearing in” ceremony! And, then, the real fun! Daddy and I will get on a couple of big planes together and fly for over 24 hours to arrive home over the weekend. Daddy told me that he is really excited about that airplane ride with me J. Daddy also plans to “blog” (whatever that is) our entire trip so he will send you the blog address later. I hope you will follow our journey together!!!

I hear that the winters get a little rough in Chicago and I am used to a great all-year climate here in southeastern China. Maybe I’ll have to have mommy and daddy take me to Orlando (where daddy’s office is), or to Tampa where my Aunt Ruthann has a winter home (YES!), sometime because I hear that the weather is better there, especially during January J.

I am not sure when I will get to meet all of you in person but I did want to say hello to you. Please bear with mommy and daddy. I am going to be a handful for a little while because all I have ever known is my orphanage and the nannies there. I have never been in a real family before. So, there are going to be some adjustments and some attachment “stuff” that I have to get through, but I know that my mommy and daddy will always be there for me.

I have enclosed a picture of myself below. I just wanted to say HELLO to all of you or, as we say in China, “Ni Hao.”

Love,

Shen

Three weeks before the trip to China

This is the first entry into Shen's Journey. We are Jack and Jodie Groppel, the proud parents of Shen, who will be joining our family in about three short weeks. Shen's brother, Connor, is very excited about welcoming Shen into our family as well.
The past few years have been interesting to say the least. His mom and dad began the adoption process in the late fall of 2005, praying about whether to adopt or not. Feeling called to adopt, and knowing the Lauffer's in North Carolina who adopted their precious Lily from China, we decided to go the route of International adoption and signed on with Harrah's Adoption International Mission in Houston, TX.
Our log-in date in China was September 12, 2006, and we were on our way to having a child from China. Thinking that it would likely be a girl, we painted her room pink and earnestly planning for her arrival. But, as we all know.... We plan and God laughs!! A girl was not in the cards. God put it on our hearts to look into the Waiting Child program and, low and behold, we found Shen!! Soon, I will write about how fast everything has happened this summer!