Missing Daddy

We are now on day  12 in DRC. We are missing daddy somethin’ awful.   Having a second set of hands, and a shoulder to cry on (both for me and  Mila) made a world of difference. I am rolling solo now, so every time baby girl needs to be held, fed, changed, walked / bounced / rocked to sleep, it’s all me  and my puny little arms. I think a good night’s rest and some muscle building exercises are in order.

On a very happy note, we just heard that Mila’s visa should be ready tomorrow!! Big yay! Step one almost complete.  Tomorrow will be the 10th day since our embassy appointment, which is the longest it should have taken. I pray the exit letter’s progress is much speedier. It can take 10 to 21 days.

As for a medical update, the Lord has spared Mila so far from catching the mumps, or bacterial parotitis, not sure which one, from our roommate’s little girl. I’m still watching closely for chipmunk cheeks, but so far, so good. Mila has a sore on her hand that continues to look worse. The doctor thought it was an old tick bite, but I am not so sure. The cream they gave me seems to be doing nothing. I started her on some Bactrim tonight (thanks for the Rx Lindsey), so hopefully that will help. We may go back to the doctor to follow-up on Friday. I am also not sure she even had worms. The doc told us that we would see them in her poop and I never have. She had her first almost-solid poo today. :O) I know that may be TMI, but this is a huge thing for us. I think the majority of her tummy issues are simply diet change and food hoarding.  We have been eating almost every meal in the room and it really helps her control her intake. When we eat at the table w/ bowls of food sitting out, she eats, and eats, and eats, and throws a fit when I finally take her from the table. She is getting better w/ the texture issues too. We have added fruit (mango, orange AND pineapple), and a hamburger patty to her menu last night. She would not touch any of these the first time they were served. Ah, the little hurdles, they are so rewarding. We just had dinner in the room again and she actually handed me her plate, like  she was saying “Done!”. I am thrilled, you have no idea. I decided to try some “food therapy” (that’s what I am calling it anyway) and have her walk with me to hand the plate, with food still on it, to the kitchen staff. She did it, without a fuss! Amazing! I rewarded her with lots of praise, and a cookie. She deserved it. Hopefully her tummy will do better tonight. She had 2 episodes of diarrhea during the night last night, one requiring a sheet change. Not fun by flashlight at midnight.

We’ve found that Mila has a significant issue with animals of the feline persuasion. She scolds them and seems pretty scared of them. Hopefully she will not have the same reaction to her canine brother and sister back at home. She seems to like Jackson on Skype. But who wouldn’t?  Now Annie may be a different story. We will soon see. For anyone who does not know these two, Jack is the most adorable yellow lab, pretty much ever. He should have been in commercials, especially as a pup, and Annie is a weenie-huahua with all the attitude of both breeds. A mess. She is my baby though and I miss her snuggly self so much that I cry when we Skype. Is that weird? I don’t really care. She has been my only baby for years now, so I can cry if I want to. Hope to have some awesome visa news tomorrow. I’ll try to keep you posted, if the internet access will cooperate.

Prayer requests:

A restful night tonight

Strength for me to withstand the coming days without my dear husband

Health for Miss Mila Mae

Momma’s neck, and back pain to subside and her muscles to strengthen in the days ahead.