Court

Court went well today. We did not know what to expect. Everything was very relaxed and easy going. We met family and friends at the courthouse after lunchtime. We all congregated in the hallway waiting to be called. Our case was the first one after lunch so that was encouraging. You never really know when a baby is going to expire when they are experiencing new surroundings.

I just love how Micah gazes up at  his Daddy!

The Bailiff came out right on time to call our crew in to the court room. Everyone filed in and found a seat. Within a few minutes we were asked to come and sit at a table and the kids, or whoever else was able to enjoy the jury box if they chose. Of course all the kids took advantage of this special seating.

Once everyone was settled  the Judge began. He went through a variety of formalities and them we were sworn in. The Judge then proceeded to ask us several questions basically confirming that we promise to take care of Micah in every possible way and that we are committed to being his forever family. Now in the midst of this, Micah decided to mix things up a bit. He was probably wondering why everything was so serious and thought a game of peek-a-boo was in order. His version of peek-a-boo is to throw his head back so we can kiss it, then he pulls it up and throws it back again almost instantly. So the game began in an attempt to keep him happy. Micah won the hearts of the Judge and theother court people who could see his smile and hear his talking.

Before we knew it we were done! It was really very fast. We shook the Judges hand and it was done. Now it was picture time.

Our family headed up to the Judges seat to take a family picture.

We then waited around for a few minutes waiting for the official stamped to be brought to us. Before we knew it we had six copies of official paperwork confirming all that had just took place. Now we can take this paperwork and have Micah's name changes officially from Sidamo Randy Coombs to Micah Paul Coombs. This is really a surreal feeling to realize the great significance of this day. Micah has a world of possibilities ahead of him. I'm so excited to see all that God is going to make him into.

Next...The After Party! I scream....You scream....We all scream.....for Ice Cream!

More pictures will be posted soon!

Day of Stimulation

Today was quite a day! Micah started his day bright and early at the Pediatrician for his one year check-up. He is now weighing in at 15 lbs 3 oz. and is 26-1/4 inches long. Micah did well and him and daddy were home just in time for him to get a nap.

Soon after nap Micah got all spiffied up along with the rest of the family in our most patriotic colored clothing. Today was his re-adopt court date. He is now officially Micah Paul Coombs and is a US citizen! Woo Hoo! He did very well the whole time. There were no instances of foul gas, blow outs, crying or anything else embarrassing.

To celebrate Micah's new status we had an ice cream sundae "After Party" with family and close friends. At this point Micah was wasted and fussy, so once everyone saw him he went off to bed promptly. Now, you would think he would actually sleep. He stalled his rest time not realizing how much he was going to wish he had just fallen asleep. He layed in bed for a good hour and a half just talking to his fish tank and then his blankets. He jibber jabbed most of his naptime away.

Late in the afternoon our friends stopped by to be a part of the celebration. Micah was still awake so we brought him out to say Hi since he wasn't sleeping anyway. Then again, he turned on the fussiness and we returned him to his nap. This time he did sleep, thankfully.

Micah's next and final event of the day was to experience a birthday party at Chuck &. Cheese for a family member. Going into this I was wondering how he was going to take all of this. Talk about sensory overload. Again Micah had a variety of people to meet who were enamored with him and enjoying his sweet dispositon. He faired it all well. He never really got fussy or grumpy. As long as one of us was holding him he was all good. Weather it be cuddling with mommy or cruising with daddy, Micah was enjoying the sights and sounds. When the "show" would start and the lights would start flashing, flipping and turning that is all he wanted to see. He was glued and mesmerized with all he was experiencing.

We were very impressed with how well he did. If we did this day, with either of our other girls at his age, they would not of made it 45 minutes. Micah did extemely well the entire time. As we headed home it was cute to hear Micah talking from the back seat. He had been relatively quiet at the party. Now that there was little competiion he was ready to chat.

Micah rounded out his day with some floor time. As he hung out kicking and stretching his sister enjoyed tickling his tummy and daddy found a new tickle spot on the top of his head. Once his head hit the pillow he was out like a light, not a peep of any sort.

He is such a joy and blessing to have as a part of our family. His personality is so addictive. He can tie anyone around his finger in a matter of seconds. I can not imagine our lives without him.We are all enjoying him in so many ways.

Court Date

Today we received our re-adopt court date! Yippie! Our date is Friday, May 14th. This is where Micah will officially become Micah Paul Coombs as well as a US citizen! This will also allow him to have a US birth certificate. This is a big day. We are so excited it has come so fast!

Tomorrow we also have a very important meeting about Micah's Physical therapy and Occupational therapy. Pray it goes well and I have clarity of thought to get all my questions answered and also that Micah gets what he needs.

Happy 1st Birthday Micah!

All the days ordained for me (Micah) were written

 in your book before one of them came to be.

 Psalm 139:16b

We are so proud of all you have accomplished in this first year of life.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD,

 "plans to prosper you and not to harm you,

plans to give you hope and a future."

Jeremiah 29:11

"With man this is impossible,

but with God all things are possible."

Matthew 19:26

We are so incredibly in love with you!

It's an honor to be your forever family.

(Birthday pictures will come soon)

Much to be Thankful for...

The last 9 months our lives have litereally been a whirlwind. I'm still waiting to land. It has been very interesting to watch God move in our lives and Micah's adoption. We have been learning to cling to the Lord in ways we never imagined and watch our world be rocked in every way.
As I look back it is abundantly clear how the Lord has directed our every step and given us what we need for the moment. Our job has been to be obedient and continue to move forward at whatever pace He lays before us.

The last few weeks have sure had there challenges regarding Micah's health.

As I look at them and how hard it has been I can see why the Lord moved us through the process so fast we could not fully research all the aspects of Micah's issues. Issues we could only speculate and guess about until he was home anyway. There would of been many opportunities for fear and doubt to creep in, which could of completely destroyed this awesome plan, our destiny, to be Micah's forever family.


It is abundantly clear that our job will continue to be obedient and rely on the Lord for what we need in the moment, day by day, hour by hour and minute by minute.

Micah is doing better. Today was a good day for him. Our happy baby is coming back more and more each day. There are still GI issues to be resolved but we are making progress. As we assessed and peeled away issues we also discovered he has a bit of a cold/allergies that are causing some sinus drainage/congestion. It's hard to tell if he is congested because he always sounds congested due to his underdeveloped airway. We've had two decent nights of sleep and are feeling a bit more human. Praise the Lord!

We have also been trying to figure out how to get a break, some respite, from the intensity of Micah's care. We are thankful for a couple of very trusted families who have offered to learn how to care for Micah. This will still take time before we will be able to go on a date, but it's progress. Half the battle, the hardest half, is finding someone you trust. Now it's building trust between Micah and them and teaching them the in's and out's of how the g-tube works.

I'd also like to give an update on the Crazy Love Party we took part in, you can read more here and here. We are humbled and so very thankful for those of you who have sent us some Crazy Love. We greatly appreciate you all and the part you are playing in Micah's story. There's also a Crazy Love Challenge #2 that you can find here. This is an opportunity to pray for other people's needs and send another kind of Crazy Love. When this challenge was posted we were in the thick of medical issues and needed all the prayer we could get. We posted ours list here and believed it could only get better. Now that we are coming up for air I am looking forward to reading more of these requests and praying for these needs of fellow bloggy friends. There is always room for more prayer and I encourage you to also check out these needs and add a few to your prayer list as well.

We are so thankful that God grabbed our lives as we knew them and shook them up to fit His perfect plan...a plan we never expected and could not imagine living without.

Update on the latest

This has been one of the most traumatic difficult couple of weeks yet. The ENT and Neurology appointments were good but not for the issues we are having right now. We are working with the GI clinic to get Micah's system moving again. He is still in alot of pain. He is also having coughing spells that lead to choking on his saliva and then to gagging and dry heaving and being unable to breath. I did this with him every 20 minutes for 4 hours last night. We are a mess at this point. I have calls into GI at this moment and hopefully they can help us. Micah is also having the panic episodes still.  It's been quite scary and makes it hard for any of us to sleep. Right as I am falling asleep he wakes with a coughing spell and needs immediate attention. He's keeping me on edge that's for sure. I am praying and believing we will get some answers today. I need some rest. I am exhausted. We all need peace.

I want to thank everyone who is praying and offering support to us as we are working through this.

Micah's feeding and medication issues

This last few weeks have been a bit of a challenge with Micah's feeding and medications. One factor has been that the meds that were set up when we left the hospital expired before we saw the doctors who would manage them. We thought that a couple of the meds were dropping off only to learn the hard way that he definitely needs them and will need them for some time. We have seen alot of dry heaving and irregular GI symptoms. At our GI appointment the meds were fixed and they also wanted to add one med and change his food to be higher calorie and to something more appropriate for his age. This has been a nightmare challenge. Basically I am going to be calling the GI department first thing in the morning to talk through the last few days and make some changes. Something has to change. No baby should suffer the way Micah is at this time. As I was/am typing this he woke up screaming in pain.

This weekend he has developed what looks like panic attacks where his entire body startles and flails. This has been very difficult to watch him go through. We are holding him ALOT and working to keep him calm to prevent any dry heaving. When his stomach is full of food or gas he can not burp or spit up so he dry heaves. Unexpected/Untended to dry heaving can create a whole other issue, such as ripping out his surgery.  To reduce the dry heaving possibilities we lowered the food he gets per hour and he is now on his food continuously for 20 hours a day instead of 17. Overall, it's very concerning and scary. We are always on alert. We feel helpless at times and it's a horrible feeling.

Another factor that complicates things right now is figuring out which doctor to go to for what. While in the hospital we were seen by several different departments. All of these departments have specialties, obviously, and all have follow-up appointments. We have Neurology this week and ENT next week. Until then Micah is not really set up in these offices outside of our hospital stay. So the challenge is who to go to for what. I can go to my primary pediatrician but he probably does not have all the info he needs to fully help him. The people who can help him still need to see him for the follow up appointments before they can do much. I'm praying to get into these doctors early this week.

Please pray:
-That I find the right doctor who can do something Monday.
-For an ENT appointment to be scheduled this week.
-For our Neurology appointment on Tuesday at 10:30 am.
-For his GI track to regulate.
-For us to find a food he will tolerate.
-For an agency or insurance to pay for the food he tolerates.
-For his meds to be effective and appropriate for his situation.
-For me to not just "get through" Randy's work week, Monday-Thursday, and instead have a great week.
-For rest and peace for all of us.
-For all the other stuff we are praying about....too much to list.

Thanks so much!



Update:
-Working with GI over the phone and making progress.
-ENT appointments at 11am today.
-Surgery follow-up next Tuesday.
-Neurology tomorrow.