Thank you for your prayers, my friends.  After my last post I received multiple messages with kind words, offers of prayers, a coffee card, meals, and flowers.  I never intended my story to make you feel you had to do for me.  I was holding true to my original commitment that this blog would be real.  But know that I am grateful. Your kindness has been a true gift.

We are plugging along and our strength comes largely from this girl:

Because of Angie, our days are filled with "I love you", "You are precious" and "I am so lucky".  Who can stay in a mood with all of that positive going on?  She embraces life with all she has got and she reminds me of all that is good.

Angie has become a pool rat since summer started. She asks to go swimming every single day.  This week she started lessons and she is having a blast!  I am surprised and thrilled at how free she is in the pool, unencumbered by the challenges she experiences on dry land.  She is amazing!  And so happy........

Toby, Angie and I will be leaving for Denver in about two weeks.  We are traveling to the International Hemispherectomy Conference where Angie will attend day camp with other children who have experienced hemispherectomy surgery.  While she is there, Toby and I will attend conference sessions about what we might expect moving forward and how we can best help Angie to reach her full potential.  We are extremely excited and I have no doubt that even among others with similar histories, our girl will shine.  She is so anxious for her first airplane trip.  We will make friends that we will have for a lifetime, who truly know what it feels like to walk in our shoes.

We have been asked about Angie's adoption.  It is still happening, although MUCH slower than we expected.  We will go to court again next week and we expect to hear the same story as last time.  DHS is overwhelmed, understaffed, and trying as hard as they can. We are tired, and so is Angie. She wants to be a Harris.  For now, though, she is loved and safe.  Some day she will be a legal member of our family and when that day comes, we will celebrate like crazy.  I can't wait.

We have so much to be grateful for.  Than you for reminding me with your kindness.  We have been surrounded by love when we need it most. That is what life is all about, right?  Showing up when someone is down and paying it forward.  I can't wait until I can do the same for you.