Sunday Snapshot - Older Professional Portraits

SUNDAY SNAPSHOT
These pictures are from a year and a half ago, but they’re just too beautiful not to share! 
 
I especially love the ones of Declan – he is so photogenic.  He is so proud of these pictures. Some of you who know him know that Declan has Goldenhar syndrome, which includes some facial deformities.  For some reason, his asymmetry isn’t apparent in photographs – which is one reason why we didn’t know about it until we met him in China.  He has a prosthetic ear now - these pictures were before he received it. He will need some major facial surgeries in the future, particularly to repair his small and asymmetric jaw.  The surgeries will be more than cosmetic – he has impaired airways because of the small jaw.  We’re hoping that it will be a few more years before he has to go through it.  

He's the most resilient kid I've ever met.  In the three years since we brought him home he has had 10 surgeries, and with every one of them he has had a positive attitude and a fast recovery.  He has come such a long way in those three years!

Eva is doing very well today – we visited a new church this morning and she charmed everyone.  Brennen stayed with me during the service, and filled out the outline as the pastor spoke.  He got a lot out of the message and wants to visit the youth group on Wednesday night.  This is remarkable, because Brennen has some social struggles and usually wants to avoid any new situation where he might have to interact with kids he doesn’t know.  We felt extremely welcomed at this church – so much better than any other place we’ve been over the past few years.  One of the best things – it is two blocks away from our house!