Palate Reopened Further

I'm washing dishes and Kate wanted me to pick her up. So she stands in between me and the sink, with her little pig tails and smiling, pushes against my legs. I stop washing dishes and pick her up, lifting her high. Kate laughs, with her mouth open wide, and I can see her palate. (Gasp! Oh, no. Oh, please tell me, I'm imagining it...) She opens her mouth again to laugh, and sure enough, her palate is now open not only on the side about an inch, but also in the back in the middle. The entire 'oval' of skin that makes up the "new" left side of her palate is precariously still in place. My hands shaking, I call the doctor.

Ever since the last visit 6 days ago, when we found out it had opened up, I've been watching her like a hawk. Nothing has gone in that mouth that could have damaged it. She doesn't put her hands or toys in her mouth, no chips, crackers, only soft food or liquids, and she still sleeps with her "no-no"s on her arms (which do not seem to bother her in the slightest). I cannot believe it has reopened further. Heavy sigh.

We had a visit with her surgeon scheduled for the next day. He agreed that she has had a 'severe disruption' in the palate. He says there is nothing he can do now, but we will have to wait until it is completely healed, and then try to repair it. (We'll see in 3-6 months) He also said that it will be difficult to repair, and that he has never had this happen before. I do know he usually repairs babies, as opposed to older children. Could this be a reason? No one knows. Could it be related to her lip coming open after surgery in China? Being mobile? Laughing or "talking"? You rack your brain when something like this happens, and at the end of the day you're left with..."Okay, well, this isn't what we had planned, but this is where we are now....how do we move on from here and get from point A to point B?" I do worry about her speech being delayed. Her surgeon said, "Right now I'm just worried about her palate. Let's just take things one at a time, concentrate on getting her palate healed and repaired, then we'll move on to worrying about her speech." o.k.

Many times I've prayed for patience or to be a stronger person...I didn't realize that often times God doesn't grant you patience, but rather teaches you patience, and He doesn't make you strong, but rather gives you opportunities to become strong. I look forward one day to having a conversation with God and discussing our miscommunications.