Emma Grace

  

  Today I introduce you to Emma Grace. Oh my, my Emma Grace! How I could say so much about her. She is the cutest, tiniest little girl you may have seen at 4 yrs. old. My 2 yr. old weighs more than her. She weighs in at 27 lbs. Such a cutie!

     I will start by saying this little girl even though she is not biologically my daughter could really pass as my biological daughter. Not in her looks but in her personality. She is so much like me. My mom really likes to remind me of that :) So much like me in good ways and in bad ways, lol :) My little peanut was brought into our lives when she was 12 hours old. Her biological mother left almost immediatly after she birthed her and never returned. So we were called by our local DHS and were so thrilled to have her in our family. She only weighed 4 lbs 12 oz. at birth. She was so tiny. She could wear doll clothing (and yes we put her in doll clothing :) ) Premie clothes were huge on her. I remember when we brought her home 4 days later that I creid because I was afraid. Afraid of what, I reallt don't know. Maybe because she was so small? Not really sure. It wasn't fear of not being able to care for her, I really think it was because she was so tiny.

     Our adventure with Emma has been a whirlwind. Many ups and downs with her. Many, many days of tears because of not knowing what I could do for her. She was born addicted to cocaine and has fetal alcohol syndrome. At the age of 2 she was so destructive to herself that I was extremely concerned  and had to take her to the doctor. She would bang her head off of objects or literally fall down right where she was at with so much force that it didn't matter what was in her way. So many times she had bruises all over her face because of her meltdowns. She really could not help it. Her mind was just overloaded. We had to take her to a specialist who told me that both sides of her brain did not funtion at the same time which causes her meltdowns (due to prenatal exposure to alcohol). I remember on one of those very bad days counting every 30 seconds a major, MAJOR meltdown. That is not an exageration at all. No words can express how serious these meltdowns were. They were not just a 2 year old meltdown, they were very serious! We were finally able to get her on some medication because the seriousness of her issues were very extreme. I am not one to medicate, but my husband and I both agree it is best. Although it does not completly take away her meltdowns or other issues it does help alot. I do hope one day that we can take her off the medication. I just feel so bad for her.

Emma is also such a sweet, sweet little girl who can melt your heart in an instant. Her laugh is so contagious. And her smile goes on forever. She is very effectionate and so lovable. Our days with her are always unknown. We have no idea what the day will bring with Emma. But one thing is for sure, I know that I will continue to love her through every struggle each and every day. Even though we don't know her mood from one minute to the next I know we will always love her. She is such a blessing. I