It has been a rough year for The Little Couple stars Jen Arnold and Bill Klein. However, things are finally looking up since they welcomed their second adopted child Zoey, 2, from India.
39-year-old Arnold, a neonatologist at the Texas Children’s Hospital and 39-year-old Klein, owner of Rocky & Maggie’s Petshop in Houston, struggled for years to have children. When they realized Arnold would not be able to get pregnant, due to her size, they discussed all of the other options available to them. They attempted surrogacy, but sadly the surrogate mother suffered a miscarriage. Their last shot of being parents was to consider adoption.
They knew that they would want to adopt a child with spondylo-epiphyseal dysplasia, the same condition that they both were born with. After meeting with an adoption agency, they found Will, 3, and legally adopted him from China in 2012. While they were not necessarily looking for another child to adopt right away, it seemed as though Zoey simply fell into their laps. The adoption agency told Jen and Bill that they had an orphaned little girl in India that needed a home. They simply could not say no, and finished the paperwork right away to be approved for her adoption.
They made the trip to India to pick up the newest edition to their family four months ago. While this was one of Jen and Bill’s happiest moments of their lives, it was also one of the most frightening. While in India, Jen started experiencing intense bleeding and had to immediately fly back to Houston to receive treatment.
Jen was later diagnosed with stage 3 choriocarcinoma, which is a rare form of cancer. She went through months of suffering through intensive chemotherapy treatment, and just recently announced to PEOPLE that she is now in remission!
Most people would think that battling cancer with two small children at home would be nearly impossible. However, Jen says her kids are what made her fight even harder.
Enjoying watching my children play was a huge, uplifting part of my treatment. With kids running around, you don’t have much time to feel sorry for yourself.
While the last four months have not been ideal, Jen and Bill say they are extremely happy to have their family complete. Jen describes Zoey as a very happy little girl, who loves her big brother. “She is a very strong personality,” Jen said. “She is a happy girl.”
The new season of TLC’s The Little Couple will premiere on Tuesday, March 4, at 10 pm. The new season will feature Jen and Bill’s trip to India, and Jen’s diagnosis with cancer. They will share some of their most intimate and defining moments that have happened so far in their lives.
[Image via Facebook]
