Great Videos

Interesting SN Find

I'd like to share a few things with all of you. I was browsing the 350 childrens shared files on the WC list the other day and a few things caught my eye. First of all most of you know how dear children with cerebral palsy are to me. So you can imagine how sad I was to see quite a few children with CP on the list. To give you an exact number it was 61 which turns out to be 17.4% of the list. Part of the reason I blog so openly about Lia is to educate more about CP in hopes that more children will find homes.

One other SN jumped out to me. Of the 350 children, 80 or 22.9% (almost a quarter!!!)were children with vision or eye problems. Now I must admit I do not know much about eyes. What I would like to do is bring more awareness to this special need!! If you have a child with vision problems or an eye condition please post your blog in my Mr. Linky for other potential parents to browse . I would also like to suggest you post your story to No Hands But Ours as this is a great resource for families who are thinking of adopting a child with special needs. (Also post your children with CP in the Mr. Linky)

Total # of children - 350
Children with Eye problems - 80 - 22.9%

Children with CP - 61 - 17.4%

Children with Cleft Lip/Palate - 36 - 10.3%

Children with Spina Bifida - 32 - 9.1%

Children with Heart Conditions - 30 - 8.6%

Children with Other Special needs - 111 - 31.7%

Of the 350 children available - 192 are between the ages of 6-13

These numbers do not even include any of the agency specific WC lists. Help me bring awareness to these special needs. If anyone has CP on their medical check list our agency has two little girls, one who is 6yr old and one who is 2 yr old. Both are sweet as can be! There is also a little girl who is 10.5 yr old with congenital nystagmus of both eyes. I know there are families out there for these girls. You can find my e-mail address on my sidebar if you need to contact me. I also moderate my comments so if you need to ask me something and do not want it posted please just let me know.

Need Christmas Ideas?

Are you stumped as to what to get for Christmas for you children this year? Need some ideas? Well so did I . You see I didn't want just any toys, you know the kind the kids play with for a couple of days and then they are tossed to the side to collect dust. I want toys for Twink that would stimulate her in all areas she needs to strengthen. I Googled "Special Need Toys" and up popped this link for Toys R Us. It is actually under their category section and is labeled "Differently-Abled Kids." What a brilliant idea for a toy company to do this for parents who just want to improve their children's abilities. They break the toys down into categories (speech, fine & gross motor, auditory and more) which makes it very helpful for someone looking for something specifically for their child's delays OR maybe they need to be challenged.

These are regular toys that you can find at Toys R Us, Wal-Mart, or Target. Nothing special about them so their prices are not outrages. I know I have found some great gift for Twink and I can't wait to look for more. Here are a few that we have bought.


Thanks to a WONDERFUL speech therapist for recommending this toy. I actually bought one slightly different but the same concept. You can find CC here at her blog If Only I had Super Powers. She always has wonderful ideas!


Our SLP also recommended this toy. I figured it couldn't hurt and thought CC would approve! LOL The very last toy with the blocks that makes sounds was also something she suggested and something she has used in therapy.


These last two items are something I really would just wanted to buy for Twink. I think they will be great for her to work on.


Now there is a ton more that I could list that we would love to buy Twink but I don't want this post to get too long. I will be e-mailing a thank you to TRU for giving much thought to ALL children. I hope this is as much of a blessing to you as it was to us! :) Huge hats off to TRU!!

Special Needs

** Kate and Ros, I need your e-mail addresses. My e-mail is under my profile.

I'm not sure if any of you are thinking of switching to special needs but I came across a great list that informs you of different special needs. You can find it here and i do believe it covers a wide range of different SN. I know when I started looking at different SN for our medical check list I started looking up different items I didn't know about. It was a great way to learn if we would be able to handle a specific SN. If you have any questions you can always e-mail me. :)

Sweet Video!

Mixed Feelings

So here I am sitting not really wanting to write but I’m going to in hopes that it will help me feel better once I get it out. Let me first start out by stating that I am so thankful for Twink and I love with ALL of my being. I would be lost without her.


I am frustrated, angry, scared, sad, tired and just feeling down right now. I want to scream enough some days. Are we the only ones who are going through all of these problems? Doesn’t anyone else have problems once they come home from China? No one talks about it and to be honest, it feels pretty lonely. I refuse to brush things under the carpet because if I can help someone at some point than I will!


I am frustrated that Twink is not progressing as fast as “everyone” said she would. I just wish everyone would keep their assumptions to themselves. Please don’t make things fluffy for me; I do better with the raw truth. I can take it in and process it better that way. I am a nurse after all and I can’t stand doctors who sugar coat things! I am frustrated that people seem to think I know the answers that only the Lord knows. Questions as to whether she’ll be able to hear or talk. HOW THE HECK DO I KNOW!! I get so frustrated with the sensory issues. Holy if you’ve never had the joy of a child with sensory issues, count your blessings!


I’m angry that this little girl has not had a break from the doctors since we’ve been home. We’ve been to the doctors at least every other week since we’ve been home from China. We are still not done with appointments yet. We’ll be home 6 months on June 19th. I did know going into this adoption that there would be many appointments but never in my wildest dream did I think we’d have this many. Then again, we thought she had something completely different wrong with her. No fault to China, it was just how things worked out. It was what the Lord had planned.

I’m scared! I don’t know what my girl will be able to do and what she will not be able to do. Talking to her therapist about her hearing test and she said there is a very good chance that Twink has major hearing damage on her right side. Thing is that didn’t bother me. The thing that bothered me is if she does use sign language at this time she does not have the ability to use her right hand. Her therapist said that could cause her problems later. I worry when she runs a fever that she will have a seizure and we are not even sure it was a febrile seizure. Sure would be nice if we would hear back from the neurologist for an appointment!

I’m just sad, sad that she has to go through this.

I’m tired of going to the doctors but thankful that she has some awesome doctors taking care of her! Honestly, how much more does Twink need to go through?


I am so happy for those of you whose children are doing well, I don’t wish anything but good for them, honestly! I just don’t hear of anyone who really has any problems. Everyone comes home and all is peachy. So if your one of those who is or who has had problems let me know I’m not alone. (I like to hear from all you who are doing well too ;) )


Would I do it all over again - ABSOLUTELY! Would I do a special needs adoptions again if given the chance - ABSOLUTELY!

Moving Video!

These are all children who were either on a Waiting Child list or a Special Needs list. Look how happy and healthy they all look!

Disabilities and Dreams!

I found this on my e-mail loop for children who have hemiplegia and cerebral palsy. I thought this was a great interview!

http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=4006074n

The Chosen Mothers

The Chosen Mothers

by Erma Bomeck

Mother's Day column May 12, 1974

Most women become a mother by accident, some by choice and a few by habit. Did you ever wonder how mother's of handicapped children are chosen? Somehow, I visualize God hovering over earth selecting His instruments for progagation with great care and deliberation.

As He observes, He instructs His angels to make notes in a giant ledger......."Armstrong, Beth, son, patron saint Matthew"Forrest, Marjorie, daughter, patron saint Cecilia"Rutledge, Carrie, twins, partron saint Greard."Finally, He passes a name to an angel and says, "Give her a handicapped child."

The angel is curious. "Why this one, God? She's so happy.""Exactly," smiles God, "Could I give a handicapped child a mother who does not know laughter? That would be cruel.""But, does she have patience?" asks the angel, "I don't want her to have too much patience or she will drown in a sea of self-pity and despair. Once the shock and resentment wears off, she will handle it.""I watched her today," said God. "She has that feeling of self-independence that is so rare and necessary in a mother. You see, the child I'm going to give her has it's own world. She has to make it live in her world and that's not going to be easy.""But Lord, I don't think she believes in you," said the angel. "No matter, I can fix that. This one is perfect. She has just enough selfishness."The angel gasps, "Selfishness? Is that a virtue?"God nods. "If she can't separate herself from the child occasionally, she'll never survive. Yes, here is the woman I will bless with a child less than perfect. She doesn't realize it yet, but she is to be envied. She will never take anything her child does for granted. She will never consider a single step ordinary. When her chld says 'Momma' for the first time, she will be present at a miracle, and will know it!" I will permit her to see clearly the things I see....ignorance, cruelty, prejudice....and allow her to rise above them. She will never be alone. I will be at her side every minute of every day of her life, because she is doing My work as surely as if she is here by My side." "And what about her patron saint" asks the angel, his pen poised in mid-air. God smiles and says..."A mirror will suffice."

Bob and I went into this adoption knowing we would have a daughter with some delays and know that brain surgery would probably be in her future. Sometimes, the Lord knows even more than you just when you think you've planned it all out.