As requested by my BFF I am re-posting this and hope YOU will do the same!
Okay, so, I am putting this out there hoping that all of you out there with blogs will copy and paste it and those that read will do the same...until someone, somewhere reading realizes it is about THEIR children.
I am not kidding myself it is a tall order indeed. But I have to believe there is a family out there for 5 awesome kids who are currently living at Miskaye. Yep, that's right there are 5 of them...two girls (13 and 5) and three boys (10, 6 and 16 months). Oh, and the oldest is HIV+. Tall order, I know. I can't say much about their story in this public forum, nor can I show you pictures of how beautiful they all are. But, I can tell you that these brothers and sisters have been through a lot together and they love each other.
The bottom line is that they want to stay together. We are working hard to make sure they can. At Miskaye, they are safe and well fed. They go to school and they get the medical care they need. The staff loves them. But, still, they NEED a family. They need a family that will take them all.
A few organizations including Ethio-American Family Services are working together to get these kids what they need. There has been a recent donation to help defray the adoption costs...lots of people are stepping up to help these kids get a family.You can find out more via this link. Please repost. Or, if you are that very special family...:)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Summer Snippets (i.e. how we spent our summer vacation)
Staying up Late: Just before school was out, Jacinda declared that there wouldn't be any need for early bedtimes "Because it was summer." It was funny because for whatever reason...I didn't disagree with her. While her plans to "not sleep at all" made me giggle and never came to fruition. She did have a great time staying up late and just being with me. And as a night-owl, it was nice to have some company!
Swimming, Swimming, Swimming: For the first time in three years my parents re-opened their pool. Needless to say we spent many, many hours in the pool. There were at least it was a couple of nights that I let Jacinda swim until almost 11 p.m. She turned into quite a little fish and I loved watching her face as she conquered new feats!
Getting away from it all: We took a vacation with our good friends in June and escaped to Hershey Park. It was incredibly hot, but Jacinda had a blast. She tackled the roller coasters like a pro. I loved how she would hold on tight and close her eyes and yet be breathless with excitement and all smiles when the ride ended! We also went on a little Mommy and Me Getaway that was a lot of fun. We were only about an hour away, but we spent some time with each other and away from the everyday routine for a weekend. And finally I took Jacinda back to Maryland with me so I could work there a few days. She got to see all her Maryland friends and go to work with me. She power-lunched with my co-workers and even met my company's dress code. She told me she thought my job was boring, but liked that people ask me a lot of questions and that I always answer...now if only I had all the answers.
Reading & Studying: Jacinda read a total of 294 books this summer and has improved her skills in ways I could never have imagined. I love that she is developing a love of reading. And maybe that is because I too remember spending hours reading over the summer. I love that her imagination has been sparked and she is starting to create works on her own now. I never want to forget something that happened right before school started. Jacinda's school has a reading challenge that she has been taking part in. Well the day before school started, I pointed to a pile of books and told her that was her last day to read. I meant to read books that would be counted for the challenge. However, my child took me literally and never stopped reading all day long. She even made her Grammy take her to the library to get some more books when she ran out of reading material that day. Jacinda was relieved to learn that she did not have to give up reading just because school was starting.
Soccer Camp: Jacinda went to two soccer camps this summer. What is interesting about this is that last year at this time, I tried to get her to sign up for soccer and she refused. Yet this spring she started playing for a rec league. She held her own, but really didn't understand the game. I thought that a soccer camp would be fun for her. The first one was OK. I didn't love it. But she had a great time. And then a guy at work suggested an evening soccer camp and I signed her up for that one too. That camp changed her outlook on soccer. She walked away with a real love for the game and as a mom it is great to see the look on her face as she is playing.
Vacation Bible School: Jacinda attended three different Bible schools this summer. And loved every minute of it. I love that church is fun for her and that she is receiving the most important Word of her life there. There's so much to say on this subject that I am going to save it for another post.
When all is said and done, I know we will look back on the Summer of 2010 with fond, fond memories!
Swimming, Swimming, Swimming: For the first time in three years my parents re-opened their pool. Needless to say we spent many, many hours in the pool. There were at least it was a couple of nights that I let Jacinda swim until almost 11 p.m. She turned into quite a little fish and I loved watching her face as she conquered new feats!
Getting away from it all: We took a vacation with our good friends in June and escaped to Hershey Park. It was incredibly hot, but Jacinda had a blast. She tackled the roller coasters like a pro. I loved how she would hold on tight and close her eyes and yet be breathless with excitement and all smiles when the ride ended! We also went on a little Mommy and Me Getaway that was a lot of fun. We were only about an hour away, but we spent some time with each other and away from the everyday routine for a weekend. And finally I took Jacinda back to Maryland with me so I could work there a few days. She got to see all her Maryland friends and go to work with me. She power-lunched with my co-workers and even met my company's dress code. She told me she thought my job was boring, but liked that people ask me a lot of questions and that I always answer...now if only I had all the answers.
Reading & Studying: Jacinda read a total of 294 books this summer and has improved her skills in ways I could never have imagined. I love that she is developing a love of reading. And maybe that is because I too remember spending hours reading over the summer. I love that her imagination has been sparked and she is starting to create works on her own now. I never want to forget something that happened right before school started. Jacinda's school has a reading challenge that she has been taking part in. Well the day before school started, I pointed to a pile of books and told her that was her last day to read. I meant to read books that would be counted for the challenge. However, my child took me literally and never stopped reading all day long. She even made her Grammy take her to the library to get some more books when she ran out of reading material that day. Jacinda was relieved to learn that she did not have to give up reading just because school was starting.
Soccer Camp: Jacinda went to two soccer camps this summer. What is interesting about this is that last year at this time, I tried to get her to sign up for soccer and she refused. Yet this spring she started playing for a rec league. She held her own, but really didn't understand the game. I thought that a soccer camp would be fun for her. The first one was OK. I didn't love it. But she had a great time. And then a guy at work suggested an evening soccer camp and I signed her up for that one too. That camp changed her outlook on soccer. She walked away with a real love for the game and as a mom it is great to see the look on her face as she is playing.
Vacation Bible School: Jacinda attended three different Bible schools this summer. And loved every minute of it. I love that church is fun for her and that she is receiving the most important Word of her life there. There's so much to say on this subject that I am going to save it for another post.
When all is said and done, I know we will look back on the Summer of 2010 with fond, fond memories!
Monday, August 2, 2010
The Tall and the Short of It
I am beginning to become annoyed at the fixation people around Jacinda and I seem to have on her age and on her development.
You see I grew up as an overweight child and had self-image issues for a long time. And while most of them I have come to terms with and I no longer measure my worth or my successes by the size of my pants or the number on the scale. I gave that up several years ago. And I made a promise to myself that unlike many other people I know that I will not pass these issues on to my child. And that hasn't been hard to stick to. The hardest part has been trying to get other people not to "give her a complex."
Jacinda is tall. Jacinda is probably older than her birth certificate says. She photographs like a teen. She acts in a mature fashion. She is developing into a young lady.
When I used to get photos of her during my waiting...some people referred to her as "regal."
And even when they told me she was 5, she looked much older.
I had a wrist scan done, talked to many "in-the-know" people...doctors, educators, lawyers and I made the decision to age her from the fictitious 5 to a more realistic 7.
Now as she is approaching 9 - the unwelcome and unsolicited comments are irritating the bejeepers out of me. I wouldn't care if Jacinda was 17 right now...I love this kid and she is mine. She could be 9-foot tall and she would still be my baby.
But the comments are starting to wear on her. And there is absolutely no reason for it.
Everywhere we go people make comments about her height. They ask how old she is and when I say 8 almost 9 - this almost always follows..."Boy she is tall for her age. She looks a lot older too." I am serious complete strangers walk up to us and make these comments. There are times at restaurants we have to practically beg for a children's menu. We can be out to dinner with people with other kids and the server will bring every other child at the table a drink in a "kid's cup" and yet bring Jacinda an adult portion.
Now let me just point out it isn't as if she is 6 foot tall right now, heck she isn't even 5 foot tall.
But just by the tone of the comments she hears, Jacinda has decided being tall is a bad thing. She is starting to slouch. She gets irritated at the comments and so do I!
But the moment that broke my heart last week was when we were having a mommy-daughter discussion about growing up. She looked up with tears in her eyes and told me that soon people weren't going to let her be my "little girl" because she was growing up and was too tall.
I informed her that she is my "little girl." Because at 8 or 9 or even 13, she still needs someone to take care of her.
So I am going to make an effort to squelch these comments and kindly inform people her height and age is no longer a topic of discussion. I am surprised that people, especially adults...don't stop and realize that there is a little set of ears listening when they are critiquing her appearance.
So the tall and the short of it is...the topic is closed for discussion!
You see I grew up as an overweight child and had self-image issues for a long time. And while most of them I have come to terms with and I no longer measure my worth or my successes by the size of my pants or the number on the scale. I gave that up several years ago. And I made a promise to myself that unlike many other people I know that I will not pass these issues on to my child. And that hasn't been hard to stick to. The hardest part has been trying to get other people not to "give her a complex."
Jacinda is tall. Jacinda is probably older than her birth certificate says. She photographs like a teen. She acts in a mature fashion. She is developing into a young lady.
When I used to get photos of her during my waiting...some people referred to her as "regal."
And even when they told me she was 5, she looked much older.
I had a wrist scan done, talked to many "in-the-know" people...doctors, educators, lawyers and I made the decision to age her from the fictitious 5 to a more realistic 7.
Now as she is approaching 9 - the unwelcome and unsolicited comments are irritating the bejeepers out of me. I wouldn't care if Jacinda was 17 right now...I love this kid and she is mine. She could be 9-foot tall and she would still be my baby.
But the comments are starting to wear on her. And there is absolutely no reason for it.
Everywhere we go people make comments about her height. They ask how old she is and when I say 8 almost 9 - this almost always follows..."Boy she is tall for her age. She looks a lot older too." I am serious complete strangers walk up to us and make these comments. There are times at restaurants we have to practically beg for a children's menu. We can be out to dinner with people with other kids and the server will bring every other child at the table a drink in a "kid's cup" and yet bring Jacinda an adult portion.
Now let me just point out it isn't as if she is 6 foot tall right now, heck she isn't even 5 foot tall.
But just by the tone of the comments she hears, Jacinda has decided being tall is a bad thing. She is starting to slouch. She gets irritated at the comments and so do I!
But the moment that broke my heart last week was when we were having a mommy-daughter discussion about growing up. She looked up with tears in her eyes and told me that soon people weren't going to let her be my "little girl" because she was growing up and was too tall.
I informed her that she is my "little girl." Because at 8 or 9 or even 13, she still needs someone to take care of her.
So I am going to make an effort to squelch these comments and kindly inform people her height and age is no longer a topic of discussion. I am surprised that people, especially adults...don't stop and realize that there is a little set of ears listening when they are critiquing her appearance.
So the tall and the short of it is...the topic is closed for discussion!
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