Let me introduce to you the most adorable snuggle bug! Douglas is a quiet, yet curious, 2 year old who got our attention. From the moment he stepped into the room he stayed close to his caregiver. As she kneeled on the ground he nuzzled up against her, not to leave her arms. All while keeping alert to all the activities of the room with those big brown eyes.
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan, Uncategorized, Waiting Child
Look out here comes the sweetie pie of the year! Damien is a 2 year old who was a little shy at first and stayed close to his caregiver. Within just minutes of me being silly and bouncing a nubby ball, making crazy noises and laughing he was joining in. As the ball bounced and I said “boop” he repeated. He didn’t just repeat the sound but also the motion. So of course I took this an opportunity to get crazier. With that he was having a blast and giggling.
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan, Uncategorized, Waiting Child
O
n our first full Superkids trip to Taiwan there was something palpable that needs to be shared: hope. Kids are brought to Chung Yi and Cathwel to be protected. But these organizations offer even more than that. They offer rehabilitation; they offer love. Yes, they are still orphanages, they are temporary, they can never provide what a forever family can. But they are a very hopeful start.
We met several young children, toddlers and preschoolers, who are proof of what a supportive environment can do. We met Dani, vivacious little Dani. She was a premie, born at just 23 weeks. Let that sink in for a minute... that is very early. She has lived with her foster family for three years. She has received consistent early intervention including OT, PT and ST, and support from her social workers. She is about to turn 4 years old and she is thriving! She runs, talks in a raspy little voice, and has the most contagious giggle.
We also met Douglas. He is just 19 months old and has the chubbiest cheeks you can imagine. He's the kind of kid that is happiest to sit and watch... and cuddle whenever possible. But his nannies know this and are working to find ways to get him moving. He also gets early intervention services to stimulate his development. He has started to say a few simple words and use gestures like waving bye-bye.
Next is Darla. She is 3 ½ years old. She is adorable. While the diagnosis is not official, she likely has mild diplegic cerebral palsy. This means only her legs are affected with movement difficulties. Again we were so impressed by how proactive her care was. She had braces for her ankles to keep her feet in a good position so she can walk. She has a mild eye weakness that they were addressing with patching. She gets early intervention services. She was quiet, but did ask "why are you taking my shoes off?" But she must be a talker because her nanny told me her favorite thing about Darla is that "she says really sweet things to us." When she wears her braces she can walk, run, climb furniture, even go up stairs by herself. So much of her success with movement is due to the amazing services she has received!
Not to be outdone by the one and only Dylan. He also has mild diplegic cerebral palsy. He is 22 months old. He is an enormous flirt - he blows kisses at all the ladies in the room. He smiles and giggles about everything, most specifically bubbles. He builds a short tower with blocks, does simple shape puzzles, kisses his reflection in the mirror. He is starting to follow commands when they are accompanied by a gesture. Dylan loves to rough house and be tickled. He wears braces (AFOs) on both feet that help him walk all by himself.
Finally, sweet little Damien. This guy just turned two... and he had a hard start. He entered Chung Yi only three months ago. He has received consistent caregiving, speech therapy and physical therapy. And they have started to see him come to life. He has made so much progress. He imitates sounds and has started to babble with not just vowels sounds, but consonant sounds too. He also uses gestures to express his needs. He walks, squats and loves going up and down the slide. He looks at his reflection in the mirror and is very interested in playing with and holding the baby doll. His is starting to be able to do shape sorters and stack cups with just a little bit of help. The nannies said "kiss" and he puckered his little lips. What a difference a supportive environment makes!
A
ll of these kiddos have developmental delays. Of course they do. These kiddos have had a rough start. However, they are making loads of progress. And they are receiving the developmental supports they need to keep improving - the thing that would fully tip the scale would be a forever family. The permanent love and consistency a family can provide is the one thing an orphanage setting can never offer. But you can. Maybe one of these kiddos is your child?
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| Superkis team and ChungYi staff |
To learn more about any of these children, please be in touch with Taiwan Program Caseworker, Mary Chapman at
mary.chapman@gladney.org
.
These are some of the many great kids waiting for a family! For more information about Gladney's Taiwan Waiting Child program please contact
Mary Chapman or visit Gladney's
website or the Gladney's Superkids
Facebook page.
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan, Uncategorized, Waiting Child
We had an absolutely amazing and jam-packed day at Chung Yi. We met many wonderful social workers and of course adorable kids. We saw some young ones and some school aged ones. We saw some girls and some boys. Some shy and some outgoing and talkative. We saw them all and we loved every second of it.
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan, Uncategorized
Today we would like to take a minute to highlight a very special person that is a true super hero to Superkids. Mr. Yeh, our personal transportation specialist. Let me tell you he is much more than that! He is always willing to provide suggestions for everything from food to finding the Lego store! And will communicate with you using jovial gestures, google translate and a little English too.
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan, Uncategorized
What an amazing day two for our Superkids team here in Taiwan. Today we got to see 7 children! The amazing part... 4 of these precious kids are already matched with their "forever" families! This gives great hope to us as we continue our journey with Taiwan and Cathwel. Advocating for these precious little ones is such a privilege.
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan, Uncategorized
Superkids is heading back to Taiwan in just a few days! We are hoping for no typhoons this time! Along with Gladney VP and Director of Asia Programs, Gongzhan Wu, Taiwan Program Caseworker, Mary Chapman, and Superkids Pediatric PT, Keely Farkas, we have two new Superkids volunteers joining us for this trip - Faith and Michelle. Today we'd like to introduce you to Michelle who is a soon-to-be adoptive mom and an adoption advocate!
Hi there. My name is Michelle, and I am feeling blessed to be able to join the Superkids team as we travel to Taiwan to advocate for the children still In search of their forever families.
A snap shot about me. I am a wife, mother, sister, daughter and a nanny. My family and I live in Northern Virginia, just minutes outside of our nation's capital. I have a wonderful husband and two fantastic teenagers. I love being a wife, mom, sister, daughter and nanny, there is no other title that would mean more. I'm passionate about life and really enjoy walking along side young ones as they grow into little adults. The privilege I have sharing in little ones lives through being a nanny as well as serving as a lead Sunday school teacher for the ones and twos room is amazing.
Why Taiwan and why now? Well, our family has made the decision to grow our family through adoption. We didn't come to this lightly. This has been something that has been heavy on our hearts and prayed for a long time. When we talked about it we all felt the same way, we didn't want to just adopt any child. We wanted our "special" child. We were adopting a little boy from Taiwan with special needs. We want to help educate others, advocate for Down syndrome. Our little boy is special. he has an additional chromosome. That makes him unique. We want to come along side him through his journey of life. So the short of the long is we didn't set out to find a child with Down syndrome. Rather we were blessed by having him find us.
This will be the first of I hope many trips to Taiwan to advocate for these precious lives. The Superkids team that went to Taiwan in September of last year changed my life forever, they introduced me to my soon to be adopted son. To think that I could be that person to write the blog post about someone else's future child, words don't even begin to describe that feeling. The next journey of my life is beginning, being an advocate for orphans in Taiwan. Feeling blessed at this new title of "advocate" and looking forward to learning more about how we can assure these precious children a chance at a forever home. My heart is overflowing with love to share.
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan, Uncategorized
