New Kiddos!!

I listed five more children on the Gladney's Waiting Children page!  They are adorable!  These children seem to have really minor needs and range in age from 20 months to 10 years!

Please look, share, do what you can to help these children find a family!

Waiting Child Webinar Part 2!!

I just realized Gladney is having another webinar in just two days!!  I knew it was coming up, but did not realize it was so soon!

I believe a number of the children on my Gladney's Waiting Children page will be spoken about.

I'm getting myself over here to register immediately! I can't wait to "meet" these sweet kiddos through Pat and April, the wonderful ladies who will be speaking.

Waiting Child- Sadie

1/8/2013 Update: Sadie has a family!!!


I want to introduce you to Sadie.  I would tell you how precious she is, but I think her picture will prove that point much more effectively than I could.

Sadie is five and a half. She has mild Cerebral palsy; right side hemiplegia.  She is able to dress herself and does use her right arm as an assist but not as a dominate arm. She has tightness in her muscles on her right side. It was reported that she trips sometimes especially when she is going fast, but Pat Marcus did not see this.

Pat Marcus met her in June.  She spoke about her in this webinar from 17:50-18:55. 

Sadie likes fruit and does not enjoy fried foods.  She likes to play outside, she walks, she runs.  She is a delightful little girl who shows how minor a need CP can be.

She attends the orphanage pre-school and is able to communicate with her wants and needs with peers and caregivers. 

Sadie is available for adoption through a partnership program that Gladney has with the orphanage responsible for her care.

If you would like more information about Sadie you can contact April Uduhiri at April.uduhiri@gladney.org or 212-868-4565.  You can also contact me at erinmrtn@yahoo.com if you have questions about her or about working with Gladney.  Both of our girls are "Gladney babies" and I'll be glad to tell you about our experience with them.

Sadie is also listed on Reece's Rainbow.  You can make a tax deductable donation to her adoption fund here.  The full amount of the donation  goes directly towards adoption expenses for any family that chooses Sadie.  I am excited to be able to mention this option for people who may desire to help a specific child but be uncertain what they can do!

Waiting Child- Lauren

Today I want to introduce you to little Lauren.

Lauren is 2 years old.  She is described as "an active little girl who has a bit of a stubborn streak! She loves playing with older children and usually gets along well with others. She likes to watch TV and play with dolls. Lauren also enjoys animals." 

Lauren has Down's Syndrome, esotropia (which is a "form of strabismus, or 'squint', in which one or both eyes turns inward.") and a congenital heart defect.

 

She has been in the same foster home since she was very young and I loved how her file describes her as both lucky and unlucky.  Lucky because she is loved but unlucky because of her diagnoses.

Pat Marcus met her in June and speaks about her in the webinar found here from 29:00- 31:00.  Pat shares a lot of sweet little details about her.  It seems she was none too happy with Pat as evidenced in this picture...

She sounds like such a little sweetheart with a big personality!  I know it seems she has a lot of needs, but I can't help but point out again that her biggest need is the need for a family. 

Lauren is available for adoption through one of Gladney's partnership programs.  If you would like more information about her you can contact April Uduhiri at April.uduhiri@gladney.org or 212.868.4565.  Or if you have questions about her or about working with Gladney you can email me at erinmrtn@yahoo.com.

Waiting Children

I listed 8 more children under the Gladney Waiting Children tab at the top of the blog.  They are so precious!  Several of them have more significant needs and just need to be at home with a family!

Please take a look at these little ones and see if one of them may be yours. 

Pat Marcus will be speaking about meeting some of these children on tonight's webinar.  There is not time to talk about all of the children tonight, but they do plan to have another webinar soon.

If you have questions about the children you can contact April at april.uduhiri@gladney.org or about working with Gladney you can email me at erinmrtn@yahoo.com.

A Little Reminder

Gladney is having a webinar on Thursday evening at 7:00.  Pat Marcus will be speaking about meeting each of these children as well as other children she met on her most recent trip to China. 

I can't wait to listen in and hope you will to! You can read more about it here.  And you can register here.
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On a different note, I recently realized the option to follow my blog by email was not working.  This issue has been resolved and should work properly now.  Please let me know if you have problems.

Another Announcement...

 I am so excited to announce that...

Di Di has a family!!

Waiting Child- Yana

There is something about this little girl that stirs my heart. The first time I saw her picture I gasped at how absolutely beautiful she is!

This is Yana.  She is 2 1/2 years old.  She has cerebral palsy that effects all four limbs.  Her type of cerebral palsy is called quadriplegia with an athetoid component. She also has decreased head and trunk control.

 Here is what Pat Marcus said about her, "She has a smile that would stop the room. She did not like lying on her back but when in supported sitting, She looked right into the camera. She is a really beautiful girl."

 She desperately needs a family who will love and believe in her!  She needs the therapies that will allow her to reach her full potential.

Yana currently resides in an orphanage.  Pat Marcus met her in June and spoke briefly about her in this webinar (this is part 2 of a webinar, you can find part 1 here).  Another webinar is scheduled on September 20th at 7pm EST  where Pat will speak more about her and the other children she met on her most recent trip to China with Superkids.  You can register to attend the webinar here.

Yana is designated to Gladney through a partnership program with the orphanage in charge of her care.  If you would like more information about her you can contact  Judy Hayes at Judy.Hayes@gladney.org or 432-563-3344.

Or if you you have questions about her or about working with Gladney you can contact me at erinmrtn@yahoo.com.

Waiting Children

I just posted 11 new children on my waiting children page.  These children are all designated to Gladney through a partnership program with the orphanage in charge of their care.  I will be writing posts with more information about them over the next little while. Also, Gladney will be having a special webinar with Pat Marcus speaking about meeting the children.  I'll keep you posted as to when that will be!

As always, if you have any questions about any of these children or about working with Gladney please email me at erinmrtn@yahoo.com.

Edit:  I also added a new page entitled "My Family Found Me" to announce when a sweet little one is matched with a family.  So check out the good news there!  Run Run has a family!

Waiting Child- Zi Zi

Zi Zi is a six year old girl with a repaired cleft lip and palate.  She lives in southern China and she loves to sing and dance. Can't you just tell that by looking!?

Zi Zi is described as a happy and cheerful little girl. She currently lives in a foster home and attends the senior-level pre-school class. She is a smart, clever, and polite child.  According to her teacher she loves to learn and can be very inquisitive. 

Zi Zi's favorite color is red. She loves to watch cartoons and is great at imitating the characters. Zi Zi’s favorite toys are her dolls, wind-up cars, blocks and jigsaw puzzles. 

She has a good appetite but her favorite thing to eat is candy.  Does that sound like a six year old or what?!

Pat Marcus met her when she was in China recently and describes her as "a sweet little girl".

Zi Zi is designated to Gladney through their partnership with the orphanage in charge of her care. If you are interested in learning more about Zi Zi, please contact Judy Hayes at judy.hayes@gladney.org or 432-563-3344.

Or you can contact me at erinmrtn@yahoo.com with any questions about Zi Zi or about working with Gladney.  We have adopted through Gladney twice and I will be glad to answer any questions.

Updated Picture of Di Di!

This picture of Di Di was taken just a few weeks ago!  She is just so precious!  She is still waiting for a family.  Gladney is looking for a homestudy ready family for her.

Want To Watch A Spiderweb?

Remember the webinar (or "spiderweb" if you are Annika) Gladney held a couple of weeks ago?  It was recorded and you can view it here (part 1) and here (part 2).

Pat Marcus speaks about her time in Shanghai and JiangXi provinces in China.  She introduces some absolutely gorgeous kiddos who are waiting for families.  Some of the children are available now through Gladney's GuangMing program. 

Gladney has not yet received the files for the children from JiangXi, but they expect to receive them soon.  Wouldn't it be great if there were families waiting for the children's files to be available so that the children could come home as soon as possible!?

Anyway, take a look.  One of the little girls is so gorgeous I gasped out loud when I saw her picture!

And, as always, if you have questions about the children or about working with Gladney send me an email at erinmrtn@yahoo.com.  I will answer any questions I can!

About Di Di

I added another edit to this post.  It seems Di Di is still waiting for a family after all.  I know this was a very difficult time for the family who hoped to adopt her and my heart goes out to them as they make decisions that are best for their family.

Gladney is really looking for a homestudy ready family for Di Di and for Da Da.  Their files may need to go back to the CCCWA before long and it is never certain what will happen to the file after it is returned.

Please take another look at these two beautiful children!

Waiting Child Webinar

Gladney is holding a special webinar on Thursday, July 19 at 7 PM EST in which Pat Marcus will be speaking about her recent trip to China when she visited children in the Shanghai and JiangXi provinces.  She will be sharing her experience with meeting each of the children she met that are available for adoption through Gladney's partnership program with certain orphanages in these provinces.  I know she met a lot of children and I'm really excited to hear more about these precious children.

I will be sharing our China adoption story as well.  This is way a bit outside of my comfort zone, but I'm going to try!

If you want to join in you can register here.

Go Read This!

Pat is in China. She is in Shanghai right now. She is blogging about it here. I absolutely LOVE her dedication and heart for the children. She says, "Its all about the kids..." and, for her, it really is. She will be blogging on the Superkids Charity Blog regularly during her trip. You can find it in my Blog List. I, for one, can't wait to follow along!

One of Those Special People

I suppose most families have various people whom they consider special in one way or another.  Someone who touched their family in an unusual way.  It is amazing to think back to all of our varied life experiences and realize how blessed we have been to meet so many special people along the way.

When we first requested to see Eliana's file our caseworker suggested that we contact a therapist by the name of Pat Marcus who had traveled to Shanghai and met Eliana while she was there.  I tried to contact her immediately, anxious to hear what she had to say.  She called me back a few hours later and she answered my questions and offered to speak with Keith or our Dr. if they had questions.  She was very realistic in her report but also very positive and there was no question that she was passionate about finding a family for this adorable little girl.

We were able to meet Pat in person last June and again in September.  We spoke with her a little more about Eliana and about her work with various orphanages in China and Taiwan.  She travels to China a couple of times a year and trains caregivers in orphanages about things like "tummy time",  positioning, and pulling up.  She told me recently that the first several times she visited Shanghai none of the babies were crawling, but when she was there in November she saw a whole room where most of the babies were crawling! 

Pat kissing Eliana when she was in Shanghai in Nov.

Pat is headed to China again next week.  She wrote a blog post about it here.  (She is fundraising for her trip and has the link on her blog post if you care to help in this way.) She said she has a lot of profiles of children she will be meeting.  These are profiles of children given to Gladney.  I think it is just so wonderful that she can meet these children and help to make the profiles come alive for families who are considering adoption.  She often does a webinar about the children she met after she gets home.  She is such a blessing to Gladney families and to the children who are waiting for families!