Desperate need for a family for this girl

Taking a break from the additional kids of Region 23 to talk about Karina.
From her description and appearance Karina may have Apert Syndrome, like Ivan, Kacey, Sammy, and Mandy. She is described as having craniofacial differences and differences of her hands and feet as well. She has a cleft palate and an aortic defect. You can see from the pictures that her fingers look fused.

You can also see that her hydrocephalus has not been properly treated. In this country the treatment of hydrocephalus is routine... this little girl will probably not receive treatment in her country though.

She needs to be adopted not just because she needs a family, but because she is in urgent need of medical care she will not receive in her country. Do you think she could be your daughter?

Her profile says "PLEASE someone help her, she will die alone and waiting."
She was born right around the same time as my son.

I also saw some more pictures of Ivan here.

Broken heart

My heart is broken for these children who so deserve a home and a family.

Some of them will get it.

Remember Sergey?



He has a family coming--praise God!

Doyle not only has a family coming, but they are adopting a baby as well--Fischer, a healthy 7-month-old with Down Syndrome.



They are a large adoptive family and I'm sure they will bless these boys and the boys will be a blessing to them.

Right now my heart is especially broken for 4 kids who have Apert Syndrome (which involves craniofacial differences and fused fingers and toes).

Ivan, who I posted about not too long ago, now has this medical update:
"He needs surgery very soon or he will miss the window of opportunity to correct the fusion of his skull bones before it damages his brain. The webbed fingers and toes seem to have all of the bones present by the pictures, but we would need an x-ray to be sure."



Reading this made me wish I could go and bring him home tomorrow... I just can't. Realistically it's unlikely we will be restarting the process before 2013. And I fear Ivan needs a family before that. Please pray for his family to find him soon! Even better, pray about whether you are that family.

There are three other kids with Apert Syndrome on my heart as well. I've posted about all of them before but I am doing it again.

Remember Sammy, who has always been one of my favorites?

Sammy is growing up, losing that toddler look and starting to be a big boy... which is great to see, but makes me wonder if it's that much less chance he has of finding a family. Look at that crazy hair, that sweet face.



This picture also shows his hands, which gives you an idea of how those are affected with Apert Syndrome. Doesn't he look like he would be a blessing to any family?

Then there is Mandy. Apert Syndrome is not an official diagnosis in her file, but she does sound and look like that may be what's going on.
She's young, she's a girl (girls are much more likely to be adopted), she's cute as a button, and she even sounds relatively on target developmentally... why is Mandy waiting?


Sweet Kacey has a new picture too, and a lot more info.

Her hands and feet look good, and before that she was keeping up despite her limitations. She is determined. She's due for another surgery soon, probably on her skull. And she desperately wants a mommy. From a mom who met her a few months ago:
"Every day she'd walk up to me and say, 'Mama?' It broke my heart to tell her no."
Imagine being able to tell her yes. That would make every dime, every scrap of paperwork, seem worthwhile.

There are a few other kids on RR with Apert Syndrome, but these 4 are the ones I would bring home if I could... and Tatiana.

Five children who desperately need the love of a mommy and daddy. Could you be the one to bring one of these home? Or could you help Sergey or Doyle and Fischer come home?

Please pray with me:
God, you set the lonely in families. You are a father to the fatherless. As much as it breaks our hearts that Ivan, Sammy, Mandy, Kacey, and Tatiana do not have families, you are more broken. As much as we rejoice that Doyle, Fischer, and Sergey will have mommies and daddies who love them, you are more joyful still. And you are watching over the little ones who are not yet spoken for, working out their lives for their good. You love them as much as you love us. Father, please bring them home to their families. In Jesus' name.

Sweet, sweet girl

Tatiana is a sweet, gorgeous little girl who desperately needs a family. From her Reece's Rainbow profile:
"Tatiana is a sweetheart, and she wants a mama so badly. When we'd go to get our kids, she kept asking "And Tania? And Tania?" She would sob when we would leave her with the groupa. Out of all the kids there, she was the only that I saw playing pretend – eating pretend food, taking care of baby dolls. She is very emotionally fragile, and she seems to get overwhelmed. She is very small and thin. She has big blue eyes, and she desperately wants to be held and cuddled."

Tell me this girl doesn't break your heart... when we weren't sure we were equipped to be Genesis' parents and still thinking we could adopt this little girl was one of the top two children we considered (the other was Mandy). I don't know how I haven't posted about Tatiana before. She sounds very sweet and high-functioning and needs a family oh so badly. She is HIV+ and diagnosed with FAS (which has a very broad range of effects on kids who are diagnosed).

Today I saw her new profile picture.



Please, someone go rescue this sweet girl.

Some updates

Check out this beautiful new picture of Mandy, who was not showing off for the camera when I featured her previously:



I would bring this little girl home in a heartbeat... but so much stands in the way of adoption, doesn't it? Mandy deserves a family who can bring her home! She's very little and shows so much promise.

Vika, the girl with a $20,000 grant who is in an expensive place, has found a family!

Juris, who has a very significant grant, will have a family! His mommy and daddy, the Kirklands, already have over $20,000 to help bring Juris and his new brother Vilis home.

That's all easy news to write. The next isn't.

"M." is not my daughter. Her needs are not something our family can handle right now. I hope and pray there is a family for her--but it's not us.

Right now my family is not pursuing adoption. Our agency will not complete our home study for another year and a half, for reasons that I don't completely agree with. At this point it does not make sense for us to switch agencies, but by around this time next year, if we feel we are in a good position to welcome a son or daughter, we may begin the process with another agency instead. Rest assured that we are not completely giving up. Someday we plan to adopt. We are waiting because we believe God has told us to wait through a variety of circumstances that have come up. We do not believe that adoption is second-best; we believe that adoption is something God smiles on, and that a son or daughter by adoption would be a blessing to our family. Thanks for following us through this process.

I will keep updating this blog, because even if we are not adopting now, children like Mandy and Sammy and Jeremiah need homes. I don't know if I'll be going back to once-a-day or not, though. I probably didn't help Josiah or Valentin find a family--but these little boys who so needed a mommy and daddy will get them in part because of those who advocated for them, and the more advocates these kids have the better!

Sweet little girl

Mandy laughs, plays, and is starting to walk. She's two months younger than my son, who at 20 months is still not steady on his feet, so it sounds like she's not all that far behind. She has a "positive prognosis regarding her mental development" but is also recorded as having a psychological delay. She does have a craniofacial difference, a difference of her hands, and a heart defect. She also has a motor delay. Her delays could be only due to the orphanage setting and her physical disabilities. It sounds like little Mandy is bright and learning. She's another that has a picture which won't tell her whole story:

Because she's laying down and refusing to look at the camera--her profile says she was in a bad mood--she looks like she has more profound disabilities than is probably the case. She looks so cute, though--so imagine her smiling and playing with toys. At only 1 1/2 she has so much time to make up for those delays, and she will probably do really great with a family.

Could Mandy be your daughter?