
Julee

Updated May 2022: Zeek was recently moved from a large orphanage to a small group home, where he’s now receiving more interaction and attention. His language skills have started developing. He can now say several words. He enjoys interacting with staff and responds when he receives attention. He enjoys music.
Overall, he is healthy and would do well in a family without smaller children. His upper body is quite strong and he has full use of his hands, fingers and arms, but he has little control or movement in his lower limbs and they are significantly smaller than his upper body. He can squeeze very tightly with his hands, and reach a full arm’s length with no problems even though his resting position is the one you see in the pictures. He does not talk, according to the caretakers but does make sounds to communicate. Cognitively, he has significant delays due to his history of spina bifida and hydrocephalus. He is very much still an infant in many ways.
He may have a sister a few years older in a different region who possibly could also be available for adoption or he could be adopted separately. She also has special needs.
Families who have visited the orphanage where he lives report that he is a very smart and friendly little boy. He is able to carry on a conversation and answer questions appropriately and plays hand held video games.
Update, 2016: Todd recently turned 9 years old. He engages in symbolic and role play, which includes the activities and roles typical for his environment (how a doctor’s visitation goes; how one gets medical supplies; how one organizes a birthday party; what happens during the lesson with the resource teacher). He knows the staff members. He takes the initiative in meeting new people. Todd eats independently. He eats common food. He chooses his clothes depending on the season and the temperature in the building. Todd leads a dialogue and asks a lot of questions.He loves telling stories and improvising depending on the specific interests of the person he is communicating with.
Additional photos and videos are available.
Update Jan 2020:
Julian sits on his own while supporting his weight on his hands. He uses his hands to change his posture and move his body. He stands in the walker. He actively grabs and manipulates toys and objects, tries to use them as intended – shakes to produce sound, pulls the string of a musical toy. Visual-motor coordination is slightly impaired.
Delaney expresses her preferences to people and objects to which she is more attached. She has three favorite toys that are colorful and soft. She also enjoys listening to music especially children’s songs. She doesn’t like lying on her back and sudden and quick movements. She is able to sit independently and grab and hold objects she has very strong hands she uses well. She feels comfortable when around her there are people with who she is familiar with.
Delaney is able to express her opinion and preference with gestures. Delaney is very calm child with big potential for improvement with the needed care, attention and the feeling of the real family environment.
We visited Ryan in his orphanage in late June and were taken in by his shy smile. He enjoyed playing with our iPad. Ryan demonstrated his excellent walking and running, and sang us a song. His video will melt your heart.
Ryan lives with a foster family. He sleeps with his foster mother and is very attached to her. Ryan is described as introverted and not very talkative. His motor and speech development are a bit delayed.
Could Ryan be the son you’ve been searching for?
OCTOBER 2017 UPDATE: Percy is a very bright and cheerful boy. He has an adventurous personality, is eager to try new things, and has an open disposition that is friendly, but not inappropriately so. He is not afraid of foreigners from overseas and was immediately interested in learning English with American volunteers in school and was one of the first to master the alphabet song. He has a good ear for language and has soaked up everything he can learn in English and he retains it (colors, shapes, animals, clothing, parts of the body, etc.). He has a great sense of humor, loves to laugh, and gives a loud “Good Morning!” and hard high five whenever he sees his English teachers. He has learned to read some characters in his native language, knows his numbers, has started basic math and knows many songs and dances from school. Percy lives with an attentive foster family who would love to see him adopted as they know that he needs medical treatment from pediatric specialists. He interacts appropriately with peers, is silly and fun with his little friends, but not unkind.
In January of 2014, Magnolia received surgery for lumbar spinal meningocele and hydrocephalus. She had good recovery after the surgery, though she is not toilet trained. We are unsure if that is a result of her meningocele surgery or because she just hadn’t been trained yet, but a family should be prepared for her to be incontinent. An update from August (you can read the full update below) mentions that Magnolia has had a handful of seizures over the years. Magnolia has the sweetest little face with the cutest little voice.
Magnolia has a $2,500 agency grant for her adoption with a specific adoption agency. You have to watch her sweet videos! The agency has several.
In his early education classes, he has completed many craft projects. He can paste simple pictures and color in animal coloring books. After class, he will tidy up his own learning materials. He is also very intelligent and can recite “student rules, three character words” etc., as well as children’s songs.
In classes Zack has learned all his colours and shapes and identifies many objects in English. He is working on identifying his English alphabet. In play time he often requests blocks in order to build towers. Once they are completed he will call his caregiver in order to proudly show off his creation. When he is not building blocks he loves coloring, making crafts and playing with toy cars. His favorite sensory play is with shaving cream.
Zack is able to propel himself in his wheelchair. Zack speaks well in his first language and knows a lot of English as well. He speaks enough that he often translates between the languages for his caregiver. He moves around the home by scooting on his bottom. His core strength has improved and he is learning to balance on all fours. He is now working on rocking and crawling on all fours. It can be challenging for him to hold the weight of his head in this position but he’s very motivated. He is also practicing standing using orthotics.
Zack often asks about his future family. Many of his friends have been adopted and he longs for a family too. His favourite song is Daddy Finger and he asks so many questions about the different members of a family.