Other Special Needs Girls, 6-9

Taylor was born to a mother who tested positive for Anthetamine and Methanthetamine at the time of her birth. She did not experience any type of withdrawal symptoms. The birth mother also smoked throughout pregnancy. Taylor was placed into government care due to her birth mother’s drug use.

When she was 4 years old, she was placed with a local family for the purpose of adoption. She lived with that family for 17 months. The family chose not to finalize the adoption. Taylor was placed in an emergency foster placement for 7 months and then moved into a permanent foster home, where she currently resides.

The previous foster family described her as “a happy and outgoing child who has a very good memory”. Her current foster parents describe her as “talkative, happy and polite”. She seeks out interactions with others. She can play alone appropriately, but prefers to play with other people. She is willing to share her toys. Her gross and fine motor skills are at the appropriate developmental level for her age. She talks in complete sentences and can answer questions and follow verbal instructions. She is diagnosed with ADD and has difficulty staying focused on activities, especially when required to sit still for longer periods of time. She will also “push the boundaries” to see what she can get away with. If she does not get her way, she will throw a “tantrum” to see if the adult will give in.

She is showing signs of the effects of the placement transitions that she has experienced in her young life. She often asks for permission to do even the smallest things. She worries that she is in trouble. The foster family reports that she says she wants to be good. She is seeing a clinical psychologist, who has begun preparing her for a permanent adoption placement. Interest families should be knowledgeable of the effects of trauma and disruption or be willing to obtain continual education on the topic during the adoption process.

She has FAS and epilepsy and resides at the orphanage in Eastern Europe. Alivia is an affectionate girl who loves to hug and kiss the staff. She is soft spoken and initially with new people she will observe quietly but then she is not shy and initiates conversation with people she knows. She loves singing, acting, and dancing. She also loves to draw and listen stories. Alivia’s psychological evaluation report indicates that she has developmental delays.  She can be easily distracted but is easily redirected with reminders.

 

 

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Pippy is a precious little girl, born 2013. Pippy is a twin and was born very premature and diagnosed as having cerebral palsy- spastic diplegia, umbilical hernia, and strabismus. She now wears glasses to correct the strabismus and has received surgery to correct the hernia. Pippy was later diagnosed as having acute lymphoblast leukemia. She is currently in remission, but continues to take medication to prevent her cancer from coming back. Pippy’s twin brother also has CP and is being cared for by his biological family. Pippy is very delayed in all areas of her development. She can manipulate objects using her left hand. Pippy is not speaking at this time. We hope just the right family sees Pippy and knows that she is their daughter.

UPDATE NOV 2019: Diagnosis: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (actively receiving chemotherapy, which will be needed until 2021). Cerebral palsy – spastic diplegia; Gastroesophageal reflux disease, Convergent concomitant strabismus (wears corrective glasses); Delay in neuro-psychic development

Pippy is receiving chemotherapy for Leukemia. She was diagnosed in March 2017 and immediately began treatment. She lives in an isolation room at the orphanage to reduce her exposure to sickness. She is considered in remission, but is required to continue to take daily medication. She has a port, weekly blood draws (to adjust medications), and monthly appointments with an oncologist. Pippy also has CP that results in increased muscle tone in all 4 limbs, primarily impacting her legs. She can grab and hold a toy with her left hand. She can manipulate toys by picking up, dropping, pulling a string, picking up ring toys. She understands basic cause and effect, such as knowing to pull a string on a toy to activate the toy. She explores toys with interest. She pronounces several words and can follow basic commands. She enjoys the attention of caregivers.

A detailed medical report that outlines her Leukemia treatment, other medical history, and her development are available, along with photos and videos of Pippy. Due to her cancer diagnosis, any interested family would need to provide proof of medical insurance coverage that would adequately cover Pippy’s cancer treatment immediately upon taking custody of her. Her birth country will also require a detailed care plan showing the family has the appropriate resources and support to provide the required medical care for Pippy once home.

These two are in the same orphanage now, but they have 3 older siblings in a different orphanage. One of the older children was born in 2012; we don’t have the info on the other two children’s age. It’s likely the governmental authorities will want all 5 children to be adopted together in the same family, because they have no severe special needs.

More likely the governmental authorities will want all 5 children to be adopted together in the same family, because they have no severe special needs.

Isla has been registered for domestic adoption for over a year and because of her age, she is internationally adoptable only under the condition of adoption of the older sibling(s).

DeeDee has such beautiful eyes!

Updated Jan 2018: Deedee has a brother born in 2013, do not know his special needs yet.

These sisters must be adopted together!

Molly May has made progress in her development during recent months. She is able to sit unassisted, get up on her knees and has begun to start trying to move around in a walker. She is becoming more physically active. She makes eye contact, looks around for families adults and smiles when someone looks at her. She will laugh out loud when an adult plays with her. She watches children’s cartoons and movies on the TV and will get excited and point to the screen when the TV is turned on. She picks up toys and attempts to play with them. She still needs instructions in how to appropriately play with toys. She makes vocalizations in an effort to communicate. She eats soft foods from a spoon.

Molly May has undergone multiple surgeries to repair her cleft lip & palate. She is under the continued care of the doctor who is performing these procedures. She is also under the regular care of a neurologist, who diagnosed her with CP in 2018. She had suffered from “constant shaking” resulting in uncontrollable movements up until a few months ago. The social worker reports that this has greatly improved and that Molly May’s movement are now more calm and she also sleeps calmly too. Videos taken in April 2019 show her interacting with toys.

Photos and videos are available through the agency.

Sweet Jubilee is doing well. She has cerebral palsy and is on medication to control her seizures.

Update Feb 2018: With lots of patient attention, we are finally seeing Jubilee make an effort to be part of the world around her. She is doing so much better lifting up her head during tummy time. She has also started making some small but intentional hand movements when we are holding her with a toy in her lap.

Updated August 2019: Jubilee is a sweet 6 year old girl. She goes through phases where she is very happy and smiles a lot, and then goes through phases where she doesn’t smile very often. She is quite opinionated and will always let us know when she is uncomfortable, hungry, etc. She is adored by everyone that knows her. Her nannies love to dress her up, do her hair, and take her for walks. At school she is working on making choices, using her hands to reach out, and focusing her eyes on one thing at a time. In therapy she is also working on purposeful movement, range of motion, standing, and several other things.

Update from a family who  visited with her in Dec 2021:  Quinnie is smart and clearly understands whatever direction the nannies give her – to pick something up, to sit down, to play with something, etc. It seemed like she could say a few words but is mostly nonverbal. She has her own signs in order to communicate to the nannies that she has to go to the bathroom or that she wants something. She enjoyed participating in games and was able to give hugs when I held out my arms.

Her demeanor completely changed when we were left alone with her. She threw toys, phones, etc across the room and screamed a lot. She kept throwing my phone and got upset when I took it away. I believe these behaviors were because she was scared since she was left alone with strangers who spoke a different language. I think that she would do very well with a family who can devote the time to helping her adjust and to communicate. She did so well when there were people in the room who spoke her language. We only could not proceed because of our young children and the fragile health of the boy we are adopting.

Mikayla has the sweetest smile, laugh, and disposition. She is extremely expressive so it is very easy to gauge what she needs and when she is upset. She likes to be silly. For her own entertainment and the entertainment of others, Mikayla makes silly faces and sounds, gargles her water, and echoes the voices of her friends and caregivers. She is a cuddle bug one minute and a determined explorer the next. She is definitely full of light and love and spirit.

Mikayla has made wonderful, consistent progress since arriving at her current home. She is motivated to communicate and will babble and approximate some words. She is now more willing to engage in sensory experiences and has developed some independent play skills. She has good receptive communication and is spoken to in both English and her native language. She will use various vocalizations and behaviors to express some basic things, like making a kissy noise when she wants a kiss. She is gaining physical strength and can sit independently, move around by rolling, can stand with support and take steps using a mobility device.

Rebecca is of typical social ability, as well as social skills. Her fine and gross motor skills are also typically developing, somewhat delayed due to her blindness. She plays with dolls and communicates verbally with peers and caregivers. She has good behavior with staff and other children. She is described as sober, happy, content, active, and engaged.

February 2020 Update: Kristy is such a precious girl! She loves when she is with people that she knows care for her. Kristy eagerly seeks out physical touch from her teachers and caregivers. She crawls up to them and slowly stretches out her body until she is fully in their lap, then she hugs them tightly. It is very endearing. Kristy is very friendly and enjoys having visitors in her home. While Kristy loves to cuddle with her friends, she tends to prefer independent play. She loves to crawl in the play tunnel she received for Christmas, play with musical instruments, swing, jump on the trampoline, and play with balls.

Kristy rarely wears her hearing aids as she does not tolerate them due to her sensory aversion for them. In classes, Kristy’s teachers are beginning to work with her to teach her basic sign language. Currently they are working specifically on saying “more,” “finished,” “yes,” and “no.”

Kristy would make a valuable addition to a family as she has so much love and affection to share with others. Video available!

Updated May 2019: Harmony was recently moved to a smaller family style center, where is receiving more attention and care. She still goes to the daycare center at the orphanage and will go to school once she turns 7. She is described as very friendly. She is not aggressive at all and interacts well with the other children. She responds to sounds and tone of voice. She can be comforted with a soft tone. She will hold toys and tries to interact with them, but she needs help to know what to do with them. She loves a rocking horse and will play on it for long periods of time. She will laugh and stop rocking to clap her hands in order to show her pleasure. She says some sounds such as “ba-ba”, “ma-ma”, and “la-la”. She enjoys tactile input and responds well to it. She can stand with support and can walk pushing a walker or when someone is holding her hand. She has not had any instruction in how to walk in a way that will accommodate her lack of vision. Since coming to the center, she has learned to drink from a special cup and is eating from a spoon.

Photos and videos from April 2019 are available through the agency

Updated Jan 2017: Harmony tries to sit independently and stands with the help of an adult or holding onto support. She can step aside holding onto support, pushes the walker with help and guidance by an adult. She is visually impaired – holds a toy handed by an adult, studies the objects with her hand. She has delayed neuro psychological development. When she gets upset, she self-harms.

Harmony expresses her emotions with vocalization – vowel sounds and random sounds. When frustrated she can express her discontent. She can tell apart the tone of voice, reacts with a smile to caresses when she’s calm. The child is fed with a spoon by an adult, drinks from a cup held by an adult.

From a family who met her in March 2021:  Gemma is an adorable little girl. She has a bright and spunky personality and is full of laughter and smiles. She loves to be held and embraced and ran to us with hugs. She played ring around the rosy with us, danced in our arms, and loved to be twirled. When given a kiss, she instinctively gives one back. She is so sweet. She loves to play outside, ride a scooter, play in the sand. She says “yes” (in Russian) for most things but she can say other words. She understands everything said to her. She listens extremely well to the nannies and they speak to her as they would a typical 5 year old. She can do the physical tasks a pre-K age child can do (get dressed and undressed, ride a scooter, play with toys, etc). She is toilet trained, though the nannies had her in a pull up while with us. Her vision is impaired and though she can see well enough to get around just fine, she holds things very closely to her face to see them. She has a hearing loss diagnosis but appears to be able to hear everything, though maybe she could still benefit from hearing aids. We were told that she is developmentally like a two year old. This was true in many of her behaviors but we found that she understands much more than a two year old. She has autistic behaviors without an autism diagnosis. She is definitely a sensory seeker; she has a lot of energy and needs to be given tasks and activities to keep her focused. When she is engaged in something she likes, she is completely absorbed in it. She could play the piano for a very long time oblivious to everything going on around her. Though she appears to be in her own world, we were often able to “intrude” into her world and to play with her, to get her to smile and to mimic us and were seeing gains so quickly. Her smile and laughter bring so much joy! Gemma is smart. She can learn. We taught her some basic sign language (“more”) and she began to use it right away without any coaching. She immediately caught on. She will flourish so much in a family who gives her the tools to communicate. She is truly an amazing child, adorable and full of life.

Florence is a beautiful, smiley and easy going girl! She thrives with her title of Princess in her foster home.

Florence is nonverbal but uses other ways to communicate. She smiles and arches when she is happy and will cry when she is in pain, hungry or sad. For example, she usually gets sad if others go on a walk and she thinks she’s not going to go. She likes when you give her simple yes/no questions like which outfit she wants to wear for the day. At school, she has been working on different ways to communicate like using an eye gaze program to speak through a dynavox or trying to use her hand to choose answers.

Florence has a g-tube. In the past, she has eaten meals blended by mouth. Her g-tube was used to give her medicine and water. However, currently she is being fed all food and water via her g-tube as her caregivers are assessing what is safe for her. There are not swallow studies available in her home country so it is a little bit challenging to figure out what is best for her. Her diet is being supplemented with a mix of complan, a powdered-milk nutritional supplement, and real food blends. She is doing well. Also, she does take muscle relaxing medication to help with her spasticity.

Her personality has started to shine through even more so. She likes to laugh. She thinks her friends that do silly things are really funny and often they make her snort when laughing a lot.

She attends therapy four times a week currently for stander time, stretching and exercises. The therapists always say she doesn’t complain unless it is a day where she is clearly uncomfortable before she comes.

Florence enjoys being held by her people and especially when they sing to her or dance with her. Even though she cannot talk, she interacts well with her friends in her foster home! Such a joyful, sweet girl she is.

She is a premature baby. FAS and heath defect (corrected), strabismus. She is s an active, cheerful child who can walk, run and jump. A is a calm girl, she is interested in the surroundings and likes to play.

The agency was able to spend time with sweet Alanna in November, 2019. Alanna is now 6 years old. Alanna is full of giggles and cuddles. She loves music and dancing. She has such a sweet, fun personality and seems to thrive in social situations.

We last saw Alanna a year earlier in 2018, and she seemed to be much more mobile this year. She was active – bouncing and climbing on soft benches. Alanna has cerebral palsy and is weaker on her left side. Alanna is now eating solid foods – she had been using a feeding tube until January 2019. Her social worker told us she can eat a bowl of food in about 15 minutes now! She attends physical and occupational therapy once a week each. Alanna only says a few words, but her social workers state she understands most of what is said to her and she can follow one step directions. Could Alanna be your daughter?

Bhanu is a teensy tiny girl with a bigger than life smile! She might be tiny, but she is mighty! She knows what she wants and she is going to get it! She is a thinker and mischievous in the most adorable way. She is learning to communicate verbally and is not able to walk independently, but she sure is a hard worker!

At a recent trip to the park, Bhanu wanted to try out all the equipment! She sneakily tried to cut the lines to get to the front and made sure her caregivers were beside her to help her out so she could take part! Bhanu stands and walks with support and works very hard in PT towards her goal of learning to walk independently. She feeds herself. She loves dancing to music!

Blaire is a sweet child who loves attention. Blaire receives physical therapy and her current therapist has been working with her for several years. Blaire loves to go on walks and enjoys swinging on the porch swing.

Last December, Blaire had a feeding tube placed. At the end of February she had a second surgery to have her feeding tube replaced due to minor complications. Ever since, she has been doing so well! Her cheeks are getting nice and plump! Blaire is deeply loved by everyone in the home, especially by her caregiver. She is very bonded with her current caregiver and will follow her throughout the room as she moves!

Blaire is a sweet child who lights up with 1:1 attention and would thrive in a family who will love and advocate for her.

Shiloh is a precious little girl. Her favorite things are to be both held and cuddled. She enjoys listening and dancing to music while being twirled around the room. Shiloh communicates well with her body language. She has made healthy attachments to her care provider. Shiloh will track her around the room and kick her legs and move her arms around when she wants her attention. Shiloh receives physical therapy 5 days a week and attends an in-home school Monday to Friday. Her classes consist of sensory experiences as well as working on gross and fine motor skills. Shiloh loves sensory play, and one of her favorite things is the sound of crinkling paper.

Shiloh also enjoys water play. With the assistance of her teacher, she splashes water around a sensory bin; using cups, shovels, and other water toys to manipulate and move the water. Her favorite game is when her caregiver counts to three and then leans her backwards. As her caregiver starts to count, a grin will flash in anticipation of being “thrown” backwards. Shiloh is a deep lover of life and friendship and would thrive in a family of her own.

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She has multiple special needs including mild intellectual disability, speech delay, ADHD, heart and kidneys defects.

She is a sensitive and cuddly girl who is friendly with other children and likes playing together. She is working on new skills every day and making a great progress! She willingly participates in all activities and has no problems with behavior.  She likes to help with making sandwiches for lunch and always eager to help. Her self-serving skills are good.

 

 

The boys are both listed as healthy.  All three should be adopted together.

She cannot talk yet and in general is pretty “weak”.

This child shows significant facial features of FAS (fetal alcohol syndrome). This is not a diagnosis, but a cautionary disclosure.

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Violet is a beautiful little girl who loves going to the park. She also loves dancing, music, exploring her environment, and playing with different elements and textures. Video available.

Violet has a $1,000 agency fee reduction for her adoption with a specific adoption agency.

Charleigh has 3 healthy siblings living in a different orphanage: 2 brothers -13 and 9 years old; a sister of 11 years old. As long as all are available they will need to be adopted together.

These sisters must be adopted together! There are 4 other siblings in a separate orphanage.

Scarlet was originally listed with her brother, Rhett. Rhett has been adopted.

New pics January 2017!!

Evelyn crawls in order to get where she wants to go. She can stand with support and take steps to the side while holding on to something. She has spastic muscle tone. She picks up objects and transfers them from hand to hand. She does not talk. She responds positively to attention from adults.

Lisa is a happy and sociable little girl. She enjoys meeting new people and interacts with them appropriately. She responds to her name and verbalizes using sounds and syllables. She follows basic directions. Her motor skills are developing. Videos of Lisa show her playing with a ball and manipulating it appropriately. She currently moves around by crawling. She can take steps when holding 2 hands of an adult and can also move using a walker. She is receiving therapy to help develop her motor skills.

Photos and videos are available through the agency.

Summer is quiet, friendly and always smiles when she is seen by an adult. She almost eats without help – but she eats slowly. She almost goes up and down the stairway by herself. She does not want to always participate in all activities and needs extra motivation. She expresses her feelings with mimics and movements. She has started to speak and pronounces some words. Summer loves music, reading, books and swinging on the horse.

She wants adult’s attention and likes to lean on an adult, sit in their lap, and give hugs. Her fine and gross motors skills development are adequate. She is friendly with adults and children.

Pics from Dec 2019; video available, too.

Most of the time, Caryn is calm, especially when she is in the playroom. When somebody pays attention to her, she laughs loudly. Caryn totally depends on the care of others. She sleeps peacefully and stays calm when getting dressed and bathing. She has cerebral palsy and needs specific care, though she has no severe deficit in terms of physical activity.

From a teacher who works with her: This little blind girl is progressing so well, but she is so scared. Can you imagine to be in a world where at any given moment you could get pinched, pushed over, knocked down, hair pulled, eyes poked. I don’t blame her, especially when there are so many other special needs children around her and so few staff and no family love and care. But inspite of all of this she is a fighter and a giggler.

Update Jan 2017: Delaney is a beautiful, sweet, calm girl. She likes to be hugged and held. She likes it when someone takes care of her and to be outside, with her stroller and recognizes the people that take care of her. She feels most comfortable in her bed and during her walks with the stroller in the garden. She eats and sleeps well.

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.

Eastyn had spinal surgery at 20 days old, followed by shunt placement for hydrocephalus. She had a vesicostomy performed at age 2 to prevent kidney infections. She crawls using her hands. She can sit up with support. Her fine motor skills are developing. She stack cubes, puts together simple puzzles, strings objects, and can assemble/disassemble constructed toys/structures. She holds a pencil and can draw lines and curves.She started talking at age 2. She can carry out a conversation, answer questions, etc. She waves and greets people appropriately. She understands cause and effect. She understands and follows directions. She knows her daily routine. She knows the names of everyone around her. She can identify items from photos. She can correctly use familiar objects. She can sort by color, understands direction words such as up/down, has a basic understanding of things like seasons, body parts, food, animals, and other preschool related items. She participates in parallel play. She demonstrates pretend play skills (feeds a doll, gives a doll medicine, talks on a toy phone, etc). She doesn’t like to share toys and will ask for them back. She is not aggressive. She is learning to feed herself, but still requires help from the staff.

Karen loves social interaction and receiving lots of love and attention. She has several special needs conditions, which include CP, microcephaly, epilepsy and Strabismus. Despite these challenges, she is able to do many things. She can crawl to get around and walk with assistance. She also does well playing alone with toys and if one catches her attention she will spend a long time studying it and playing with it. She especially enjoys noise maker toys. Karen is non-verbal and her communication consists of syllabic patterns. She makes attempts to repeat different sounds and syllables. She has no trouble bonding with her caretakers and does not have any issues with eating or sleeping.

Kaylyn is in severely impaired condition and her development is delayed in all areas. She is completely dependent on adults’ care. Her sleep is calm and rhythmical. She is fed with a spoon by an adult.

Shay lives in a foster home. She was hospitalized to look for a cause for her seizures and was diagnosed with ataxic cerebral palsy. She is currently taking medication for seizures, but still has 1-2 seizures each month. She is able to walk and has good gross motor skills. Her fine motor skills are delayed. Her speech is delayed. She uses single words or short phrases to communicate. She has difficulty focusing, which makes it difficult for her to learn new skills. She is very active and needs constant supervision.