Other Special Needs Girls, 6-9

Melanie is a delightful little girl with a laugh that will brighten any room. She loves to be picked up and spun around, danced with, or held upside down. She enjoys being tickled or playing hide and seek with scarves or blankets. She is extremely bright and could use sufficient speech therapy. She is great at letting you know when something is wrong by calling out or crying. She is working hard to use her hands, as well as her head and mouth to manipulate toys and objects.

Melanie has demonstrated clear attachment to her favorite caretakers. It’s very obvious that a consistent family would help her to thrive most. She recognizes people and is even able to say some names. She gets very excited when people come and very sad when they go. She would bring unending joy to any family!

Mina is a beautiful little girl who likes to paint and play “sleepover” with her friends. Mina likes to go to the park and put together puzzles. She also loves to sing and listen to music of all genres, especially tango. Mina enjoys children’s stories and watching her favorite cartoons, which include Masha and the Bear, Puss in Boots, and Blue Shortcuts. Contact the agency to learn more about Mina and her listed medical needs!

This update and new photos were added in October 2022.

Vivian is a beautiful girl who has been living at her children’s home since she was an infant. She has multiple disabilities including a Traumatic Brain Injury, Cerebral Palsy, and Epilepsy. It’s believed that Vivian has some level of both a hearing and vision impairment, although her caretakers are not sure of a specific diagnosis. Vivian also had her right hand amputated as a baby and uses a g-tube to eat. Despite all this Vivian is a happy, lovable girl who continues to make daily progress towards understanding her world and communicating with those around her.

Vivian spends most of her days sleeping. But when she’s awake she will use facial expressions and verbal sounds to indicate her feelings towards something. She enjoys soft and warm textures, music, and being snuggled by her favorite people. She enjoys getting out of her wheelchair and stretching out on the couch. Vivian is the sweetest, most content girl, and a family would be lucky to call her a daughter. She would bring a sense of peace and joy into any household, and find so much safety in having a family of her own.

February 2022 Update: Shilo is a precious little girl who loves to be held and cuddled. She enjoys dancing to music and being twirled around the room.

Shilo vocalizes a lot but doesn’t speak any words yet. She shows the ability to form healthy attachments. She loves her caregiver and tracks her with her eyes as she walks around the room and kicks her legs and moves her arms when she needs her attention.

Shilo’s dosage for her spasticity has been altered and her muscle tone has really improved. Shilo has greater than partial head control and is learning to sit well by herself with her hands propping her up on the ground. Her therapist is working on core strengthening with her and helping her to balance on all fours. She also spends a lot of time in functional standing.

Shilo 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. When her teacher sings the I Love You, You Love Me song, Shilo smiles and vocalizes. When her teacher hugs her in the song, Shilo leans in for a kiss too! Shilo is a deep lover of life and friendship and would thrive in a family of her own.

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.

February 2022 Update: Blaire is a sweet, quiet child. She loves to go on walks in the neighbourhood, being pushed in her wheelchair, and likes swinging on the porch swing. Her favourite song is One Little Finger and she laughs when her staff help her do the actions.

At her last birthday party, her caregiver put makeup on her and she seemed to really enjoy all the attention as everyone crowded around her and sang to her and took pictures. She and her caregiver have a sweet relationship. At the Christmas party, her caregiver didn’t put her down as she wanted to see Blaire’s facial expressions for all the dances and treats! She bought her bangles as a gift. Most days, Blaire’s eyes follow her caregiver around the room as she moves. They even do video calls when her caregiver is on vacation!

Blaire spends most of her time upright in her wheelchair, and we have seen this help a lot with respiratory issues she struggled with when she was younger. She has a considerable head lag and very tight muscles. Her therapist stretches her out and works on strengthening to improve head, neck and trunk control. Blaire has a feeding tube and it has helped her to gain weight.

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.

Janet’s favorite activities include crafts, drawing, playing house, and outdoors activites such as basketball and riding her bicycle! Those who know Janet describe her as smart and straightforward. She will openly expresses her own thoughts and is strong-willed. Her caregivers say she does well in one-on-one interactions, and is making progress with peer social interactions.

Janet is going through the process of neurodevelopmental assessments for autism spectrum disorder, Tourette’s, and ADHD.  She attends special education classes at her local elementary school and attends the afterschool program. She is an eager learner and enjoys going to school. Janet stated her favorite subjects are Mandarin, Life Curriculum, drawing and PE. Janet has 5 good friends at school, and they LOVE playing hide and seek at recess together!

Janet needs someone who is patient and can give her encouragement and clear boundaries. I

Joyce LOVES to sing and dance!  Her favorite sing along songs are “Baby Shark”, “Cagabrie Island” and “Jasmine”. Joyce also enjoys riding on a motor scooter because she enjoys looking around at the sights and feeling the wind in her hair!

Those who know Joyce say she has a gentle personality. She likes to act cute and will become lively around familiar people. Joyce has a good relationship with her foster parents and gets excited when their 7 year old grandson visits on the weekend. They get along well and play with each other for hours.

Joyce presents with global delays and has Epilepsy and Thalassemia.  It is suspected she has ADHD.  Joyce attends OT and PT sessions. Joyce attends special education classes at elementary school and an afterschool class. She is making progress with her language skills and can respond to questions with single words.

Are you a family that can support Joyce with growing her language skills? Enjoy singing along to nursery rhymes with her?

According to her caregiver, Mariah is a sweet girl, she is such a little “doll”, she likes dresses, shoes, likes to dance and she has an amazing personal charm. But she also has a strong character, pursues a goal, and is very curious about the world. She wants to be independent – she eats her meals alone, uses the toilet herself (and has a good appetite!) – and she also is willing to help.

Mariah has good motor activity, she is physically active, willing to dance and sing. Mariah has a lot of energy, is enduring, does not get tired quickly, and often changes body positions. She tries to be independent.  She does not react with anger to her failures. She is persistent in carrying out instructions and tries to finish what has been started. The girl eats her meals alone, uses the toilet herself, and has a good appetite.

The agency’s representative in country met her in  December 2021 and they have videos and photos to share with an interested family. At the end of the visit while saying goodbye, she quietly asked the representative to find a mother for her.

The agency offers a discount to a special family for this beautiful and brave girl.

Suvi loves to paint, go for walks, and play at the park. She likes singing and dancing to children’s songs. She also likes to watch television. Suvi is a beautiful young girl who needs the love and support of a family to continue to grow and develop. Contact the agency to learn more about Suvi and her special needs!

VIDEOS:
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-suvi1
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-suvi2
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-suvi3
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-suvi4
Password: Adoptmaa

Sally had one seizure at age one. She’s been on seizure medication since that time and has not had any additional seizures. She touches and grabs with her right hand and moves her right foot. The left hand is almost clenched in a fist. Her muscles are very tight, but she can sit up when placed in that position. She will reach and grab toys with her right hand. She tracks objects that are moving in front of her face. She laughs when adults interact with her. She makes sounds and produces syllabes when imitating someone. She enjoys musical toys and will scoot to get to a toy that is near her when on the floor. She is fed by an adult and can eat from a spoon.

Piper is a beautiful girl with a smile that can light up any room! Piper has a warm, sweet personality, and she adores her caregivers. She absolutely loves being read stories or just talked to. It’s clear that she understands what is being said to her. She enjoys music and appreciates a good nap! Piper has a medical diagnosis that may look concerning at first, but she has already made huge strides strides with some daily therapy and a lot of love! This special little girl will be a blessing to the family God has waiting for her. Could your family reciprocate all the love Piper has to give?

Lena has a diagnosis of Turner Syndrome with associated delays and epilepsy.

Jaida has an active and playful imagination.  She LOVES to pretend she is a doctor visiting patients and enjoys playing pretend school!  Jaida enjoys drawing, playing with building blocks, and riding her bicycle.  She is not shy around strangers and easily establishes friendships with her peers.

Jaida has a diagnosis of Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency (Type 1), hearing loss in her right ear, and overall global developmental delays.

Jaida attends special education classes.  Her teacher reports that she is highly motivated and catches on quickly to newly introduced lessons. Jaida recently learned how to write her name, and she’s starting to learn Mandarin phonetic symbols!

Isla can crawl, slowly walks, climbs and goes down steps. She does not react to any sounds or to people talking to her. Her report indicates that her hearing is normal, despite repeated observations that she does not react at all to any sounds. When a toy is placed in front of her field of vision, she will reach for it and hold it in her hand.  She enjoys playing with light up toys.

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.

Emma was recently transferred to a group home where she can receive more specialized care to help her continue to develop and receive appropriate medical care. She is receiving monthly blood transfusions at this time for her anemia. She had surgery to correct clubbed feet in 2020. She can sit unassisted, stand next to a stable support, walk around fixed supports and walk while holding the hand of an adult. Videos from May 2021 show Emma playing with an electronic toy. She is pushing the button to get the toy to make a sound. Her fine motor skills are not well-developed at this time, due to her spasticity. Emma responds positively to adults and other children. She smiles and laughs when adults interact with her.

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 has many photos and videos of Allison that can’t be shared publicly. Allison is described as vibrant and friendly. She likes to cuddle with caregivers. She likes to play with any toy given to her, and she is still learning how to properly play with different types of toys.

Allison has cerebral palsy and microcephalus. She is delayed developmentally. Allison is able to pull herself to standing (we have video of her doing this!) and can stand alone without support for 10-20 seconds. She can also take a few steps when holding onto something for support. She responds to her name but is not yet saying any words.

Allison’s birth mother made the difficult decision to make an adoption plan for Allison so that she can receive the best care available. Her birth mother visits her at the children’s home on a regular basis. I’m sure it would ease her birth mother’s mind to know that Allison has a loving family who is able to meet her needs and help her thrive.

 

Update April 2020:Allison enjoys watching cartoons and playing with stimulating toys; especially ones with sound and light!  Allison communicates through giggles and physical contact.  Allison has global developmental delays and needs a family who can celebrate her and help her reach her full potential.

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?

Bailey accepts physical and verbal contact from others. Bailey likes toys that make noise, and she sometimes smiles at the stimulation of an adult. Bailey will need a family who is able to care for her special needs and provide for her daily care. Agency staff met Bailey in July of 2022. We hope her family sees her soon! Contact the agency to learn more about Bailey and her listed medical needs.

VIDEOS:
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-bailey001
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-bailey002
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-bailey003
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-bailey004
Password: Adoptmaa

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.

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.

Jianna’s favorite activity is singing and preforming on stage at church.  She has a good sense of rhythm, and she can hum the melody of songs she’s only listened to once or twice! When Jianna isn’t performing, she enjoys riding her bicycle and watching Sailor Moon.  Those who know Jianna describe her as friendly and say she LOVES to laugh!

Jianna has moderate cognitive, speech, and motor delays.  She currently attends occupational, speech and physical therapy weekly.  Jianna is enrolled in elementary school and attends special education classes. Her teacher noted she is able to identify colors, identify objects and their names, and speak in short sentences.

Could you imagine yourself dancing and singing karaoke with Jianna?  If you think you could be the right family for her, don’t hesitate to reach out!

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.

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.

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.

Isabella is a gorgeous little girl with congenital atresia of external auditory meatus of both ears and leukoma of both ears (translation error that should have said eyes).

Isabella has such a delicate face with the most beautiful lips. She loves to be clean and will cry to remind her caretaker when she goes to the bathroom and needs her diaper changed. After she is changed, she stops crying immediately. Isabella is always moving her eyes; it seems she may have some light perception. She has some hearing loss because of her atresia, but she can hear. By four months of age, Isabella was visually following the light, responding to loud sounds, and babbling. Isabella has rehabilitation training three times a week and is very cooperative. At the time her file was prepared, she was sitting and rolling over independently. She will laugh loudly and happily when called by her caretaker. Isabella loves to be cuddled and teased by her caretakers too. Her favorite toys are dolls. She is said to be a good eater and sleeper as well. Isabella is getting wonderful care while she waits for a family!

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

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

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).

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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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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!

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.

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

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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.