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Dear Betty Jo: A Letter From Louisiana, Experienced Adoptive Mommy! :) by Karen Lynn Vidra, The Texas Tornado
Saturday, February 12, 2005
Rated "G" by the Author.
Louisiana is more than happy to answer a letter from an adoptive mother to two boys in Florida.
Saturday, February 12, 2005, 10:24 a.m., C.S.T.~
Dear Betty Jo (Or should I call you "B.J."?)~
Hello! Thank you so much for taking the time to write to me yesterday! It was so nice to hear from you!
Thank you for the wonderful comments you said regarding my book; I am glad you got so much enjoyment out of it! This was something I had been wanting to do for a long time, ever since I first adopted Johnathon and Ronee', who are now twelve years old! (They were adopted when they were still little babies; both Johnny and Ronee' were several months old when they first joined our family; and the rest just sort of "followed" after! :) ) Seems like only yesterday when we only had Johnathon and Ronee'; now we have all these other children to take care of; and our lives are suddenly no longer the same!
But it is a life I would never trade for a million dollars; I love all our Miracle Children so much; and both Bill or I can't imagine the family now without any of the children!
Thank you for telling me about yourself and your little boys, Erick and Evan! They sound like such sweet little guys! You will have to send me a picture of yourself and the boys so I can see what you look like! I am sorry you are having such a hard time in finding gainful employment; but keep trying! Don't give up! I will pray for you if you'd like, okay? Do you mind if I put you on our prayer chain at my church? We'd be more than happy to pray for you and lift you up in prayer! I will also be praying for your mother; emphysema is a horrible disease! I have worked with patients who had emphysema or any other chronic pulmonary disorder, and it is hard; but the best thing we can do for them is make them comfortable and try to ease their breathing difficulties as best as we possibly can. I am glad your mother gets so much enjoyment out of watching her grandsons--that is what she is there for!--, but as for you being a "Lurch", you are NOTHING of the sort! You are just in a situation that is beyond your control, and I applaud your commitment in trying to better your life nad the lives of your little boys! I pray you find a job soon! I will most certainly keep you in my prayers!
To tell you a little about myself, B.J., I am 35 years old (I will be 36 in June, on the 10th), and I have been married to William Sandusky for nearly 14 years now (will be 14 years come the 26th of June). Bill is three years older than me, and I met him when I was but a young teen of 16; and we just fell in love with each other. We had three children of our own by the time I was twenty, but unfortunately, none survived. Two of my children, Pierre' and L'Acadia, died when they were very young babies--Pierre' was but six days; he died of SIDS, and L'Acadia, who was born very premature, died at the age of 16 days of meningitis, plus she was just too small--and too sick--to survive on her own--; and our oldest child, Aron Jakob, died on what would have been his fourth birthday; he came down with meningitis a few weeks before, and a few weeks later, he died. After we got over our initial grief over the deaths of our kids, Bill suggested that we try adoption; and this was how we ended up with the family we have today. We never imagined that we would adopt so many broken, needy children, but they have flourished and grown under our love and guidance, and they are all getting so big! It seems only like yesterday when they were mere babies; now they are quickly approaching teenagerhood, and the youngest is but five years old and is now in kindergarten, where he is doing very well! And now we are getting ready to adopt two more children into our family, a little five-year-old girl and a baby boy, both from Sri Lanka! So we will soon have *52* children in our family! :)
I am short: I am only just a hair over 4 1/2' tall, and I have black hair and eyes and am dark-skinned. I also happen to be physically disabled: I have chronic, ongoing back problems (I am having back surgery in a little under two weeks, on the 24th of this month), and I walk with the aid of Lofstrand (forearm) crutches. I did have a cane, but I lost it while I was in Sri Lanka, and I have been using forearm cruthcs ever since. If I don't have this surgery done, I will be in a wheelchair on a permanent basis before the year is up; so I really have no choice in the matter. I also have epilepsy, but my seizures are (thankfully) under control; I haven't had a seizure in nearly nine/ten years now! :) I can now drive (I drive a van!), and I have a very successful, rewarding job as a charge nurse at a large, metropolitan hospital. So I guess you can say that I am "blessed"! :) I AM exactly that; God has been so good to me and my family!
My husband, Bill, is disabled, too (he has arthritis, asthma, and high blood pressure, as well as mental illness--depression--), but he works, too (he works at Wal*Mart, where he serves as a greeter; he has been at HIS job for just about two years now, and he loves it!). He walks with the aid of forearm crutches too, but for longer distances, he uses an electric cart or a wheelchair (just like me). He is very tall (nearly 7 foot tall!), and he is very skinny; he is also dark-skinned with black hair and dark eyes, and that is because he is Native American Indian. I have some Native American in me (which explains for my dark coloring), but I am mostly Cajun French.
Okay. That is more than a "little" introduction; I think I nearly wrote a NOVEL here! LOL My letters are about as "chatty" as I am in real life; I have been told I have a very big mouth for my size! LOL Isn't that funny? But it is true ; I am one who just LOVES to talk! LOL I hope you don't mind writing to a "Chatty Cathy" Doll! LOL I drive people CRAZY with my constant yammering! LOL But that is me: I just LOVE to talk, especially about my kids! :)
Well, B.J., I best put this thing to bed; I have yammered on for far too long! I thank you for writing to me, and I do hope to hear from you again! God bless you always, and know you are in my prayers, as is your mother and also your two boys! I can't wait to see what you look like! Write back as soon as you can; I'll be waiting for your next letter!
(((HUGS))) and love, your new Tennessee friend, Louisiana Mayrah. :) (My friends call me "Louie" or "LuLu".)
P.S.: Are your boys disabled, or are they both "normal"? I was just curious; I hope you don't think I am a nosy busybody... :) As you know from my book, most of my kids are what is termed "special needs", but to me they are my CHILDREN first; their disabilities, no matter how obvious they may be, don't matter! :)
I'm stunned by the amount of knowledge you have concerning the handicapped.you are truly a special friend to them all for these
stories help make people aware that they are just like us in
every way except they are stronger because they have had to learn
how to live with suffering daily. Excellent Karen!
This book consists of a 150 pages of Christian poetry about the end of time and the Second coming of Jesus Christ not as a servant but as a King, the King of kings. To bring righteousness and peace to the earth and restore the government of God! Peac
When two men hit the reset button and decide to go out looking for the good in the world, they not only find it but also a lot more.
P.S. The title is listed on Amazon under Look for Something Good by Robert Drews (not by Robert H. Drews)
Saturday, February 12, 2005, 10:24 a.m., C.S.T.~
