Louie emails a new letter to her new Florida friend, Betty Jo. The house is quiet: husband Bill and Louisiana's father, Armand, took the kids to the mall for the day, and Louisiana is enjoying the peace and quiet.
Saturday, February 12, 2005, 3:06 p.m., C.S.T.~
Dear B.J.~
Hi! Thanks for writing; it is so nice to hear from you again! That picture of the wobbly baby is past aDORable; wherever did you find such a cute picture? Thanks for the smiles today!
I am home all by my lonesome: my husband, Bill, and my dad, Armand, took the kids out for pizza and then out to the mall, so they could get out of my hair. I appreciate the gesture: I sure can use some peace and quiet! LOL They probably won't return until sometime this evening; so while they are away, Louie will play! LOL
My kids are named (let's see if mama Louie can remember their names; there will be a test later! LOL): Johnathon (boy; muscular dystrophy, epilepsy, vision and hearing deficits, learning disabilities); Ronee' Le-Anne (girl; JRA [systemic onset juvenile rheumatoid arthritis], lessening allergies and improving in regards to her asthma); Jodie (girl, severe spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy, mental disabled, epilepsy); Stephanie (girl, NOT disabled); Michael (boy, Stephanie's younger brother; epilepsy); Barbara Le-Anne (girl, NOT disabled); Tanya (girl, NOT disabled); Lightning (girl, severe spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy, NOT mentally disabled!); Roberto (boy, Down's syndrome, spastic diplegic cerebral palsy, heart problems); Kwame' (boy, heart problems); Sergei (boy, mildly autistic, learning disabled); Jo-El (boy, facially disfigured [burns; suffered burns over 80% of his body]); Trude (girl, NOT disabled); Gisele (girl, NOT disabled); Todd (boy, severe athetoid cerebral palsy, respiratory problems [oxygen-dependent]); Tri (boy, learning disabled); Tran (boy, NOT disabled); Enriquesa (girl, congenital quadruple amputee of upper and lower limbs, achondroplastic dwarf); Monica (girl, NOT disabled); Sun-Hee (girl, born with vision deficits; had a corneal transplant at age 1o months, now has partial sight, learning to "cane" and get around easier); Mario (boy, born hearing-impaired, profoundly deaf in both ears, communicates via ASL); Rhiannon (girl, cystic fibrosis, oxygen dependent); Christiana (girl, NOT disabled); Sunshine Lee (girl, NOT disabled); Andre' Joseph (boy, Sunshine's twin brother, had polio as infant, paralyzed from waist on down, uses forearm crutches and leg braces for walking); Benjamin (boy, born profoundly deaf, communicates via ASL); Jameela (girl; spina bifida; paralyzed from waist on down, uses forearm crutches, leg braces for walking); Heather (girl, NOT disabled); LaGloria (girl, NOT disabled); Loueva (girl, asthma); LaVella (Loueva's twin; girl, asthma); Gemini (girl, epilepsy); Geraldo (boy, NOT disabled); Louise (girl, vision problems); Elise (Louise's twin, girl, vision problems); Porter (boy, NOT disabled); Danita (girl, NOT disabled); Summer Song (girl, learning disabled); Camey and Tammi (twins, younger sisters to Summer Song, both learning disabled); Starlight Melody (girl, older sister to twins Sunshine Lee and Andre', juvenile diabetes, insulin-dependent); Kecia (girl, NOT disabled, older sister to Gloria); Richard (boy, emotional and physical difficulties due to abuse he suffered as an infant, relies on trache tube to breathe); Anh Kim (boy, had cancer twice; amputee due to first bout of cancer, walks with forearm crutches; has since been miraculously healed from cancer); Dwerlina (girl, NOT disabled), Melizza (girl, had stroke at aged 13 years, hemiplegic, also has mental illness, on medication to control moods); Dianna (girl; visually impaired since aged 12); Megan and Michelle (not disabled, twin sisters); Deborah (girl, born with spina bifida--paraplegic, relies on wheelchair--, also born without upper arms; also severe respiratory problems; oxygen dependent); and Sylvia Amobiye (girl; NOT disabled). (HEY! I DID it!! LOL I ACED the test! LOL) My kids come from places like Asia (Korea, Vietnam, China, Japan, India, Malaysia), Europe (Germany, Russia, France, Bosnia-Hergozovina), the Middle East (Iran), Canada, Latin America (Mexico, Nicaragua, Guatemala), Africa (Kenya), and of course, the United States of America (Ohio, Indiana, New York, Connecticut, Louisiana, Texas, etc.).
And now we will be adding Rani and little Arjun Ravi to our clan; they will come to us from Sri Lanka. This will happen within the next six months or so (or maybe even sooner if things work out!). So we will go from a family of 50 kids to 52! I guess I AM a bit on the crazy side; we'd HAVE to be to take in all these kids! LOL
In reference to your question, no, the three kids I put on my last letter are not mine; it was just something I found on the 'Net, and I thought it would make a nice picture, so I used it. The little girl on the bottom, the one lying on the ground and grinnin' her head off, DOES resemble Jodie, but it is NOT her AT all. Besides, Jodie is Oriental, and she has black hair. That little girl had brown hair. So it is NOT Jodie! Hope you liked the picture of those beautiful kids! I did; that is why I used it! Besides, it shows the "beauty" of these special kids! They are NOT "ugly" or to be feared: they are beautiful in their own, special way, and they certainly have enriched ME! :)
So I have a twin running around in South Miami. Hmmm...wonder just who she is; you will have to tell me more about this woman as soon as you can find out anything; I am all ears! LOL Seems that the adoption bug has been runnin' loose in our neighborhood: seems not long after Bill and I started "adding to the family" when some of our neighbors (the Mulligans, the Reichards, etc.) have been adopting too; and now there seems to be a "baby explosion" right in my very own neighborhood! LOL I guess they decided on doing the same thing we have been doing for years, and now we have lots of activity in our 'hood! LOL
Glad you are enjoying your boys, but the best thing to do about the bedtime and meal battles is just let things run their course. These stages may seem annoying and maddening at the time being, but trust me: these things *will* pass. I remember when my own kids fussed about bedtime or meals; it drove us both bananas, but they soon settled down, and once they learned that they had to eat what the rest of us ate or had to go to bed at a certain time, they gave in, and the bedtime and mealtime dilemmas were soon history!
Don't worry about whether your kids have a disability or not. I have learned over the years to rely on the kids' strengths, NOT their weaknesses, and they have been nothing short of amazing. They know more than we give them credit for, and if anything, having kids like mine have taught both Bill and I the beauty in "imperfection". Sure, they may not look/act/think/walk/talk the same, but they are still kids, and they deserve as much of a chance at life as do kids who are NOT disabled. But EVERYONE is disabled in one way or another; it's just that some people's "disabilities" show up more. Like my and my husband's, for example. Still, we have a rich, rewarding life, and our kids are our WORLD, and we do anything humanly possible to give our kids everything that life has to offer. We aren't one to "hide" our kids: our kids deserve to succeed in life, and they deserve to experience all the joys (and pitfalls) that life itself has to offer! They have been nothing but a huge blessing to us, and we are so very grateful to have them in our life!
I hope this letter has answered any questions you may have had, and I hope it offers you a sense of hope and encouragment. I love helping people, and I love sharing my "parental experiences" with others, especially those who are new to the world of adoption or raising kids with special needs! Any time you need to talk, I am there. Give me your phone number on my private email account, and I will give you a ringie-dingie one day. Would you like that? Let me know! Thanks! I may seem impossibly busy at times, but I DO have time for my friends, and I WILL make time to help them in any way possible!
God bless you, B.J., and do write again! I have enjoyed writing to you! Hope we get to meet in person one day; that would be AWESOME!
In His Service,
With much love, your Tennessee friend, Louie May. :)
I'm with Karla, I don't know how you keep it all together;-) You are so prolific Karen it's amazing! This is very inspirational and shows the tenderness in your soul,and compassion in your heart!
Hi Karen, this was a trule inspirational piece. My two youngest daughters were is special education through their middle and high schools. Yet, they have out grown this and are now very loving girls in their early twenties. This experience has also helped them see that *handicapped* persons, are very decent people. Just because one is *handicapped* does not mean they should be shut away from the eyes of society. They have as much right to live their lives, as the rest of us. When I was in the Child Center in sparta, Wisconsin, I had seen many children that had Downs Syndrome, yet these children could communicate byeond that *handicap*. When you have a pure heart, and you can take a child o your bosom and love that child, regardless if he or she is yours or not, the God has blessed you for sure. Keep up the good work Karen. ((( HUGS))) your friend in WI.
Barbara Lynn Terry
"If I have to...Then I may as well be."
Now this truly sounds like a loving mother who truly needs some peace and quiet periodically - and I hope Bill and Armand take those kids out more often!
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
Saturday, February 12, 2005, 3:06 p.m., C.S.T.~
