Bill continues his family-related foibles, as recorded in his online journal.
Monday, July 30, 2007, 10:11 a.m., D.S.T., Nashville, Tennessee~
Dear Journal~
As I alluded to earlier (on Saturday, the 28th), things have been hectic at best here at the Sandusky abode, at times to the point of being chaotic.
Johnny has his tests (MRI and EMG) later this week (on Friday, the third of August), Janica, Jodie, and Roberto are all facing surgery, Louisiana is entering her fourth month of pregnancy, and Ronee' has since gotten over her loss on "America's Got Talent". Andre' and Rani are over their bout of poison ivy, Arjun has recovered from his summer cold, and next month, we are going to our daughter Dwerlina's wedding, as well as a Cajun music festival (that's the weekend before the wedding; both are in Louisiana).
We also found out that we are getting a new foster child, a little Italian-American boy named Vincento (Vinnie). Vinnie is six, has cerebral palsy, and cannot walk or talk, but it is clear that he is a very happy child. He has been in the foster care system since infancy; nobody is willing to take on a child with such significant physical disabilities. It's sad. Everyone wants to adopt a healthy child with blonde hair and blue eyes. Not many parents are willing to take in a child with special needs; this is why there are so many older kids or kids with disabilities who are languishing in the foster care system or on waiting lists to be adopted into a "forever family".
It is clear we aren't like most people. Adopting children with special needs has become our ministy, our "Calling"; this is why we adopted the children we have, as I've mentioned many times before. Our kids are our life; they mean everything to us.
My wife is busy helping other families in the adoption process; she answers families' questions about children with special needs, and she sends them infromation about different disabilities or medical conditions, plus she offers them encouragement as they go about their adoption journeys.
Louie is a nurse, so she is very well versed in caring for a child with various medical problems, and she passes that knowledge on to others. It is a type of "pay-it-forward" scenario: people have helped her, so she passes that help on to others.
Vinnie will be joining our family in several weeks. He has never been with a family; this is why he is coming to stay with us for a while, so he can get the experience of being in a familial environment, so we can prapre him what he will face when he is finally available to be adopted into another family that he can call his own. We are excited about Vinnie, yet we are know time with him will be short, so we have to thinik about that as well. No doubt, tears will be shed when Vinnie does leave us, yet our hearts will be overflowing with happiness as he goes to a family willing to take him in, give him a home--and a chance to succeed.
The weather has settled into a pattern alternating between partly cloudy conditions and afternoon/early evening showers/thundershowers before returning to partly cloudy (or clear) conditions after the sun sets. Then the pattern repeats itself the next day. The days are starting to grow a little shorter, which is a sure bet that we are heading into later summer.
Fall returns next month, as do the children returning to school: the stores are chock full of back-to-school items or fashions; parents such as ourselves are scrambling to stock up on big-time savings on selected items or clothing. Afternoons nowadays are spent at the stores, where kids are trying on back-to-school clothing. The kids may find it annoying (or even boring), but to us, it's out of pure neceessity. We want our children to look their very best upon returning to school, particularly since there are so many of them in the first place. LOL
Well, I have to go to work in an hour; work from 11:30 until 8:30 tonight, which means Louie'll have the kids for six hours (hee!). No doubt, wtih the before school sales in full swing now, Wal*Mart will be packed; always is, especially on the weekends or during major sales like the back-to-school sales. Take care and God bless!
I'm surprised the father Sandusky has time to quill in Bill's Journal! No Tee time for Bill! No time for 9 holes of golf! It's exciting Vinnie will be arriving. He'll be in good company. Thanks for the post today, Karen Lynn...you and Karla be well...Blessed Be.
Love,
Sage
Reviewed by Victor Buhagiar
7/30/2007
Your ministry is a special one, one to applaud. Victor
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