As you know, we have been raising two foster children for a little over a week now. They came to us just after Thanksgiving, right after we got back from Louisiana. This in addition to our brood of 50 that we already have, making for a total of 52 children, most of them special-needs.
(Most of the children are still at home; only 4..Dwerlina, Melizza, Lightning, and Tanya..are away from home. Needless to say, we have a VERY big house; we need a big house to accomodate all of the members of our family!)
The children in question are in the process of being adopted by a family in Texas, but the paperwork isn't completed; until it is, then they will stay with our family.
The children are both girls, sisters, ages 4 and 13, and they are originally from Cambodia, which is near Vietnam. They have only been in America for a little over a year, and their English skills are still severely limited, especially for the older girl (Hanh Ly). The younger one, whose name is Linn Chan, speaks some English, but not that much; still, she tries. She acts as her sister's translator.
Both are beautiful: thin, graceful, short for their ages, with jet-black hair (Linn wears hers short while Hanh wears her hair long),
black, almond-shaped eyes, beautiful noses, and supple smiles; and they are both somewhat shy, especially Hanh. Both are also physically handicapped. Linn has no arms or hands (she was born that way; instead, she does everything with her feet), and her sister has severe visual impairments and wears thick glasses. She can distinguish between light and dark and see shadows, but not much else. She is definitely legally blind, and she needs a lot of help.
The reason they were put up for adoption was because the orphanage they had been at closed down, and the children who were there went to different homes or to different families; and Hanh and Linn happened to come to our family as foster kids. But even though they are going to be with us for a short time (they will probably leave in the spring of next year), they have already captured our hearts, and they are well behaved and polite children (if somewhat shy in nature).
They will have Christmas as they have never had before, so the entire meaning of Christmas is decidedly foreign to them; but they DO seem to like the Christmas lights and decorations, and they Do seem to enjoy the Christmas carols we have playing on the stereo. They also like the meaning of "Kanta Klaus" (Santa Claus), and they are already looking forward to when he comes to bring them presents. In fact, little Linn has already informed us that she is "s'eepin' in th' libbin'woom", just so she can see him come in.
As you can imagine, our children have taken Hanh and Linn into their hearts, and they have already accepted them into the family. They thrill in showing them their toys and other possessions, and they love showing off for them. It is so good that our kids have taken in the two newcomers as well as they have.
This will definitely be one Christmas our entire family will NEVER forget! And we have God Above to thank, as He was the One who brought Hanh Ly and Linn Chan to our family.
Hanh Ly and Linn Chan..only temporary, but still..we consider them a part of our hearts, and there they will forever reside, even after they are gone in the spring. We will never forget them as long as we live!
