Monday, May 21, 2012
Letter I wrote for a friend about our experiences with biomedical treatment of autism
May 21, 2012
To Whom It May Concern:
Although most of my daughter’s first two years of life are somewhat of a blur, in retrospect, a few moments stand out vividly: that first car ride home from the hospital, walking the floor at night trying to soothe her infant cries, that pit that formed in my stomach when my best friend gently told me that “most of the 18-month-old girls that I know are very social,” the day the “A-bomb” was dropped for the first time by a therapist, the day that I filled out the questionnaire at the pediatrician’s office, feeling like each little check mark was condemning my precious baby, the day the referral was made for an autism evaluation and my mom and I cried together over the cell phone. These are my early memories of my only baby girl.
By the time Abby was officially diagnosed on October 11, 2011, I had grieved (mostly) and was ready to fight this with all the strength, intelligence and tenacity I had. I was all in. As a licensed speech-language pathologist, I knew the prognosis for children on the autism spectrum: years of therapy, adjusted expectations for life, modest gains. This was not acceptable for my Abby. As I began to come out of my denial and grief, I became inspired. There were parents out there who were claiming to have “recovered” their children from autism; taken them out of the grasp of this devastating disorder. I began to delve more and more into how they were doing it. Essentially, they were not simply accepting conventional medical wisdom for the treatment of autism. They were instead evaluating the true biological causes of autism in their children and were treating them “biomedically”. The results were undeniable and in some cases truly miraculous. I began Abby on a gluten free and casein free diet on my own but I needed someone to help me down this biomedical road that I knew little about but needed to learn quickly for the sake of my daughter and her future.
That someone was Dr. Daniel Kalb, a medical doctor from Franklin, Tennessee. I walked into his office with a two-and-a-half-year-old who did not look at me, did not talk to me, had chronic diarrhea, and didn’t sleep through the night. Abby could say “bu,” “du,” “cu,” and “mu.” That was it. At our first appointment, I gave Dr. Kalb a detailed history of Abby’s medical symptoms: diarrhea, sensory processing disorder, sleeplessness, even the dark spots on her teeth. He recommended a battery of tests to evaluate Abby’s intestinal functioning and started her on a course of vitamins and dietary supplements based on the history he obtained about Abby. What happened next was life-changing for Abby and our family and friends and I am hoping will be for others. Within days she was making two-syllable words, then final consonants on words, then combining two words, then making sentences. She started coming out of her world and joining ours. She began smiling and singing and making eye contact and playing with toys and sleeping through the night. She began running to me for hugs and kisses. She began calling me Mommy. She began to show us how truly brilliant her mind is when it is given the change to develop.
We have made countless changes as a family but it is beyond worth the sacrifice. We are getting to know our daughter a little more each day. We continue to follow Dr. Kalb’s guidelines to the letter and we have not been disappointed in doing so. I am nearly giddy for each appointment with him to find out what piece of the puzzle we will solve next.
This journey we are on has given me what I once thought I might never have: hope. I now have great expectations for my Abigail. And my job is to give her every opportunity to realize the dreams she will dream for herself.
Sincerely,
Rebecca L. Haake
To Whom It May Concern:
Although most of my daughter’s first two years of life are somewhat of a blur, in retrospect, a few moments stand out vividly: that first car ride home from the hospital, walking the floor at night trying to soothe her infant cries, that pit that formed in my stomach when my best friend gently told me that “most of the 18-month-old girls that I know are very social,” the day the “A-bomb” was dropped for the first time by a therapist, the day that I filled out the questionnaire at the pediatrician’s office, feeling like each little check mark was condemning my precious baby, the day the referral was made for an autism evaluation and my mom and I cried together over the cell phone. These are my early memories of my only baby girl.
By the time Abby was officially diagnosed on October 11, 2011, I had grieved (mostly) and was ready to fight this with all the strength, intelligence and tenacity I had. I was all in. As a licensed speech-language pathologist, I knew the prognosis for children on the autism spectrum: years of therapy, adjusted expectations for life, modest gains. This was not acceptable for my Abby. As I began to come out of my denial and grief, I became inspired. There were parents out there who were claiming to have “recovered” their children from autism; taken them out of the grasp of this devastating disorder. I began to delve more and more into how they were doing it. Essentially, they were not simply accepting conventional medical wisdom for the treatment of autism. They were instead evaluating the true biological causes of autism in their children and were treating them “biomedically”. The results were undeniable and in some cases truly miraculous. I began Abby on a gluten free and casein free diet on my own but I needed someone to help me down this biomedical road that I knew little about but needed to learn quickly for the sake of my daughter and her future.
That someone was Dr. Daniel Kalb, a medical doctor from Franklin, Tennessee. I walked into his office with a two-and-a-half-year-old who did not look at me, did not talk to me, had chronic diarrhea, and didn’t sleep through the night. Abby could say “bu,” “du,” “cu,” and “mu.” That was it. At our first appointment, I gave Dr. Kalb a detailed history of Abby’s medical symptoms: diarrhea, sensory processing disorder, sleeplessness, even the dark spots on her teeth. He recommended a battery of tests to evaluate Abby’s intestinal functioning and started her on a course of vitamins and dietary supplements based on the history he obtained about Abby. What happened next was life-changing for Abby and our family and friends and I am hoping will be for others. Within days she was making two-syllable words, then final consonants on words, then combining two words, then making sentences. She started coming out of her world and joining ours. She began smiling and singing and making eye contact and playing with toys and sleeping through the night. She began running to me for hugs and kisses. She began calling me Mommy. She began to show us how truly brilliant her mind is when it is given the change to develop.
We have made countless changes as a family but it is beyond worth the sacrifice. We are getting to know our daughter a little more each day. We continue to follow Dr. Kalb’s guidelines to the letter and we have not been disappointed in doing so. I am nearly giddy for each appointment with him to find out what piece of the puzzle we will solve next.
This journey we are on has given me what I once thought I might never have: hope. I now have great expectations for my Abigail. And my job is to give her every opportunity to realize the dreams she will dream for herself.
Sincerely,
Rebecca L. Haake
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Haiti Mission Team Doing Well
Mike's team at NWHCM has arrived and all are doing well. Today the team visited the mission's high school and a local prison. Tomorrow the team will go to the town of Ansefoluer where they will see a voodoo temple.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Ruuska Village
I had to post this video. I find it amazing. I think it may be the best journalistic piece I've seen covering the earthquake. The quality is film-like. I was somewhat shocked by the source. But if you think about it, they are not worried about skewing left so the story is presented with refreshing honesty (no UN lovefest here). It's a bit long but totally worth it.
This is the lady who facilitated our adoption. We stayed in her village for a time as well. She is an amazing woman and a miracle worker in our eyes.
This is the lady who facilitated our adoption. We stayed in her village for a time as well. She is an amazing woman and a miracle worker in our eyes.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
True insight is woth a 1,000 journalists
in-sight: The capacity to discern the true nature of a situation
Here is a quote from Tara Livesay, an adoptive mother and missionary in Haiti.
"I have been reading the news articles about a few of the real and/or perceived cases of children being taken illegally. There is a reason we've avoided the media as a general rule --- much of it is exaggerated, inflated, sensationalized and untrue. (And of course I wish that no one would do something illegal but I bet you we don't have the whole story.) They need stories for ratings so they can sell advertising at a higher price. That does not exactly set them up to report with integrity and total honesty.
Haiti is an incredibly difficult place. It was before the earthquake. Now it is difficult times ten. UNICEF would like you to believe that there are lots of "safe spaces" (whatever the heck that is) where they can put children. They want you to think that there is a great risk GREAT RISK of children being used for sex slaves and domestic servitude in the USA and other countries ... they want you to believe that Haiti is the safest place for them to be protected.
We have only been here four years plus a year of going back and forth a ton. BUT in these years I can tell you that we have seen horrific abuse of children. Neglect, sexual abuse, restaveks ---- it is rampant. Sexual crime is NOT a crime in Haiti.
For example A 30 year old man can have sex with a 8 year old girl here and there is no legal process for pressing charges. It is culturally acceptable. Working with women I can tell you that they do not control their own bodies. The men call the shots. In my neighborhood there are restaveks working at 5am sweeping the fricking street for the people they live with. There is no way in hell Unicef or any other yahoo that has not lived in this culture and seen it with their own eyes will EVER EVER EVER convince me that Haiti is a safer place for an orphan. Never. Also, sitting somewhere else and reading news stories that the media produces is not a good way to decide that UNICEF is good and on the up and up. The media has something to gain from making stories more dramatic. Unicef has something to gain by keeping orphans as orphans. No Orphans equals no Unicef afterall."
(Reposted from http://thehowertons.blogspot.com/)
Here is a quote from Tara Livesay, an adoptive mother and missionary in Haiti.
"I have been reading the news articles about a few of the real and/or perceived cases of children being taken illegally. There is a reason we've avoided the media as a general rule --- much of it is exaggerated, inflated, sensationalized and untrue. (And of course I wish that no one would do something illegal but I bet you we don't have the whole story.) They need stories for ratings so they can sell advertising at a higher price. That does not exactly set them up to report with integrity and total honesty.
Haiti is an incredibly difficult place. It was before the earthquake. Now it is difficult times ten. UNICEF would like you to believe that there are lots of "safe spaces" (whatever the heck that is) where they can put children. They want you to think that there is a great risk GREAT RISK of children being used for sex slaves and domestic servitude in the USA and other countries ... they want you to believe that Haiti is the safest place for them to be protected.
We have only been here four years plus a year of going back and forth a ton. BUT in these years I can tell you that we have seen horrific abuse of children. Neglect, sexual abuse, restaveks ---- it is rampant. Sexual crime is NOT a crime in Haiti.
For example A 30 year old man can have sex with a 8 year old girl here and there is no legal process for pressing charges. It is culturally acceptable. Working with women I can tell you that they do not control their own bodies. The men call the shots. In my neighborhood there are restaveks working at 5am sweeping the fricking street for the people they live with. There is no way in hell Unicef or any other yahoo that has not lived in this culture and seen it with their own eyes will EVER EVER EVER convince me that Haiti is a safer place for an orphan. Never. Also, sitting somewhere else and reading news stories that the media produces is not a good way to decide that UNICEF is good and on the up and up. The media has something to gain from making stories more dramatic. Unicef has something to gain by keeping orphans as orphans. No Orphans equals no Unicef afterall."
(Reposted from http://thehowertons.blogspot.com/)
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Ronel's Story
Read the story of this poor child named Ronel who was been orphaned and rejected by his government and about the blessed people who love him and are trying DESPERATELY to bring him home. And what is stopping the them, the US govt.'s willingness to kowtow to ridiculous and unnecessary paperwork required by the defunct Haitian govt. under the thumb of UNICEF.
http://thehowertons.blogspot.com/
http://thehowertons.blogspot.com/
Another perspecitve
Read this guys great commentary on stinky, stinky, stinky UNICEF.
randybohlender.wordpress.com
randybohlender.wordpress.com
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Another perspective
The Livesay's life's work is to serve the people of Haiti. Please check out their blog post about UNICEF. It is eye-opening.
http://livesayhaiti.blogspot.com/
http://livesayhaiti.blogspot.com/
Friday, January 29, 2010
Adoption IS the answer!
What are blogs for if not to disseminate your wisdom to the world. I have been so hot and bothered by the ignorant and anti-adoption sentiments I have been seeing and reading coming from the government, news media and now popular media (Yes, I'm talking about you Dr. Phil). So here goes...
1. Adoption is NOT human trafficking. It is THE ANSWER to human trafficking. Stop painting adoptive parents with the same brush as pedophiles, pimps and slave dealers. Yes, surely children that are left in the hands of a government whose ability "to provide basic services and security for citizens, and to control rampant crime in the capital, Port-au-Prince,continues to be compromised by limited resources, an untrained and poorly equipped police force, entrenched government corruption, and perennially weak government institutions" as described by the US State Department, will certainly be at great risk for abduction and exploitation in the wake of a major disaster. The answer is not to turn these kids over to the ridiculous government leaders that they were born victims to in hopes that now in a crisis they will somehow prove themselves not to be the buffoons they've been for the last 200 years but instead for the US State Department to work closely with US based charities already on the ground to identify children in need of families and put as much pressure as humanly possible on the inept Haitian government to expedite these children to safe, loving and stable homes in this and other developed countries. This brings me to my next point.
2. Stop using the ridiculous and loaded term "true orphan." Now class, everyone close your eyes and imagine all the children you know in America who have two dead parents. Go ahead, I'll wait. I thought of one. He lives with his older sister. Now think of all the children that are in the foster system or have been adopted from this country or others who have at least one living parent who is either unable or unwilling to raise said child. I would need about 5 hands to count them all. So, why are we so hell-bent on using this standard of "true orphan" when referring to children who need a home and a family now, not in 3 or 4 years but now. Especially in the wake of the biggest disaster the country as seen in modern history. My son has two living birth parents. They starved him and left him for dead because he had cerebral palsy and was deaf. But they are very much still alive. Does that make ME a child trafficker for taking this child from his home country with their full knowledge, consent and participation. Of course not. "True orphan" is not the standard we use in America and should not be the standard we set for international adoption either. (*Note: When my son is old enough to read and understand this post, I will remove this entry. I would never describe his past situation to him in these raw terms although they are the truth.)
3. A word about the screening process for adoptive parents in the US... A "home study" is a rather expensive process that results in a 7-10 page document that gets sent to the Department of Homeland Security who fingerprints you with their fancy schmancy finger printing computer and matches it against the super duper database in Washington to ensure you are not some sort of terrorist or on a most wanted list. By the time the US Govt. waves its wand at you and calls you worthy you have had the following examined:
Your head (by a shrink)
Your heart, skin, lungs, and blood (by a doctor)
Your spirit (by a clergy member)
Your bank account (by the US govt.)
Your tax statements (by the IRS)
Your ability to provide a steady income (by your employer)
Your lack of criminal background and lack of sexual offenses(by the State Police)
Your character (by your friends and neighbors)
Your upstairs, downstairs, attic, basements, back yard, front yard, and closets (by a social worker)
Your vehicles(by a social worker)
Your family history and your current views on life, love, and parenting (by a social worker)
Your dog (by a veterinarian)
And I've probably forgotten something since this was a few years back. Point being, all these licensed and certified professionals have gotten together along with the secretary of state and the Haitian Embassy in the US (via a paid translator) to give you (literally) their stamp of approval. Let me tell you that stamp does not come cheap or easy. We are as transparent as one can be. We are not emotional light-weights who jump into this process blindly lead by our bleeding hearts. We are also not scheisters who have circumvented protocol to exploit the vulnerable. We are NOT the bad guys. Which brings me to my next point.
4. UNICEF sucks. Please do not allow your precious children to go out at Halloween time in their darling costumes and stump for this political organization that does not support the values that you hold dear. First of all, in case you have been living under a rock, UNICEF if part of the UN. 'Nough said. When I spent a great deal of time in Haiti, trying desperately to jump through the fiery hoops that lead to the receding finish line of bringing MY(the govt. had already granted us the adoption) child home I never once heard of any UNICEF clinics, orphanages, schools, literacy or vaccination programs. I did however, hear of UNICEF lobbyists in the government offices doing what they could do to foul up adoptions. UNICEF is anti-adoption, anti-religion, and anti-American. If they were truly dedicated to their mission to "advocate for the protection of children's rights, to help meet their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full potential" they could not possibly run around the globe spending a great deal of their energies and big time bucks opposing adoptions. And I'm so sick of hearing "but they're a well-established organization." Well so is the KKK. In a CNN article out today (http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/01/29/haiti.restavek.sende.sencil/?hpt=Sbin), a young Haitian restavek (child slave) was rescued by some American doctors. Her captors were trying again and again to steal her back. She was obviously terrified of them. She was living in a hospital tent. A UNICEF worker came to her a day later and talked with her. The worker told her that she didn't need to go back with the captors if she didn't want to (thanks guys) and then they left her there in the tent again. When asked if she could be anywhere in the world right now, what was the girls reply? "America." Eventually they sent her away with a man that they thought was her actual father who was supposed to take her to her actual mother. An American doctor who was treating the girl said he wished they had waited till her mother came forward to claim the girl and bring her back home. Common sense right? Who knows if this girl will remain with her family who cannot care for her or go back into servitude again. Job well done UNICEF.
Whew, if you are reading this you have a great deal of perseverance. I probably could rant on but would it really help? If feels good to get this out and written down but I doubt it will help me sleep at night or any of the thousands or Haitian orphans who will sleep outside tonight. I have tried to contact the Secretary of the Bureau of Public Relations at the State Department to share with him my perspective. I'll let you know if he returns my call.
1. Adoption is NOT human trafficking. It is THE ANSWER to human trafficking. Stop painting adoptive parents with the same brush as pedophiles, pimps and slave dealers. Yes, surely children that are left in the hands of a government whose ability "to provide basic services and security for citizens, and to control rampant crime in the capital, Port-au-Prince,continues to be compromised by limited resources, an untrained and poorly equipped police force, entrenched government corruption, and perennially weak government institutions" as described by the US State Department, will certainly be at great risk for abduction and exploitation in the wake of a major disaster. The answer is not to turn these kids over to the ridiculous government leaders that they were born victims to in hopes that now in a crisis they will somehow prove themselves not to be the buffoons they've been for the last 200 years but instead for the US State Department to work closely with US based charities already on the ground to identify children in need of families and put as much pressure as humanly possible on the inept Haitian government to expedite these children to safe, loving and stable homes in this and other developed countries. This brings me to my next point.
2. Stop using the ridiculous and loaded term "true orphan." Now class, everyone close your eyes and imagine all the children you know in America who have two dead parents. Go ahead, I'll wait. I thought of one. He lives with his older sister. Now think of all the children that are in the foster system or have been adopted from this country or others who have at least one living parent who is either unable or unwilling to raise said child. I would need about 5 hands to count them all. So, why are we so hell-bent on using this standard of "true orphan" when referring to children who need a home and a family now, not in 3 or 4 years but now. Especially in the wake of the biggest disaster the country as seen in modern history. My son has two living birth parents. They starved him and left him for dead because he had cerebral palsy and was deaf. But they are very much still alive. Does that make ME a child trafficker for taking this child from his home country with their full knowledge, consent and participation. Of course not. "True orphan" is not the standard we use in America and should not be the standard we set for international adoption either. (*Note: When my son is old enough to read and understand this post, I will remove this entry. I would never describe his past situation to him in these raw terms although they are the truth.)
3. A word about the screening process for adoptive parents in the US... A "home study" is a rather expensive process that results in a 7-10 page document that gets sent to the Department of Homeland Security who fingerprints you with their fancy schmancy finger printing computer and matches it against the super duper database in Washington to ensure you are not some sort of terrorist or on a most wanted list. By the time the US Govt. waves its wand at you and calls you worthy you have had the following examined:
Your head (by a shrink)
Your heart, skin, lungs, and blood (by a doctor)
Your spirit (by a clergy member)
Your bank account (by the US govt.)
Your tax statements (by the IRS)
Your ability to provide a steady income (by your employer)
Your lack of criminal background and lack of sexual offenses(by the State Police)
Your character (by your friends and neighbors)
Your upstairs, downstairs, attic, basements, back yard, front yard, and closets (by a social worker)
Your vehicles(by a social worker)
Your family history and your current views on life, love, and parenting (by a social worker)
Your dog (by a veterinarian)
And I've probably forgotten something since this was a few years back. Point being, all these licensed and certified professionals have gotten together along with the secretary of state and the Haitian Embassy in the US (via a paid translator) to give you (literally) their stamp of approval. Let me tell you that stamp does not come cheap or easy. We are as transparent as one can be. We are not emotional light-weights who jump into this process blindly lead by our bleeding hearts. We are also not scheisters who have circumvented protocol to exploit the vulnerable. We are NOT the bad guys. Which brings me to my next point.
4. UNICEF sucks. Please do not allow your precious children to go out at Halloween time in their darling costumes and stump for this political organization that does not support the values that you hold dear. First of all, in case you have been living under a rock, UNICEF if part of the UN. 'Nough said. When I spent a great deal of time in Haiti, trying desperately to jump through the fiery hoops that lead to the receding finish line of bringing MY(the govt. had already granted us the adoption) child home I never once heard of any UNICEF clinics, orphanages, schools, literacy or vaccination programs. I did however, hear of UNICEF lobbyists in the government offices doing what they could do to foul up adoptions. UNICEF is anti-adoption, anti-religion, and anti-American. If they were truly dedicated to their mission to "advocate for the protection of children's rights, to help meet their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full potential" they could not possibly run around the globe spending a great deal of their energies and big time bucks opposing adoptions. And I'm so sick of hearing "but they're a well-established organization." Well so is the KKK. In a CNN article out today (http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/01/29/haiti.restavek.sende.sencil/?hpt=Sbin), a young Haitian restavek (child slave) was rescued by some American doctors. Her captors were trying again and again to steal her back. She was obviously terrified of them. She was living in a hospital tent. A UNICEF worker came to her a day later and talked with her. The worker told her that she didn't need to go back with the captors if she didn't want to (thanks guys) and then they left her there in the tent again. When asked if she could be anywhere in the world right now, what was the girls reply? "America." Eventually they sent her away with a man that they thought was her actual father who was supposed to take her to her actual mother. An American doctor who was treating the girl said he wished they had waited till her mother came forward to claim the girl and bring her back home. Common sense right? Who knows if this girl will remain with her family who cannot care for her or go back into servitude again. Job well done UNICEF.
Whew, if you are reading this you have a great deal of perseverance. I probably could rant on but would it really help? If feels good to get this out and written down but I doubt it will help me sleep at night or any of the thousands or Haitian orphans who will sleep outside tonight. I have tried to contact the Secretary of the Bureau of Public Relations at the State Department to share with him my perspective. I'll let you know if he returns my call.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Christmas 2009
Kerwin with his Dune Buggy
Big Blue Christmas!
Abby enjoying the gifts.
Look how I can stand up!
Kerwin loves his new clothes, shoes, googles, and Dune Buggy.
Big Blue Christmas!
Abby enjoying the gifts.
Look how I can stand up!
Kerwin loves his new clothes, shoes, googles, and Dune Buggy.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
ASL Classes
American Sign Language Classes
For beginners (all ages welcomed)
Thursday evenings from 7:00-8:15
January 21- March25
First Alliance Church Family Life Center
2201 Old Higbee Mill Road
Lexington, KY
Cost: $40.00/person
Please pre-register by January 7th
Contact Rebecca Haake at
rebeccahaake@hotmail.com
For beginners (all ages welcomed)
Thursday evenings from 7:00-8:15
January 21- March25
First Alliance Church Family Life Center
2201 Old Higbee Mill Road
Lexington, KY
Cost: $40.00/person
Please pre-register by January 7th
Contact Rebecca Haake at
rebeccahaake@hotmail.com
Monday, November 16, 2009
Busy Weekend and Annual Review
We had a wonderful but busy time this weekend. My cousin plays basketball at Lehigh University and her team was playing two games in Nashville this weekend. Additionally, UK (football) played against Vandy Saturday afternoon which was just icing on the cake. A whole host of Haakes and other family members descended on Nashville for a weekend full of fun and sporting events. We ended up 2 and 1 for the weekend. Lehigh beat Lipscomb by a decent margin, UK squeaked by Vandy and then Lehigh lost to Vandy on Sunday. My grandma flew in from Pennsylvania Thursday evening and is staying with us through Thanksgiving. It is wonderful to have her here in addition to my regular host of helpers.
Abby is absolutely adorable right now. She is scooting around backwards (she hasn't quite figured out the forward crawl yet) and trying to figure out how to go from crawling to sitting and back again. She's starting to babble (dada and teetee) and blows lots of raspberries. She also loves to hear herself yell. She is still fascinated with her wrists and does the "princess wave" all the time. She is just a joy to us all. Kerwin continues to have a good year at school. I am so impressed with his teacher this year. She is very no-nonsense. She lets the kids know exactly what is expected of them and she holds them to it. The first week of school Kerwin came home quoting the teacher: "Tina says, 'No socializing, pay attention to the teacher.'" He is making good progress in both his reading and math. Today was his annual review for his Individualized Education Program. It was hard to believe that we are on his third IEP. He has come so far in such a short amount of time.
Mike continues to be busy with taking a good deal of the responsibilities with Kerwin, teaching, coaching softball and leading a high school group on an annual mission trip to Haiti. I am working 2-3 days a week in a preschool. This is my third year there and I love my job. But I am always ready to rush home to the baby after work. It's stressful being a working(and breastfeeding) mom even if it is only part time. Mike and I have found the transition from 1 to 2 kids to be a very big one. As always we are so thankful for our supportive families. Until next time...
Abby is absolutely adorable right now. She is scooting around backwards (she hasn't quite figured out the forward crawl yet) and trying to figure out how to go from crawling to sitting and back again. She's starting to babble (dada and teetee) and blows lots of raspberries. She also loves to hear herself yell. She is still fascinated with her wrists and does the "princess wave" all the time. She is just a joy to us all. Kerwin continues to have a good year at school. I am so impressed with his teacher this year. She is very no-nonsense. She lets the kids know exactly what is expected of them and she holds them to it. The first week of school Kerwin came home quoting the teacher: "Tina says, 'No socializing, pay attention to the teacher.'" He is making good progress in both his reading and math. Today was his annual review for his Individualized Education Program. It was hard to believe that we are on his third IEP. He has come so far in such a short amount of time.
Mike continues to be busy with taking a good deal of the responsibilities with Kerwin, teaching, coaching softball and leading a high school group on an annual mission trip to Haiti. I am working 2-3 days a week in a preschool. This is my third year there and I love my job. But I am always ready to rush home to the baby after work. It's stressful being a working(and breastfeeding) mom even if it is only part time. Mike and I have found the transition from 1 to 2 kids to be a very big one. As always we are so thankful for our supportive families. Until next time...
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Back to Blogging
Here are some recent pictures of the kids and I when we went out to LA to visit my sister.
With Abby now 6-months-old I find myself with more time for things like the computer, so I have been feeling the urge to pick the blogging back up again. We recently passed our two-year anniversary of bringing Kerwin home. I got nostalgic and went back to read many of my past blogs. It reminded me how much I loved having an online "diary" to help me remember things in the life of our family that I may otherwise forget with the passing of time. I think it will also be nice for the kids to be able to read when they get a little older.
So...quick update. Kerwin is in second grade. He is really liking his teacher and classmates and is improving his academic skills every day. He just finishd a season of baseball and football starts this weekend. He is walking mostly without his walker but still needs it in crowded places or for long distances. He still wears braces on his ankles and on his legs at night. His sign language is progressing wonderfully. He has long since passed us in his signing abilities. We are still taking classes but it has become a bit tougher with the baby. Speaking of the baby, she is as cute as can be. She is very social and loves to be outside or in busy places. She is a good baby and lots of fun. She is sitting up and tring to grab anything in her reach.
I took the kids out to Los Angeles to visit my sister on our Fall break. They were angels during our travels. It was a little harder once we got there and had to try to function with Abby still on Eastern time but we managed. We got to hang out with some old friends of mine from college which was great. I was so glad we got to see Rachel's new apartment. We also visited the Farmer's Market and Santa Monica pier. That's where the pictures were taken.
Kerwin has had 2 Halloween parties already and has 2 to go. I will try to post pictures after Trick or Treating but I'm having camera issues. Until then, enjoy my favorite season!!
With Abby now 6-months-old I find myself with more time for things like the computer, so I have been feeling the urge to pick the blogging back up again. We recently passed our two-year anniversary of bringing Kerwin home. I got nostalgic and went back to read many of my past blogs. It reminded me how much I loved having an online "diary" to help me remember things in the life of our family that I may otherwise forget with the passing of time. I think it will also be nice for the kids to be able to read when they get a little older.
So...quick update. Kerwin is in second grade. He is really liking his teacher and classmates and is improving his academic skills every day. He just finishd a season of baseball and football starts this weekend. He is walking mostly without his walker but still needs it in crowded places or for long distances. He still wears braces on his ankles and on his legs at night. His sign language is progressing wonderfully. He has long since passed us in his signing abilities. We are still taking classes but it has become a bit tougher with the baby. Speaking of the baby, she is as cute as can be. She is very social and loves to be outside or in busy places. She is a good baby and lots of fun. She is sitting up and tring to grab anything in her reach.
I took the kids out to Los Angeles to visit my sister on our Fall break. They were angels during our travels. It was a little harder once we got there and had to try to function with Abby still on Eastern time but we managed. We got to hang out with some old friends of mine from college which was great. I was so glad we got to see Rachel's new apartment. We also visited the Farmer's Market and Santa Monica pier. That's where the pictures were taken.
Kerwin has had 2 Halloween parties already and has 2 to go. I will try to post pictures after Trick or Treating but I'm having camera issues. Until then, enjoy my favorite season!!
Friday, July 31, 2009
Heading home
We are just about to head to the airport here in Port-au-Prince. It has been an eventful last few days, we had VBS in the towns of Chansolme and Ansefoleur. On Wednesday we were supposed to take a boat to the island of Tortuga but the waves were too high so our trip was canceled. Our group instead worked around the mission: playing with babies, painting the new special-needs orphanage, and assisting with some surgeries. Please pray for our team as we travel because we had several people who were sick yesterday.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Good Sunday in Haiti!
Hello everyone! We had a great Sunday in Haiti. This morning we went to the mission church across the street. During Sunday school, everyone from our team shared a brief testimony or verse with the Haitians at church. Then half our team stayed in the church while I preached and then half our team lead children's church. Brenda from our group also interpreted for a group of deaf people from the community. The deaf people were very excited as this is the first time many of them have been able to come to church and understand what's going on. In the afternoon, we took the special-needs orphanage kids on a ride around the courtyard in a "train" here at the mission. They had a great time! And then later in the afternoon a group of Americans (including many from our group) here along with a few Haitians who work at the mission played an exhibition soccer game against a local professional soccer team. We were excited to only lose 4-1. Tomorrow we will be traveling to the city of Chansolme to do a VBS and deliver food.
Friday, July 24, 2009
the last couple days
We have had an eventful last couple days. We visited the mission's orphanage, held a VBS for the deaf students, delivered food up in the mountains, worked in the baby and special-needs orphanage among many other things. Tomorrow we will be hiking to a waterfall to swim and then we will be going to church on Sunday. Everyone is healthy, doing well, and having a great time!
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Hello from Haiti!
Hello from Haiti! Everyone is doing well so far. Yesterday we rode the bus in and arrived at supper time. It rained very hard last night, but everyone got a good night's rest after a long day of travel. Today the group was involved in a variety of ministries at the baby orphanage, special-needs orphanage, and elderly home. Tomorrow we will be traveling to the mission's orphanage a few hours away. We had a great time at team devotion and everyone seems to be growing spiritually and getting plugged into the ministries here in Haiti. We will spending the night there tomorrow night and will return to the mission Thursday morning. The Internet has been sporadically working, but I will try to update when possible.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Pictures of the kids
When my sister was in, she took beautiful pictures of the kids. I don't have time to upload them all here at the moment but you can see them on her blog at www.tylerandrachelhisel.blogspot.com. They are just adorable. Thanks, Rachel!
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