Auction Preview

Since we are on WARP SPEED getting Payton and Yana home by July 1st (Payton's 14th birthday), we need to accelerate the pace of raising funds. We have already raised $2650 and we are SO THANKFUL for all the generous donors who have given! Thank you all!

To help with fundraising, we are putting together a Facebook auction. To gather items for the auction, we asked close friends and various businesses for donations. At first, we did not receive any responses from businesses, but then the gifts started trickling in!  I wanted to share this post to thank the donors and provide a preview for the auction, which will go from March 1st through March 8th at 5:00PM (PST).

Here are some of the great donations that we have received:

The Idea Box (http://theideaboxkids.com) donated six boxes for child-led, play-based activities and ideas. These boxes are applicable for toddlers, preschoolers, kindergarteners and elementary-aged children. I love how sturdy the wooden coins are and all the great suggestions they have!

The Alumni group at Liberty University (https://www.liberty.edu/) donated a really cool OGIO backpack, as well as a Liberty Alumni umbrella, scarf and journal:

Interstate Batteries (http://www.interstatebatteries.com/), who have in their mission statement that they exist "to glorify God," showed their support of the adoption by donating numerous items signed by Kyle Busch!:

Washington State University (www.wsu.edu) donated two tickets to the WSU vs. Colorado Game game on November 21st:

And the University of Washington (www.washington.edu) donated 2 tickets to a UW vs. Sacramento game on September 12th!

THANK YOU SO MUCH DONORS!!!

We have also had a number of anonymous donations and will have some gorgeous Bibles, gift certificates, handmade items, as well as a few things from some fancy name-brands like Coach and Oakley!

I will post a link for the auction next Sunday, March 1st. All funds from the auction will go directly towards our adoption expenses, which exceed $40,000.

Sooner than we thought...

Since the start of this adoption process, we have been moving pretty quickly with forms/paperwork. We knew that we needed to expedite things, since Payton was aging out of the adoption system, but we were unaware that we had to have the adoption finalized by his 14th birthday (July 1st)! I happened to ask our adoption agency about this today and they stated, yes, we must have everything FINALIZED before Payton turns 14. Now, we are in even more of a rush to get our customs forms approved, Dossier logged-in, and that all-important, Travel Approval!

Some may be wondering what happens if the adoption is not finalized by then. Well, from what I understand, Payton will be transferred to an adult mental institution, since he is not physically or emotionally capable of caring for himself. He will no longer be eligible for adoption. Sadly, many of these mental institutions in China lack resources, so children/adults often die from lack of care and nutrition. In Payton's case, he is only at about a first grade reading level, so he clearly would not be able to go out into the world and survive on his own at this time.

So, while we thought we had 8 months or more to raise the funds for Payton and Yana's adoptions, we now must get the funding together in about 4 months! To help bring in the finances, Bill worked with an awesome, veteran-owned t-shirt company to produce some shirts for the adoption. We will be taking pre-orders of the shirts in the next couple weeks, as samples come in and we are able to post pictures. We'll also be doing a Facebook auction soon...more details to come.

Please be in prayer for the adoption, and that things would be expedited at every level!

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Also, a contact via Facebook gave me a bunch of photos of Payton from when she met him two years ago. I thought I would share for those who want to get our little guy better!

Room to play

As I mentioned before, we were blessed a few months ago to purchase a new home with some non-toxic upgrades. The builder for our neighborhood had the creative idea to build two-story homes with the downstairs finished and the second level unfinished (for the dreamer who wants to have a blank slate to do whatever he or she desires!). We really liked the concept, particularly because Bill was not feeling well when we moved in and we wanted all the bedrooms on the main floor.

Now that we are actually moved in (and since two more children will be here soon!), we realize that we need the space upstairs! So, we have started the process of finishing it ourselves and making a large playroom/homeschool area. This both saves money, and ensures that we use non-toxic products throughout!

We painted with Harmony Interior Acrylic Latex Paint (zero VOC formula) from Sherwin Williams. We used MB Global Quiet Walk as the underlayment and Kahrs Landobond Adhesive for gluing the wood pieces together (both non-toxic). 

We decided to go with Lumber Liquidators for the flooring and get unfinished wood for about $1.69 a square foot. The comments on this flooring said to get 50% extra because there were so many major knots and dings, so we ordered the extra. We are so glad that we did! As you can see in the below picture, Bill was able to make a temporary table for his saw out of the spare pieces!

We'll be finishing with Rubio Monocoat sealant (clear) once it is finished, since that is also non-toxic and will strengthen the wood.

It's been a big job, but overall should only be about $3,000 for the 900 sqft space. The lowest quote that we could get to have it professionally done with non-toxic flooring was $8,000, so we have saved a bundle doing it ourselves! I'll post pictures when it is completed!

Therapy options for CP

Since receiving the pre-approval for Yana, Bill and I have been busy preparing physically, mentally and emotionally for all the exciting and challenging things to come this year. We've been reading books on cerebral palsy, started learning Chinese (I'll share more about that later!), and researching Yana's specific form of cerebral palsy, athetoid, which represents just 10% of the individuals with CP. I wanted to share some of the things that we have found in our research, in case it will help others. Most of the information is very encouraging, while some has been a bit intimidating!

In doing research, I came across three books written by adults who have CP. They all had similar stories, such as being told that they were non-verbal or mentally delayed (and later learning that this is not true), experiencing the traumatizing and agonizing therapies that were attempted to correct their symptoms (forceful movements that resulted in severe pain, as well as some useless surgeries), and harsh bullying that they went through. They also shared what helped them most physically and emotionally in dealing some of the challenges with CP. Out of the three books, the one that drew me in the most is called, "Ways out of cerebral palsy during infancy and early childhood with the Feldenkrais Method," by Paul Doron Doroftei.

In his book, Mr. Doroftei shares the incredible testimonial of a method that helped him get out of a wheelchair, increase mobility and reduce most of his CP symptoms over many months and years. At age 60, he says that he now walks better than most people his age because of the techniques that he learned through the Feldenkrais method! He explains that, when someone has CP, it is only the brain that is damaged- not the muscles or nerves in the limbs. Various cells of the brain that would normally communicate slow and steady movements to the extremities are deadened (often through a trauma at the child's birth), which results in spastic, or competing, muscular movements. This is a result of opposing expanding and contracting muscular signals (parasitic messages) being sent at the same time- resulting in hypertonicity or paralysis in the majority of people with CP. (Yana's form, athetoid, sometimes does not have this spasticity, but, rather, flailing, repetitive movements.)

The Feldenkrais Method suggests that, if you can restore proper communication between the brain and these muscles/nerves, eliminating the parasitic messages that are being sent, then more fluid movement and muscle relaxation can occur. I think of it like the "Oregon Trail" game that we all played in elementary school. Imagine that an enormous boulder has suddenly blocked the trail that leads to your destination. You must blaze a new trail to get around this obstacle, which will likely forever be used by future travelers. Similarly, once these correct paths are created in the brain, they are available permanently!

I went on to research the Feldenkrais Method further and frequently came across a related method called the Anat Baniel Method (ABM). Anat Baniel was a student of Dr. Feldenkrais (now deceased) and adapted his technique to improve the outcomes of children and adults using this therapy. She uses it for autism, CP, chronic pain, and even improving flexibility for ballet dancers! The treatments can be very costly and time consuming (I have looked locally and it is $75 for a 45-minute session), but the movements are simple enough for parents to learn and apply to their own special needs kids. In fact, Mr. Doroftei recommends this!

I ordered the ABM training video for special needs kids and am excited to start learning the techniques in the coming weeks. They are very gentle movements and the children remain calm and relaxed throughout the process (some even fall asleep). There are numerous YouTube videos online that show this, but this one is my favorite- since the child has Yana's form of CP and begins walking after just 6 sessions!

As I researched more about therapies for CP, I came across another simple option for children with CP. This involves using a compression garment called the SPIO garment. The clinic in the video below uses this garment, along with a number of therapeutic techniques, and you can see amazing results in this girl (also with Athetoid CP) in just 5 days!

I hesitated to share the below picture of Yana before because it clearly shows drool, so it is not the most flattering picture of our sweet girl. Drooling occurs in about 30% of individuals with CP, indicating an inability to swallow the normal amount of saliva the body produces. I share this now because I have learned that the Feldenkrais Method can even be used to restore connections between the brain and the swallowing muscles, so that she can learn to swallow normally! (You can read about it in the book by Mr. Doroftei.)

With a combination of therapy, and lots of love and prayer, we are very hopeful about Yana's future. Plus, she will have her big brother, Payton, encouraging her along the way. (Payton was not walking at 8 years old and now runs and even likes to play soccer!)  

We can't wait to see Yana freed from her stroller and out exploring the world around her! Please keep her and Payton in your prayers.