Saturday, May 27, 2017

NDNorth: An afternoon in the life...


It was near perfect weather. The sun was out. The temperature was warm. And the children of New Day North were excited for an outing.
They are so ready in their bright red strollers. They can hardly wait to get to their work of the day: PLAY!
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Chad’s smile is winsome, but there is great joy hidden behind it.
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Evangeline is quietly enjoying the glider with her nanny close beside her.
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Mindy says, “Higher, please!”
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Michael looks a bit unsure, but his smile indicates he wants to slide again.
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Clara loves the chance to practice her walking skills outside in the fresh air.
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Clearly, mastering the slide is no problem for Emerson
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Caleb loves the warm, powdery sand.
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The smooth riding strollers and the adventurous spirits of the children cried out for a race. Ready, set, go! Chad and Evangeline are the winners!
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Could Stephanie’s face be any more joyful??? She loved this afternoon outing.
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Sadly, the time grew short, and the outing had to end. But the tired smiles of the children and the nannies demonstrate the success of the afternoon activity
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this post was written by our volunteer, Ruth
Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Transformation Tuesday: Matthew

Matthew arrived at New Day Foster Home on August 21, 2015 when he was about 6 months old. He was born with orthopedic issues and we were excited to see the difference that medical care, therapy, and love would make in his life.


Matthew's bio says that when he arrived he was a happy child whose laughter was infectious.




As Matthew has grown that has continued to be true!





Matthew worked hard in therapy and continued to surprise us with the new skills he learned.





We were able to celebrate important milestones with Matthew like his first birthday.



He learned what it meant to celebrate holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas.




Matthew loves playing with toys and with all of his 'brothers' and 'sisters.' He loved to be in the middle of the action!





Soon, Matthew will be leaving to join his forever family. While we will miss his smiling face and infectious laughter we are so excited for him!


Sunday, May 21, 2017

NDNorth: A boy and his truck


Wednesday, May 17, 2017

But I don't want to turn 2!


Sunday, May 14, 2017

NDNorth: Mindy


Saturday, May 13, 2017

NDN: Spring Birthdays!



We celebrated four birthdays last week for our March-May birthday kiddos!
Isaiah turned two, Caleb turned three, Michael turned six and Clara is soon to be three! Big parties are the most fun, so we celebrated all together with cake and candles and lots of singing.
  
Presents are pretty fun, too! Caleb got a new shirt and some coloring stuff.


Clara and her nanny opened up her birthday presents together. That pink top is going to look so nice on her!


 Ok, time for cake! Those sprinkles sure do look tasty, don't they, kids? Three candles for Caleb...


Clara: "You go first, Caleb, I'm not sure how to do this. Are you sure this is safe?"


...and he goes for it! Nice work, Caleb!


Ok, it's Clara's turn now!

Your turn, Isaiah!



Wow - six candles sure is a lot. Michael joined our little family in July of last year, so this is the first birthday that we've been able to celebrate with him. What fun!


Not sure what to do, Michael? It's okay, we'll help you...


Michael got a book for his birthday, and he loves having it read to him. There are few things better than being read to by your nanny.



 
Happy, happy birthday, precious ones! You are so very much loved and celebrated. We love celebrating with you so much, but we all hope that you will get to celebrate your next birthdays with forever families. Until then...  let's eat some cake.

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Wordless Wednesday: Beautiful Flowers


Saturday, May 6, 2017

NDNorth: Welcome Ruth!

Ladies and gentlemen... boys and girls of all ages... join us here at New Day North in welcoming our newest arrival!


Ruth joined our little family here recently, and is the newest member of our Special Needs Care and Training Center (read all about our projects in Inner Mongolia HERE)

Ruth is five years-old and has a neurological disorder that has made it really hard for her to keep up with her peers, but changes nothing about who she is as a precious and precocious little girl! Just within her first few days here with us, she has gone from drinking a bottle to a cup, is figuring out how to feed herself (with help!) and can sit up in just about any chair we set her in. She even asks to get into the stander to help develop some leg muscles. This girl is amazing!

She cannot talk, but when we asked if she was happy to be here with us, she definitely communicated, "yes!" and the transition from her orphanage to our care seems to be going well.


Lydia carried her into the foster home, and Frank and Shua Li (Veronica) had some "welcome flowers" for her. Shua Li was SO excited to have a sister to play with, and Frank is enjoying having someone to learn from. These three are going to have a blast together... and probably get into a lot of mischief.