Long time no post

Dear All
long time no post - very hot day and we are on holiday. Had a lovely visit from Aimee and Simon and their little boy Elijah! Also from our own son Chris. Very busy - they had jet lag and so lives at the other end of the day to us and so to chat we had to stay up way beyond midnight! Our computer is now fixed and so we are going to try and keep up with everything once again. Yesterday went swimming with the girls and had chips out - today we are gong to do jobs around the house in preparation for our home study for Tienna's adoption. This comes with love from us all
J and C
E and E
T and T xxxx

A Chinese wedding

We had a lovely time at a wedding today - one of our wonderful mother's invited us. A real privilege and lots of fun. To get there we got lost in the rain up a back alley with 5 children a buggy and a back pack. Of course I forgot our camera but the sights and sounds of China were all there. The food, chatter, laughter and general revelry. We were shown the new couple's house - a bathroom but no kitchen, two bedrooms and a living room. Very nicely done out - a huge telly with karaoke, Theresa Deng singing very nicely to a cavorting couple on screen! Could I have leapt over the settee in so jocular a fashion? I fear not as I would no doubt have put my foot in my bride's mouth!! The banquet was truly lovely but the children found a turtle floating around in slow circles in the turtle soup, very offputting. Enjoyable conversation with people we already know and who made sure to look after us was really touching. Was that really us in the middle of China at a wedding feast, so really English - picking our way over the sunflower seed shells and down the steep flight of stairs and over an open drain out on to the rough track down to the roadway at the bottom of the hill? With our friends carrying their children - the language of love and common purpose supercedes Chinese/English. We really love our friends here and their commitment to make the lives of many of the little ones here, so much better - is wonderful to be a part of - Thank You Father.


Last few weeks eventful with adoptions, visitors, training and other things - although the child who had a local home for a few days was back and no longer had the prospect of a settled future - I always feel like crying for these precious ones as all deserve the very best we can give them - really ... they are all beautiful.

home sweet home !

I've done the washing up with only one hand free for the first time although I have five kids and three cared for kids!!!!

Hello again - I can't actually sit in a chair at the moment because I have Theo on my back and Rachel on my knee because Cathy has gone to the dentist and I have these two and Faithie here with me.... Well - Rachel's big eyes demanded that I pick her up and Theo has only just woken up and after a bottle he loves a cuddle, so he's in the back pack. I have done all three's nappies, watered them apart from Faith - she is next, done the washing up with only one hand and now to hang out the washing. So as I cannot sit on a chair because of the back pack - I decided to post and have a tea break too. Do you know - I love it.. I left a busy teaching job in the UK to come here - I enjoyed that job but now I cannot imagine returning!! I don't want to - it's too good here! I'd rather be busy and ready to drop here than UK - the reasons I understand and all who do this type of thing - to see changes and bring love to these lovely children is so precious to us, so now to hang up the washing - do I miss staff meetings and policy decision making? No No NONONONONONONO - now which socks belong to who and does Evie wear large knickers - I forget so it should be interesting tomorrow!!! ( I can imagine her wearing a pair of Cathy's - will tell all tomorrow..

Using the walker outside!

Dear Bloggers
please don't shoot us but we used our walker outside - for Theo! Most people say that children shouldn't have walkers as the children don't go through the correct stages for walking - but Theo can't walk and so we decided to try him in his walker outside in the yard in front of our flats. He uses it indoors and we wanted to see what would happen!!!!!!!! Well - togged up in soft leather footwear he went out ----- He loved the freedom. He went all over the yard - and there is a big yard, to the next door block and then to the main gate .. bad idea. Once the scent of freedom was whiffed we couldn't keep him away from that blessed gate. Outside the gate there is a slope the main street ..... whee and into the middle of heavy traffic. Despite several attempts for freedom amid yells of disgust he was retrieved and taken back well into the yard only to make a dash for freedom. He has now crashed out for the night and - unheard of has been put STRAIGHT into his own cot. Yippee - maybe a whole nights sleep? Will tell you tomorrow!

Faith is now making comfortable noises in the kitchen and has her little tune playing on her overhead thingy. I expect she will want a goodnight drink as always - I always say " What a carry on - s'matter with you sweet heart?" To which she shakes her head and listens - only to open her mouth and let out a piercing yell as her uvula wobbles sympathetically. In goes the milk and peace is usually restored unless a bowel movement is in the offing ... oooh!

I can hear Rachel saying "mum mum mum" for the 100th time as she sits beside Cathy at storytime which always takes place in our bed - she spends the time getting Cathy's attention by pinching, biting, or scratching the others -- mm, I wonder where she learnt that? We are training her to caress not pinch, to kiss not bite -- firmly ! A dear little soul with huge brown eyes but a bruised spirit - love love and more love is the medicine for that.

Evie and Elsie are being home schooled, it could drive the saintliest to a quick strong alcoholic beverage. Elsie is keen to please and twitters like a sparrow and Evie pits her wits in order to find the best way to avoid work. Her brain is excellent but her staying power is like the National Grid here - very variable particularly in winter. Seriously though - now I can't see the point of long hours in school away from parents - you can achieve the same in two or three hours and then play - and they both love to play. Today it was icecreams outside after a cycle, a scoot, badminton ( of sorts) and catch. There are lots of good things about being here as well being challenging, emotionally draining and hard work.

Till next time - ta daa!

Life here .....

We are concerned over a security risk and so are editing our blog. Life can be a bit difficult here and we have to be very careful so we cannot post direct pictures of any of our cared for children - we hope that you will understand. Please keep reading as we need to know that someone is out there!!! What a week aaahh !! People in and out, Theo very sick and so lots of nights Cathy has been up for part of the night, I have helped of course but when Theo is sick he needs hi mum, he knows that she knows what to do. The next day at the centre for me is very hazy as I am also disturbed and little Faith thinks if someone is crying she must join in... lovely..... so I feed her at ridiculous times of night because she has no concept of night and morning. Some lovely sessions at the centre and this week a wonderful breakthrough - a little girl with speech problems is actually beginning to talk to me !!!! Hurray, its taken 18 months to forge this relationship. Also she and another little girl let me read them a story - I say read I mean look at a book. I just love to see all our precious children singing and dancing and having lots of fun. Each child is precious and a gift. We are thankful for each little one - able bodied, hurt in spirit, special needs, whatever their issues might be they all deserve the best which is what we try to give them. End of blog fellow bloggers but please keep up and forgive the lack of pictures for the moment.

Easter pics

Easter ....celebrations!!

The Easter bunny was hopping around at midnight laying the treasure tail that would lead to his(??) eggs when he made a major tactical error - you don't put the precious choccie in the knicker basket if you dont want it discovered first thing in the morning!!!!Not to worry the trasure hunters were very understanding & were happy enough to go thru' the game pretending the didnt know the end at the beginning.After there was sufficient chocolate spread on the quilt covers by those of us who have to have our food 'posted' & those of us with an inaccurate aim,we dressed in our glad rags - a major part of the celebrations would take place at 'Pizza Fun' - large quantities of pizza can be consumed for a set fee while chatting to some of our friends who are also part of the 'foreign' community.
Theo has learned to climb our 3 stairs - he is sooo pleased with himself he just keeps on going up & down,up & down....!
Rachel has got more off to a tee & more is her aim in life right now:more attetion,love,fun.giggles,fooood,new experiences....more.
Evie n Elsie have had a great time socialising - meeting some long time no see friends,cousin,aunty,people in out to chat who also love to play with them.The languages include dutch,english ,ch*nese,australian(!)....etc

why......?

Who we are ....
We are a family group who care for children here in this country. We have the privilege of running an education centre and looking after two children as well. When we were first here in 2007 we came with all our family except our second child/oldest son. He was already married and living in the UK. We came to volunteer in the north but came south due to theOlympics. We came to where we are now not really knowing what we would find. We were presented with a variety of physiotherapy equipment but we were teachers by training. So... we believe that education is for all and the 'looked after' children we saw and assessed we accepted and found that out of about 60 children only about 12 needed therapy the rest needed to play and socialise and so be educated through play. We were given help by a trained physiotherapist who is now our valued son - in - law!! We are under a Ch*nese organisation and they give us children from the locality and wider province who are cared for children and we work with them until they start school or find their forever families or both! We have since moved to a bigger centre and have room for a large exercise room where we keep our physiotherapy equipment, a creative room. a play room and a sensory room. It really is great and we love what we have been called to do - you know it isn't just what you know or think you can do - it is having a willing heart. We are very ordinary but called to do the extra ordinary and it is the best thing we have EVER done. Each child is a blessing and a treasure, so we are called A Thousand Treasures. Please keep reading our postings and share in the ups and downs of looking after and helping the children at the centre and those who are in our home...... read on in the future!

why...did I wake up with milk powder in my ears?
why....do I want to tidy up before 'ayi' arrives?
why....do they all fill their nappies at once/cry in unison?
why...are the big kids sooo far away?
why...do adoptions take so long?