Meet the Kids 2

Well we promised we'd do more profiles of some of the kids here so here are three more precious children that we love.

This is Daniela, age 2. She is by far one of the easiest kids in the orphanage. The best way to describe Daniela is that she is a lady. Everything she does is very prim and proper. At dinner she sits very straight and eats her food nicely with a spoon while the other kids at her table use their fingers and make a mess. She is a girly girl and loves pretty things. When she wakes up from her naps, she likes to sit in my lap and hold her teddy bear. She doesn't say much, but when she does speak it's in this cute little high-pitched voice. Daniela loves to observe the world around her. She loves to intently look at nature, such as a new flower in bloom. She also loves to be held. She is one of the few kids who like to sit in my lap and lean her head against my chest. She rarely cries, even when one of the other kids antagonizes her.

This is Edison, age 2. Edison has Down syndrome but that hasn't stopped him from being one of the most active kids at FHC. Edison reminds me of a rolly polly bug. He loves to be dirty, and that's why he likes to be outside where he can get the dirtiest. I think one of his favorite activities is actually to eat dirt. We are constantly stopping him from eating it. He also loves the swings and playing in a toy house the orphanage has. We love Edison because he is so happy all the time. Sometimes he will begin to cry but stop after a few seconds, as if he's forgotten why he started crying in the first place. He also loves for us to hold him. When we come to the toddler house, Edison is always one of the first kids to run up to Pete or me and stretch his little hands towards us. Edison can be mischievous. During meal times he sometimes puts his food in the bowl of his table neighbor, Brayana.

This is Juan Jose age one year and 9 months. He is the second youngest kid in the toddler house and is a quirky little kid. The picture above is showing one of Juan Jose’s famous half-smiles. Juan Jose is a serious child, and a full smile from him is rare, but when something amuses him he will give you this particular lopsided smile. Juan Jose is very independent for his age, and would rather do things alone most of the time. One of his favorite things to do is to destroy anything that is neat. If there is a box of toys put neatly away, you can rest assured that Juan Jose will have them scattered over the floor in no time. He thinks it’s funny when we tell him to pick up the toys. Another funny thing Juan Jose does is how he acts at meal times. During a meal when Juan Jose is served something he doesn’t particularly care for he will obey his tias by putting the food in his mouth, but he won’t chew. He will put more and more food in his mouth until it puffs out his cheeks. He ends up looking like a begrudged chipmunk. It makes me laugh every time!

So that concludes our second portion of “Meet the Kids.” These are my favorite sections to write and I hope it gives you a better understanding of how much we enjoy these kids.