Meet the Kids

Since we've been here a little over a week now, we're really getting to know some of the kids. Over the next year we're going to do little profiles of each one so you guys can better understand how wonderful and special each one of these kids are.

This is Marianela age 2 and a 1/2. She quickly captivated my heart with her mini afro, beautiful lips, large eyes, and delicate features. She is by far the most laid-back kid at FHC. It's like she's was born naturally cool. When all the kids are screaming and crying, she just sits back looking on at the organized chaos around her. We've only seen her cry once and it was brief. One funny thing about her is that she is the slowest eater. The tias are constantly getting after her during meal time for not eating. It's hilarious because if you watch her you can see that she remembers to eat, and then gets engrossed in watching everyone else eat, and then forgets again. She appears very individualistic but at the same time she is sweet with the other orphans and likes to share. Last week when I woke her room up from their naps for dinner, she helped all the other kids make their beds.

This is Andres age 2 and 1/2. He has the sweetest face and loves to smile. Andres was the first kid to make Pete and I feel welcome at FHC. Clark Vaughn, the orphanage owner, was giving us a tour of the orphanage on our first day and Andres came right up to Pete and grabbed his hand. Since then we've worked with Andres almost everyday. He always wants to sit in one of our laps, and during dinner he wants us to sit right next to him. If I even get up for a second to help with the other children, Andres will ask me to sit back down. He also loves to test us at dinner time by pretending to eat his food. He loves to try and make us laugh by making silly faces at us during dinner as well. He seems to be a naturally happy kid.

This is Brayana, age 1 year 5 months. She is a beautiful little girl with almond shaped eyes, and straight black hair., Pete and I think she might be a little bit Asian, but no one knows for sure. Pete and I call Brayana La Torbellina which means Whirlwind in Spanish. We gave this to her because she is a feisty, bouncing ball of energy. She never walks, she always runs at full speed. She loves to laugh. She is also extremely ornery, especially at dinner time. During dinner she will dramatically eat one bite then ferociously shake her head to and fro. It makes all the other kids at her table laugh. The tias are constantly having to reprimand her at dinner because she wants to make jokes instead of eat. When I tell her: "Come Brayana" (Eat Brayana). She will smile at me and shake one little finger as if to say, "I'm not done with my show yet." It's very hard to get frustrated with such a lively little ball of joy. She also really likes Pete. On our first day, she ran into his lap and stayed there until we left.

I really had to limit myself to only picking three kids for tonight because there are so many wonderful kids at the orphanage that I want to tell you all about. They are all beautiful and unique. We will do another profile blog in the next couple weeks.
-Tesha