Okay you know Caitlin, you were actually quite fond of her, you let he hold you and play with you. You are quite the little charmer. :)
I started talking to her while momma and Dada were in Russia for the gotcha day trip, to bring you home. She has a lot of the same interests as i do and we became instant friends.
Cait, asked me if she could write an article for the school newspaper. Which of course I didn't say no to, so here it is:
"He is a sweet, red haired, brown eyed little boy. His name is Vahnya and he has Down syndrome. Vahnya was born in Russia where he was put up for adoption because of his special needs. Across the world, thousands of children like him are put into orphanages because their lives aren’t valued in their own country. Around the age of five, the many of these children are transferred from their orphanages to institutions where the majority of them are tied to their cribs and die within the first year from lack of care, nutrition, and attention.
Luckily, that isn’t the way Vahnya’s story goes. In March of 2010, a Franklin High School family found Vahnya through an organization called “Reece’s Rainbow,” which specializes in international adoption of children with special needs. Originally, the family hadn’t thought of adopting internationally, but once they saw his face, his parents knew he was theirs.
The estimated cost of his adoption was over thirty-five thousand dollars, but they were determined. They held garage sales, fundraisers, and took donations, all to bring Vahnya home and give him the love and care he deserved.
Finally, after flights to Russia, truckloads of paperwork and 385 days of waiting, Vahnya was welcomed to Portland by his six brothers and sisters on March 30th, 2011.He has already seen the ocean, gone to baseball games, and learned what it means to have a family. Although he doesn’t understand now, this little boy was saved from a life of discrimination, neglect, and sadness. His journey to the USA was long and difficult but his oldest sister, a Franklin High School freshman, puts it simply: “he is worth the wait!” "
I think it was two weekends ago, or one, something like that. We were at the field and I texted her and she asked if she could come hang out, OF COURSE! She came and we went to the park. It was so cool to see her and you together, she prayed for you and talked about you, she absolutely ADORES you. (All my friends do, you little lady's man! )
