Day 31 / A Different Halloween

Yesterday morning while it was pouring outside I was in the office working on more Christmas cards (I don't know where they keep coming up with more names!) I just realized I still have pen ink on my hands and arm that somehow has not washed off yet :P

Thankfully the rain let up in the afternoon because I got to go to the baby (toddler) orphanage again! The kids are so cute and lots of them are remembering us now. At one point I was holding one child while three more were pulling on me and patting me trying to get my attention! I hope someday I can do a lot more for some babies that need more love in their lives.

 He's too stinking cute!

 After seeing Kelbin with a number of kids I can say quite confidently that he is going to make an excellent father someday!

 Thank you for taking this Kelbin!

After finishing up at the orphanage I went out with the Vietnamese staff from Orphan Voice for duck meat and rice soup at a street food place. It was really good food. Also, eating meat off the bone with chopsticks is hard! But I accomplished it, and was even told I have improved a lot since I have been here. :) After dinner we went to sing karaoke! It was My's last night in Da Nang so they sent her off with a fun last night. She is moving to Dai Loc to teach at the new deaf school we painted a few weeks ago. Classes are starting next week! It was my first time going to karaoke and I had a blast. I did not understand half the songs, but with music you can feel the emotion, and there were a few people who were quite animated in their singing. It was a really fun night!

 Linh warned me they "get crazy" when they sing karaoke, later I asked her if she was just talking about herself ;)

Day 30 / Physical Therapy Center Visit

What a wonderful day! We went down to Phu Ninh again, the same place we did the murals for the new deaf school. This time I got to spend the day next door at the physical therapy center hanging out with all the precious little kids. They were such sweet little kids! That kind of work pours so much life back into me. I need to find places to volunteer close to my new home in the states!

The physical therapy center where the magic happens.

 Such a beautiful happy family!

 

 This little man was super happy about everything, including trying to steal people's cameras. Ashley labeled him as "cheeky" (Ashley's British)

 Most of the mother's stay with their children all day while the therapist rotate through them. The love they have for their kids is wonderful to observe 

 We're not sure what is wrong with this little girl. She failed to thrive and was sent home more than once by the doctors because they said there was nothing else they could do. She survived and is a little music lover! She is shy of other people, but when she was fussing after her mom left (for the bathroom?) she calmed down when I sang to her and even started smiling! She is such a cutie. I even got to sing her to sleep a little later :D

She loves to clap along while you sing and has mastered holding her bottle with her feet so she can clap and eat at the same time!

 This young man is deaf. He is very smart and playful, but cannot communicate with anyone because he has never been taught to sign. The new deaf school should be opening next week and he will be one of the first students.

She's so sleepy! 

 This little girl has no special needs and just comes as the big sister. She decided Ashley was her new best friend and would not leave him alone. (He really didn't mind though)

 Something like double rock, paper, scissors

The happiness of children is infectious, find some to play with at every possible opportunity!

Days 28 & 29 All the Children

Day 28

In the morning I finished step 34,654 on the sending out Orphan Voice's Christmas Cards project. Honestly, you would not think it would be this difficult, but it is! When people have given advise on what you need to do and how you need to be in order to succeed and stay happy here, and anywhere else you do this type of work, the number one quality they talk about is flexability. You never know what you are going to encounter, what will run out/be unavailable at the store, what you will be asked to do (or eat!) and you just need to be ready to roll with it and brainstorm a new solution.

In the afternoon, we went to the baby orphanage again. There are some really sweet little kids there! I hardly took any pictures because I was too busy holding and loving all the kids. There are twenty kids and only three care takers. Since it was just two of us visiting I felt that I should just focus on pouring as much love into them as I could while I had the chance. One of the boys (the one we nicknamed Tank) remembered me from the last visit. When we first came in I saw him doing a little bouncy dance in the middle of the floor and squatted down near him. When he saw me he gave a happy squeal and ran into my arms! My husband is going to have to keep me far away from orphanages if he does not want to be daily adding to our family!

 Poor Tanky wasn't dancing anymore when it was time for me to leave. He fussed a lot when I put him down and kept falling onto me to try to get me to pick him up again. I finally had to lay him down so I could leave without him hurting himself.

 That night, Elissa took me out for street food again. She is just the best!

I ate that piece of squid. Can't say it was my favorite, but I would be fine with eating it again.

Day 29

Tomorrow is a big day for the staff. We are going to Phu Ninh and some of them are presenting some anti-trafficing seminars, and some are going to the physical therapy center to see the kids and get updated photos for all their sponsors, also, the new deaf school teacher is meeting with the student's parents. The office this morning was bustling with people getting ready. I offered my help, and did assist with a few small things, but could not really do much. Therefore, I was given the rest of the morning off and took a long walk and took some fun photos.

 The Han river is just so beautiful, even if it is brown.

 When you are alone...it's selfie time! I'm so squinty because of the sun. Haha

In the afternoon I got to go back to Dai Loc to see the kids at the orphanage there. We made stuff with clay and did coloring/stapling paper shapes we cut out onto bigger pieces of paper. I made a snowflake by cutting folded paper and also a clay snowman, and then realized most of the kids have never seen snow. Whoops!

 That is totally not a paper snowflake, it is a hat!

We are leaving at 5:45 tomorrow morning (otherwise known as dark-thirty) so I am going to sleep right now! May your days be merry and your nights restful!