Jonas's Adoption is FINAL...

Finally, after 2.5 years of Jonas living with us; his adoption was final on National Adoption Day: November 19, 2010. It is soooooo nice to have that chapter of our lives closed... His Haitian name was Wendjylove Brice and his official American name is Jonas Wendel Brice Hubley. Here are some pics from that amazing day. And... if I can say so myself, though I know I am very biased, he is the most handsome 4 year old Haitian boy in his little suit!!! :-) I think he resembles a young Denzel Washington in some of his pics. I wish so bad that his momma could share in this joy too and see how amazing he is doing. She will someday... if I can do anything about it... ;-)
(all of the pics are in reverse order for some reason, and I don't feel like fighting blogger today... :-)

Our Adoption Made The Beijing Times...

I completely forgot that there was a reporter from The Beijing Times at Bethel the day we adopted Angelina. There is a lot of wrong information, but I guess that goes with the territory of reporters...

Here is a link to the article... http://www.beijingtoday.com.cn/expat-news/american-couple-adopts-blind-chinese-orphan


Chunyan meets her new parents/Photo by Xie Fei

By Liang Meilan/Jacklyn Liu

Last week the Bethel Training Center for the Blind in Fangshan District saw its 13th blind orphan adopted this time, by a couple from Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The nine-year-old girl, Wang Chunyan, is going to be the American couple’s fifth child. In their 30s, Rebekah and Ryan Hubley have three biological children and a four-year-old boy who was adopted from Haiti in May 2008.

Rebekah said she likes the “full time job” of being a mom and a freelance photographer as well as a teacher at Huntington University. “For me, going out of the house and doing some work is a relaxing break,” she said.

What’s special about the family is that three of their kids have vision problems. Their oldest biological daughter, nine-year-old Hannah, was born blind, and the child from Haiti is visually impaired. The experience of taking care of these disabled kids has prepared the couple for the adoption of Wang.

They got to know the girl in February 2009 from someone who adopted two blind girls from Bethel. After collecting information about the girl, the couple learned she fit perfectly into their family.

But the adoption process was not rushed. “Before we really got in touch with the girl, we first prepared ourselves and did the adoption paperwork that was required. When all these were done, we talked with her on Skype, telling her our intentions and cultivating a relationship,” Rebekah said.

The whole process took one and half a years. Hou Meimei, Wang’s “mom” in Bethel, said they opened special classes for Wang to learn corresponding courses in the US.

“Thanks to Bethel’s consideration, we are not worried about transition issues. We believe Chunyan will soon take in the role of daughter,” Rebekah said.

Unlike most charity houses for disabled kids, Bethel – a non-profit school founded by a French couple in 2003 – has unique methods of raising and educating blind orphans.

“We have a lot of foreign volunteers who come regularly to be teachers in music, language, science and psychology, among other subjects,” said Hou, who is also a teaching assistant, adding that the most important thing is teachers and “moms” don’t force the kids to learn what they don’t want to.

“The curriculum for each age group is diversified, which is seldom seen in other charity houses,” she said. “The education concepts we use were introduced to us by many foreign experts who are also volunteers here.

“Though the kids are vision impaired, their behavior is normal and they even do better than ‘normal’ people in many aspects.”

Jacklyn Liu, a 16-year-old volunteer from New York, was amazed when she first saw the blind kids.

“It was impossible for me to tell how they were different from other children except when I looked in their eyes” she said. “I was astonished that two of the children proudly played the piano. They are open and talkative.”

“I will never forget the children making efforts to hold my hand to make sure I didn’t crash into the walls,” Liu said. “I came to Bethel to teach these orphans; instead, they’ve taught me.”

Established seven years ago with three blind children by the French couple Guillaume and Delphine Gauvain, the center grew into a big family with 40 children and more than 50 staff members.

The children’s dormitories have large bunk beds for those seven and above and cradle beds for toddlers. “We create this international environment with different age groups to teach the bigger children how to take care of the smaller ones,” Hou said.

Leaving the orphanage can be hard. Hou recalled the story of a child who spent five years at the orphanage, starting when she was three months old. An American family adopted her, but the girl kept calling and saying she was living in a strange place. “The girl was too attached and refused to adapt to her new environment,” Hou said, stressing that the first several months are crucial to the children and their new families.

The Hubley couple is doing all they can to make sure Chunyan adjusts to her new life. Chunyan is enrolled in a fine arts school, but her parents aren’t letting her go just yet. “The top priority for us is to really let the girl know that we love her. It will take time,” Rebekah said.

Children in Bethel are constantly in need of medical help. Information about donations and volunteering can be found on the website bethelchina.org.

Things are Going Good...

I have risen from the ashes... I think... :-) We had the worst weekend last weekend, but I think we turned a corner. We have had the best week with Angelina and our family has had the best weekend yet. I have a great friend that keeps telling me: "Rebekah, it has only been 8 weeks." It feels like it has been 8 years some days, but I am seeing a light at the end of this tunnel. I will be back soon with photos and lots of stories that have been kept in my head.

Thanks for your prayers and support! This is by far the hardest and most emotionally draining challenge that I have ever had to face head on.

A Little More Time...

I know everyone is dying for pics. Yesterday was the first day that I felt like a normal human being. I have not had the energy at night to even start going through my pics. I am very anal and will not post them without going through them first and weeding out the bad ones. Sorry, it is my profession... :-) Angelina is doing great and fitting right in with our family. I need a couple more days to gather my thoughts and figure my emotions out. I feel like there is a tornado in my head... I will be back soon... promise!

We are HOME!!!

We got home yesterday morning... I was in a fog all of yesterday and went to bed at 7pm. That is unheard of for me. I will be in bed by 9:30 tonight. The kids start school tomorrow, so it will just be Jonas, Luca, and Angelina here. Jonas starts on Wednesday and Luca does not start until September 7. Angelina will start in a few weeks or so... we will follow her lead. I will take her to school tomorrow to finish up anything for her IEP meeting... I am just getting all of my pics downloaded to the mac, so bare with me. I will leave you with a family pic that was on Ryan's computer...

See you soon...
Rebekah

A message from Rebekah...

Rebekah and Ryan got to Guangzhou yesterday with Angelina and out of all the cities they have been to so far it is their favorite. They are having a great time but because China blocks a lot of internet sites they can't share everything with you yet because they can't get onto email, facebook or their blog. She has been able to talk to the kids through skype and they are all super anxious for Mom and Dad to come home with their new sister. Missy, Rebekah's sister, is here today and Luca especially is in 7th heaven. They are at the park playing and Jonas is taking a nap. Rebekah's parents are coming tomorrow for pizza- should be fun! Not a dull moment in the house of the Hubleys :)
Anna

Meanwhile...

While Rebekah and Ryan are in China getting their beautiful and long-awaited daughter (finally!), Jane and I have been chilling with the rest of the Hubley clan. It's been crazy fun- we started out by going to MI for 3 days for the annual GLA reunion where the kids got to play with friends from all over the states, and even from different countries! We went to a potluck, a reunion, play-world, a park, the pool, and the beach all in 2 days... and the kids were troopers the whole trip. On the way back to Indy today we stopped at the beach in South Haven where Jane's family was staying and took a few planned pics (featured below). Unfortunately it was cold- so we didn't do any swimming as we had hoped, just some wave-chasing and rock-finding. We are happy to be back in the familiarity our temporary home and the kids were so ready to get home by the end of our road trip. It was the perfect time away to distract the kids from Mom and Dad leaving... but Jonas especially was ready to get back. Got some pics of the temporary fam- these are for Rebekah and Ryan ;)










We are getting a glimpse into life with 4 kids, and having fun every day while trying to make the kids forget that mom and dad are missing... these aren't easy shoes to fill but it sure is fun trying! The kids are so excited talking about mom and dad and their new sister coming home!

Stuck...

We are stuck in LAX for the night. Delta flight get here too late and then we puttzed around and did not taxi to the gate. So we are upgraded to first class and we will now fly to Beijing through Tokyo... :-) Hopefully soon I am sleeping in a bed...

Indy...

Sitting in Indy waiting on our flight to board... Next stop, LAX... :-)

Less Than 24 hrs...

Okay, we are under 24 hours now... :-) We leave tomorrow for Indy about 3-3:30pm. I have to go and register all of the kids for school in the morning... The schools would not let me do it early.

The kids are with Anna and Jane up in MI at a GLA gathering and all are asleep. Thanks girls for being sooooooooooo amazing with my kids! It means sooooooo much!

Okay, off to finish packing.... Ahhh, I hate the night before a trip.

I will leave you with some new pics that just came in an e-mail tonight.

Less Than 48 hrs...

That's right, in less than 48 hrs., we will be leaving for China. I promise that I will be updating daily and our sitters are going to high jack the blog and put updates up for us from the home front. So many posts, you won't know what to do... Stay tuned... :-) I am off to pack the kids. They leave tomorrow with Anna and Jane up to MI to go to the GLA adoption gathering. It is a big one this year with all of the kiddos home from the earthquake. I am so bummed that we will not be there, but we are so excited to be going to China to get Angelina....

Maybe I will update tomorrow, or maybe in China... You will just have to check back to see... :-)

Thanks in advance for your prayers...

Rebekah

We Got The Call.....

Yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We got the call from China. Possibly leaving July 30th to go to China. Pray that we get our first request for a consulate date of August 11th. It would make arrangements for our kids soooooooooo much easier!!! We will leave China August 14th...

Thank you Jesus!!!

Oh, and also pray that China will reduce our inter-country fees. WACAP is going to request this tomorrow. Also pray that Chun Yan's original orphanage will allow us to pick her up at Bethel instead of having to pick her up at her original orphanage. Picking her up from Bethel would be so much less traumatic! God is good and He has the cards all lined up... I just need to sit back and relax... :-)

Your prayers are greatly appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks,
Rebekah

Soooo Excited...

We feel sooooooooo blessed!!! We got the mail yesterday from our old house, (which should all be forwarded and is not...) and we got a letter from Shaohannah's Hope. I was so nervous to open it, for fear that we had not gotten the grant. I opened it and discovered that we had been chosen to receive a grant of $5,ooo. I could not cry because it would have turned into the 'ugly cry'... :-) We feel so blessed to be a part of this organization and to be receiving a grant from them. We are just waiting to hear from the CCAA that it is time to travel and then we will make plans to go. Everything is done... hopefully we get the call...

On a side note, Ryan is in Haiti at GLA, helping John Bickel put up a pole barn. He left on the 9th and will get back on the 19th. Luckily I have Anna here helping me. Things always happen when a spouse is away: On Tuesday I ended up in the ER with what they found to be an ovarian cyst on my left ovary and Hannah had an allergic reaction to peanut butter while I was on my way to the ER... Really??? can anything else go wrong??? :-)

Okay... so I will leave you with some new pics of the kids from a trip to the Saeger Farm last weekend... I always get their pic by or on the swing every year. Some of my favorite pics of the kids have been taken there. Oh, BTW... look who is standing... and walking independently sometimes too. The most steps he has taken is 18. Yeah Jonas!!!!!!!!

I am still alive...

For those of you left out there that still check in on this blog: we are still alive and have not gone to china yet. We moved and I am trying to keep my head above water. I will get pics up soon. We are loving the house, neighbors, and the NE side of the city. We are just waiting to hear from China on our visa date and then we will get our plane tickets and head over. We can't wait, but I am so glad that we moved prior to bringing Angelina here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Day by day I am getting more things unpacked... Luca has introduced himself to the neighborhood in big ways... When I have more time, I will tell the stories. Lets just say that they involve, in no particular order, fire, cars, and jay walking... ahhhhh... this boy is going to give me gray hair!!!!!!!! :-) Until later... Thanks for being faithful and I will be back soon... Off to unpack more boxes...

Out of the Mouth of Babes...(Luca)

To preface this, Luca is watching Stuart Little...

Luca: "Mommy, I am going to break the TV, hop inside, and get into the movie, and then you would see me inside the TV."

Me: "Really???"

Luca: "Yah, then I am going to get inside that mommy's tummy."

Me: "Why do you want to get inside that mommy's tummy?"

Luca: "Because I have never seen inside that mommy's tummy."

Me: "Okay..." :-)
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Gotta love my Luca...

Breakable...

This is my new favorite song... This past weekend Hannah and Micah's school had an entire day of performances. (They go to a fine arts magnet public school) One of the dances that was performed was to this song "Breakable". They carried around signs at first and said things like, "They call me stupid", "I get made fun of for wearing glasses", etc... Then in the middle of the song they tore up their signs and threw them in the air and continued dancing... The perfect part to this song was that one of the dancers was a boy...

Here it is... BREAKABLE...

Out of the Mouth of Babes...

This morning...

Luca: "Mommy, go get your boobies on so we can go somewhere!"

Translation... "Mommy, go get out of your pajamas and put your bra on so we can go somewhere."

This is a very sad day... Even my 3 year old knows that without Victoria's Secret's MEGA PADDED PUSH UP BRA... I have nothing...

Boy, nursing 3 kids did a # on me... lol...

Have a great day!
Rebekah

My MJC Entry...

Disclaimer... This is probably not what they were looking for, for the contest... but, this is what Matilda Jane Clothing means to me... (If you don't like conceptual ideas, this will not be your thing... :-) It was fun creating in my mind what I wanted to do, and then completing it... I wish I would have had my new camera last week... but oh well.. (The 10 finalists have been chosen and I can't wait to see all of the different ideas!!!) I am hoping they put them up tonight...
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Matilda Jane Clothing means a lot to me in a different sort of way. The clothes are amazing, the designer is amazing; but it is something different. Hannah is stared at all of the time when we are out in public. Not in a mean way, just I think more out of curiosity, since it is not every day that you see a 9-year-old girl with a cane. When Hannah is dressed in her MJC, even if it is just for a few seconds, people look at her clothes first. Then they notice that she is blind. Hannah doesn’t know that they are staring and she could really care less. But for me, as her mom, it gives me a brief respite from the stares and questions. I honestly don’t see her as blind, I see her as Hannah. So, thank you from the bottom of my heart for your amazing designs and funky clothes!!! Hannah loves wearing her MJC because she gets so many compliments. I love MJC because we can blend in for a brief time. Sincerely, Rebekah Hubley—Mom to an AMAZING girl!!!!!!!!!!!!





Please Don't Stare...

She cannot see you staring, but I can...
Have you never been taught that staring is rude???
No you were not; your mom is staring too...
When you stand and stare...
It makes me feel as if there is something wrong with her...
She is my flesh and blood...
She is a little girl, just like your little girl...
She is blind, not deaf...
When you want to know something, ask her...
She has no shame in being blind, nor should she...
When you are talking about her, she can hear you...
Her hearing is acute...
When you say comments like...
"Oh, isn't she cute, they even cut her hair in a wedge..."
I WANT TO HIT YOU!!!
Why wouldn't we???
She is a little girl...
Please treat her with the respect that she deserves...
Someday when she is making well over six figures...
You might be saying,
"I wish I would have gotten to know her...
Instead of just staring at her..."
She has feelings...
She has likes and dislikes...
She is crazy gifted in music...
She has a memory that I covet...
She has a zeal for life like no other person that I know...
She is the most loyal friend you could ever have...
She will never stare at you...
She will never judge you for your looks, clothes, color of skin, or weight...
She is the real deal...

I understand when you are staring it is out of ignorance...
So let me educate you...

You are staring at MY DAUGHTER...
You are staring at a little girl that did not choose the way she was born...
You are staring at one of the 5 most precious things in my life...
You are staring at a music prodigy...
You are staring at a high honor student...
You are staring at the South Side valedictorian of 2019...
You are staring at a future grad of Juilliard...
You are staring at an actor...
You are staring at an author...
You are staring at A LITTLE GIRL WHO HAPPENS TO BE BLIND...

You are staring at Hannah....
PLEASE STOP!!!
I understand a look, her blindness is unique...

BUT STOP THE GAWKING, FINGER POINTING, AND PROLONGED STARING!!!
She is just a little girl, just like yours...
She cannot see you staring, BUT I CAN...
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The last page we included a page that we brailled, "Matilda Jane Rocks!!!" Love-Hannah
and then I ink printed above it...

So, there you have it... my entry... :-)

We got one...

God is good!!! We got a call tonight that we were awarded the grant for James 1:27. We will receive 2500k from them. I am so excited... God is going easy on Ryan's nerves... :-)

China Adoption Update...

Well, we are sailing right through the system. I hesitate to even type that... but I am not superstitious so no worries... :-) We are so used to Haiti's system, so I feel like we are moving lightning speed. Our dossier got to China in March and we got our letter of Seeking (LOA) last week. This letter proposes the child to you (even though we knew about her last year) and you have to check a box that you and your husband either accept or reject the proposal. Obviously we checked yes! :-)

At this point, we signed a bunch of papers for WACAP and got them notarized and then we filled out our final immigration papers. Can you believe it??? We filled out our I-800, a DS 230 (immigration form for Chun Yan), and a W864. We sent everything back to WACAP Friday and it got there Monday. Our I-800 and other immigration papers were submitted on Tuesday. Our Letter of Seeking was sent back to China and now we just wait for our I-800 approval. This could take anywhere from 2-4 weeks. Once that is approved, we copy and send our approval letter back to WACAP right away and they send it on to China for our Visa appointment. Can you believe it??? We are probably looking at 4 months from time of dossier submitted to gotcha day... This is how it should be...

Now, this is for special needs cases, but still. So was Jonas and we are still not even into legalization and it is over 2 years since submission... That's crazy!!!

If you want to pray for us, here are some requests:

We are still 18k short... (no biggy for God, right??? ;-)
We have applied for a bunch of grants and we have a feeling that if we are awarded them, it will come in right before we leave. I am not worried about it, but this will give Ryan a heart attack... :-) Here are the ones we applied for...

James 1:27--The review board met last month and we should be hearing something soon...

Shaohannah's Hope--We got an e-mail yesterday that everything we submitted was what they needed and we needed to do an update form and then it would go on to the selection board. If awarded a grant, we would hear the second week in July... right in the nick of time... :-)

A Gift of Adoption Fund--Waiting on one more letter of reference and then it will be in the mail on Friday.

Our Creator's Hope--Submitted this via e-mail and got a response that they are not accepting new apps right now... Wish I would have seen that before filling that out...

National Adoption Foundation--Submitted an online application and will wait to hear...

Caroline's Promise--Sending this one out tomorrow...

Sea of Faces--I have to wait until June 1st to fill this one out...

So, all of that above was about 10-15 hours of work, if not more... but soooo worth it if we can make up for our lack of funds...

God is faithful, and He will provide somehow...

IF you know of any other grants that I did not list, let me know. We have all of the work done and can just plug in our info...
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Lots to do in a short amount of time... I am so excited for Emily Vanderwell to come down in June. She is going to be staying with us for about 3 weeks or so to help out in any way while we finish everything in June and get ready for China in July. She will be a Godsend and I cannot say enough amazing things about this family!!!!!!!! We have met so many amazing people through our adoptions. God's blessings are astonishing! They blow me out of the water when I stop and reflect on how much He has blessed our family.

I am telling you; if you are afraid to follow God's will for your life, think twice... It might seem scary at first, but the blessings for your obedience far outweighs the uncomfortable feeling of stepping out in faith. Once you get accustomed to that 'feeling', you know when you get 'it', this is exactly where you are supposed to be...

Have a great Thursday...

Rebekah

Sooo Cute...

You're Invited...

Check out this invite below for the wonderful people at Matilda Jane Clothing... I am entering in the contest, even though I probably will not win... I have thoughts and ideas floating around in my head, and I just need to get them out of my camera and into an entry... :-) I will share my entry when I send it in...

I keep forgetting to update about our fundraiser... But, we raised over $850.00 that night, with the help of Matilda Jane Clothing! Thank you to all who came out for that amazing evening!!! I took a few picks, and I need to find them to post... I did not take many since I was so busy talking to everyone. It truly was an amazing night!!! Speaking of our China adoption: We got our LOA (Letter of Acceptance) today, so now we have to fill out some more immigration papers and get them back to WACAP and then once approved, they get sent back to China. Then, we get our invite to travel... Yeah!!!!!!!!

(Click on image to enlarge)

If you are having issues getting the image to enlarge, just hop on over to Denise's Blog and check see the invite full screen. Denise and Matilda Jane are so the "real deal"!!! They have such giving hearts and are always doing things for other people. I don't know about you, but this is the kind of person and company that I want to support!!! If you haven't yet, you must go and check out her amazing clothes here...

Have a great week!

Rebekah

Too Funny...

Okay, click this and watch it full screen to get his expression. This is too funny... And, he is speaking to teenagers... which makes it even funnier! ENJOY!!!

Watch This...

Thanks Nancy... this is great!

Good News...

This is going to be a short blog about the day: I am exhausted...

Good news today. My melanoma was caught early, so no need for a lymph node biopsy. If any more come back melanoma and are deeper, then they will do a lymph node biopsy. Loved, loved, loved the first doc (plastic surgeon); not so much the second doc. So, going with the first doc: He wants to remove 5 moles that look most suspicious, and then if any come back atypical he will do a wide excision on the bad ones. Then, he will remove another 5 until an entire batch of 5 come back normal.

I will call the plastic surgeon tomorrow to set up my appointment to have the one lesion removed by a wide excision and then the 5 moles that look suspicious will be biopsied.

AND- We had an offer on our house today and we countered it tonight. YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! A total God thing that I will go into tomorrow! Why do I ever doubt that God is not in control??? Clearly when you read the story you will know that He was in control all along... Not that you needed to know that or anything... :-)

Goodnight... I am exhausted... I slept awful last night!

Tomorrow...

Tomorrow is a big day: 12:30 Ryan and I go to the surgical oncologist and then at 2pm we go to the plastic surgeon. I have good hours and then I have down time and wayyyyyyyyyyyyyy too much time to think about things. Like: What if I had not found the mole. The pic above is similar to the mole removed a couple weeks ago and is probably melanoma too. This mole could easily fit under a standard pencil eraser. The other mole had 3 little dark moles right by it like a cluster of grapes. Nothing was raised, hurt, itched, or was red. They are not alarming in the slightest.

Something just told me that they did not look right. Maybe it is because my sister has worked with plastic surgeons for almost 10 years, maybe it is because my dad is a doctor??? How many people without this added knowledge are walking around with cancerous moles on them??? What if????????? What if it is worse than what we think???

I know I shouldn't go there... but I have been there a few times since Thursday. I am not ready to be done on this earth... I want to live past 100... I feel like every mole on me right now could be cancerous.... I just want them all off. Too bad I have thousands of freckles and probably well over 100 moles. Hardly any of them are raised. The one that was melanoma was completely flush with my skin. Not the ugly mole that you are thinking of...

So, those are my thoughts... Probably most of them are illogical, I know that. Hopefully I sleep tonight...

Thanks for your prayers!

Rebekah

MELANOMA...

PLEASE PRAY: I got the results back from pathology on a mole removed from my lower leg on April 5th. Dr. Acker called today and it is melanoma. They sent the tissue sample up to the University of Michigan for a second opinion, and it was confirmed. I go to see the surgical oncologist on Monday... I do not have time for this...

Please pray that everything comes back clear and I that I will not need surgery...

Please Don't Stare...

Please Don't Stare...

She cannot see you staring, but I can...
Have you never been taught that staring is rude???
No you were not; your mom is staring too...
When you stand and stare...
It makes me feel as if there is something wrong with her...
She is my flesh and blood...
She is a little girl, just like your little girl...
She is blind, not deaf...
When you want to know something, ask her...
She has no shame in being blind, nor should she...
When you are talking about her, she can hear you...
Her hearing is acute...
When you say comments like...
"Oh, isn't she cute, they even cut her hair in a wedge..."
I WANT TO HIT YOU!!!
Why wouldn't we???
She is a little girl...
Please treat her with the respect that she deserves...
Someday when she is making well over six figures...
You might be saying,
"I wish I would have gotten to know her...
Instead of just staring at her..."
She has feelings...
She has likes and dislikes...
She is crazy gifted in music...
She has a memory that I covet...
She has a zeal for life like no other person that I know...
She is the most loyal friend you could ever have...
She will never stare at you...
She will never judge you for your looks, clothes, color of skin, or weight...
She is the real deal...

I understand when you are staring it is out of ignorance...
So let me educate you...

You are staring at MY DAUGHTER...
You are staring at a little girl that did not choose the way she was born...
You are staring at one of the 5 most precious things in my life...
You are staring at a music prodigy...
You are staring at a high honor student...
You are staring at the South Side valedictorian of 2019...
You are staring at a future grad of Juilliard...
You are staring at an actor...
You are staring at an author...
You are staring at A LITTLE GIRL WHO HAPPENS TO BE BLIND...

You are staring at Hannah....
PLEASE STOP!!!
I understand a look, her blindness is unique...

BUT STOP THE GAWKING, FINGER POINTING, AND PROLONGED STARING!!!
She is just a little girl, just like yours...
She cannot see you staring, BUT I CAN...

Today...

(I don't know why the font size in this post is so huge... I cannot make it smaller for some reason... Blogger is being difficult. :-)

I am writing this after midnight, so actually it will be tomorrow morning... :-)

Off to bed soon, but want to tell you what a cool opportunity we have tomorrow.

Long story short, about 1-2 months ago a family from Louisville, KY got in touch with us because their 3 month old baby girl was diagnosed with the condition that Hannah was born with. This is such a RARE disease, that I don't know ANYONE with Hannah's condition. The eye disease that Hannah was born with is known as FEVR (Familial Exudative Vitreoretinopathy).

To make it easy to understand, lets break it up...

Familial - This means that it runs in the "family" (i.e. a genetic disease)

Exudative - Refers to the whitish fluid exuded from abnormal blood vessels.

Vitreo - Refers to a disease of the vitreous humor, the transparent gel like substance filling the eye.

Retinopathy - Refers to abnormal changes in the blood vessels of the eye which feed the retina. The retina is the thin layer in the back of the eye which changes light into electrical signals which are then sent to the brain and decoded, giving us an image when we open our eye(s).

There is only one sight that I know that is really dedicated to FEVR: That is how rare it is. So, the sister of the mom found this sight and found this post that I wrote years ago.

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Hi, I am not sure who this message will reach, but I hope that it is an encouragement to all of you. I had a normal pregnancy and great delivery. Hannah was born a healthy 9lbs. 2oz. The day after she was born, they told us that she might have congenital cataracts; bilaterally. We went down to Riley Children's Hospital in Indianapolis when she was three days old. We were then told that she either had FEVR or Coat's Disease. Her Retinas were totally detached bilaterally. At 3 weeks old we flew to Duke University to see Dr. Cynthia Toth. We were hoping to have her retinas reattached. Dr. Toth said that even if she did the most perfect surgery, she was not sure that it would give her any sight, because her retinas were not fully developed. We were told to go home and start raising her like any other child. Since Hannah was our first, we did not know any different anyway. God gave me a promise in that hospital: "Even though Hannah is blind, her body is totally healthy! Nothing is wrong with her, she is not going to die." Those words have always brought me a peace of mind. We also went out to Philadelphia when Hannah was six months old to see Dr. Tazman at the Will's Eye Institute. He too, said that there was nothing that they could do for her vision, but that her eyes looked stable. I told you all of that, to tell you where we are today. Hannah is diagnosed with FEVR, but they are not 100% sure that is what she has. Regardless of her diagnosis, she is 100% blind. She is now 4 yrs. old and doing awesome. This is her second year of pre-school, and she can recognize 1/2 of the alphabet in Braille. She is very independent, and loves life. I will not lie; raising a child with a vision loss requires a lot of time and patience. But, the reward of your hard work is watching your child blossom. Hannah loves to swim and play at the park, and she loves amusement parks. The more thrilling the ride the better. If you are parent of a child losing their sight, I know that it must be frightening. But, be so thankful for the time that your child got to see. Being a parent of a totally blind child since birth; teaching her things would have been so much easier if she had had some sight. You would not believe how a little sight can help in mobility and orientation. Be thankful that your child got to "see" who you are. So many times we focus on the negatives going on around us, and we forget to treasure what they still have. Sight, for any amount of time, is a gift from God! I wish that Hannah could see, but she does not know any different. I have to remind myself that we can not feel sorry for her, because that will only handicap her. Someone once asked a blind girl if she wished she could see. Her response has always stuck with me. She said, "The only reason I wish that I could see, is so that my mom would not be sad anymore." What a lesson that is for us as parents of blind children!!!! We need to empower our children, and not handicap them with pity. If you have ever stayed at a Ronald McDonald House, or been in the Hospital with your child: you know that our children are the lucky ones!!! They will be living a totally happy and fulfilled life. A great book to read is : "If you could see what I hear" by: Tim Sullivan What an uplifting story he has. I saw him on Oprah when Hannah was just a baby. Do everything with your visually impaired child, that you do with every other sighted child. We took Hannah snow skiing for her 4th birthday and she loved it!!!!!!!!!!! There is a great place in Michigan called Challenge Mountain, and they teach any person with any dissability to ski--for free. I hope that I have encouraged someone today, or even gave you a new perspective on things. It is not always easy, but God will never give you more than you can handle. Phillipians 4:13 reads: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Have a great day, and I would love to keep in contact- Rebekah Hubley--Hannah's mom ------------------------------------------- Well, to say all of this: We are meeting the Talbott family tomorrow. Pray that it is an encouraging day for them to meet Hannah and realize that their little girl will too be doing amazing things, even without sight. I am so excited that God is giving us this opportunity to encourage another family. I would have loved to meet a little girl when Hannah was a baby. It was very lonely and isolating sometimes being the only person around raising a child that was blind. I hope to have a lot of pics of the kids at the museum and lots of stories and a new friendship.

Like Summer...

(Do you like my new 'do' and bikini??? he,he... That really is my body after carrying 3 over 9lb. babies.. Isn't this what you look like too??? :-)

Hearing the most beautiful bird chirping outside, (Hannah would know what kind of bird, because she just knows things like this :-), wearing a tank top, my favorite summer jeans, and being barefoot, makes me feel like summer is just around the corner. It is 75 right now and I am in heaven!!! ;-) Now, I live in Indiana and have to be realistic... It could possibly snow next week; it has been known to snow in April.. YUCK!!! BUTTTTTTTT, I am thinking positively and BELIEVING that summer is almost here. I LOVE not wearing layers, putting coats on EVERYBODY, and just being barefoot. I love the simple things in summer. Makes me feel like a kid! I am really a kid, just my b-day says that I am 32. Who cares right??? I am not counting!!! ;-)

Have a great Easter weekend and we will be enjoying spring break here next week. I am so excited that the weather will be cooperating!

e-mails...

If you have sent me a message saying that you want to follow our china adoption, I need your e-mail please! :-) Heatherly, I don't have yours... If I e-mail you.. I have your address...

China Adoption Blog...

So, we got our log-in date today from China... It is 3-18-10... Since China does not want families to share information regarding the child publicly, I am going to have a separate blog for our China Adoption. This seems like the simplest thing to do. I really want to be able to write about it, and share things to those who want to pray for our adoption. So, tonight I will start a private blog. Let me know if you want to read it.

Leave a comment or e-mail me...

Thanks,

Rebekah

YOU HAVE TO WATCH THIS!!!!!

A friend of mine just told me of Bryan Post. He specializes in counseling traumatized children, both foster and adopted. We do not have any children with RAD (Reactive Attachment Disorder). Angelina seems fine, but we do not know how she will react when she comes into our home and realizes that she is never going to be living at Bethel again.

PLEASE WATCH THIS AND PASS THIS ON TO ANYONE THAT NEEDS IT:

Dumb Moment...

Tonight...

We are soooooooo excited for tonight!!! The Matilda Jane Fundraiser is going to be GREAT!!! There are so many people coming, and some from out of state. I just heard from one of my roommates from college the other day: She lives in Toledo, OH and she and her daughter are coming. AMAZING!!!!!!! A couple other friends and their daughter are driving clear from Detroit, MI. Thanks guys!!!!!

Also, I was so scared, worried, nervous, etc., about the Film Producer being here. Well, it has been amazing! I picked him up from the airport on Wednesday and I feel like I have known the guy forever. Yesterday we did a lot of filming while I was editing photos on the computer, and I told him that it felt like I had just gotten 3 hours of therapy. It is amazing how just talking about certain situations and feelings and how I feel about things; is very therapeutic. I am going to miss Vince when he goes. :-) He will be back maybe one more time before we go to China, and then we are all going to China together.

Thank goodness we all clique, or it would be a very LOOOOOONG trip to China and back.

If you think about it, please pray for Ryan and I. This is a lot of responsibility that has been given to us, doing this documentary. We are representing a lot of things, and we want to be true and always honest about ourselves and our faith. Without our faith in God, we would not be doing these things today. Please pray for boldness and honesty, and that everything that we do and say would glorify God!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks!

Rebekah

Matilda Jane Trunk Show Fundraiser...

Click here to read about our Matilda Jane Trunk Show Fundraiser Friday: March 19, 2010...

Jonas's New Kicks...

Anna, this is for YOU!!!

This is just one of his pairs... more pics of the blue and red shoes will follow. I decided on a very monochromatic outfit today with his new kicks... I know, kinda boring, but so classy. :-) I love these particular converse because they are kinda dressy, and will look great with a lot of things.

Anna, don't I have the BEST smile...

Anna, PLEASE come to Indiana...

Do you hear me yelling your name???

Just Joking...

My kicks look great with my AFO...

Stems are very good and nutritious...

Mom wanted some close-ups...

Seriously, I will be sad if you do not come...

Ha, Ha... but not mad for too long...

I love life!!!

And, I am very ticklish!!!

I think I am going to...

SNEEZE...Mommy, do you have a kleenex?

So Handsome!!!

And very dapper I must say...

Best Fishy lips ever...

Anna, a kiss for you!!! Please come to Indiana...