We did introductions on our social media of each child in Home 1-- the Fulp home. We had a lot of people tell us how much they enjoyed it, so we are adding all these introductions in one place! I also wrote a little on how I plan on working with them in my ministry.
Oly
Meet Oly!! She is a spunky eight year old with a big personality. She is such a fun addition to the home.
We will do a lot of dancing and singing in our time together. We’ll also do reading and some fine motor activities.
Fun fact! Oly is actually one of my flower girls!!!
Love this girl to pieces and can’t wait to get down there!
Humberto
Meet berto!!!
Berto and I have a very close bond. I love this little guy so much. He is such a smart kid.
He is unable to talk for the most part. He is able to say some words.
He wants to communicate more than anything. I’ll be working with him and his eye gaze device. Using this will allow him to communicate. We will also read and just take in some extra snuggles ❤️
He is actually my bridesman as well!!
Love this guy so much!! ❤️
Ruavis
Next up… Ruavis!
Ruavis is the absolute best cuddler. I can sit with him for hours. He is one that we are doing our best to make him comfortable until his time comes. So our time will be spent reading books together and snuggling for as long as we can. My heart breaks when thinking of not having him here, but I’m also excited for him to be free of his body that causes him so much pain in this world. ❤️
Rafa
Rafa is one of the oldest in the home now, and the first one in the home.
He is one that has a lot more to him than your originally see. He is one who doesn’t necessarily want you to know he likes something… but when you catch his smile… it’s one of the best.
We got close while I was an intern. I was determined to make him like me… and it worked.
We will spend our time together getting him to interact with things. Whether that be getting him to hold a fidget or playing with a toy. We will also spend a lot of time just hanging out—- cuddling, reading books, working with sensory toys, and listening to music. He is no longer a little boy so it can be harder to get him out of his chair, so I want to make sure to get him out and give him attention out of his chair, and most importantly just spend quality time with him.
Esther
Today we are introducing Esther. Esther is such a smart child. She is also one in the homes that can be completely misunderstood, especially when first meeting her. She has autism, and she takes a lot to warm up to her. She is so strong willed. She often does not want you to know she is as smart as she is.
Things we will work on-- a speaking device. There was an ipad that was generously donated to the ministry for her. I will be a part of the team working on it with her. I think once she realizes that she could communicate her needs, it could be a very big win for her.
We will also work with different sensory needs that she has. My main goal for her is to just be with her. I want her to get more comfortable with me. I was doing a little of this when I lived there. She is seriously such a smart child. She has so much potential, she just needs some extra one on one attention.
Esther is a gorgeous child as you can see from her picture.
Alison
Alison has a very big personality that has grown with her age. She is deaf, so she has been learning sign language. This has been an adjustment for everyone in the home, but Alison is worth having to learn Guatemalan sign language. She has the best giggle in the world. If you have heard it, you would agree. She brings so much joy to each room with her smile and laughter. We will work on a lot of sensory toys and objects. We will also work on doing some dance therapy. Alison, Oly, and I have a dance party every time I visit, so this is a must. We will also look through books and do a bunch of art activities. I am hoping to learn more Guatemalan sign language as well to better be able to communicate and teach her as well.
Liza
First off for today is Liza! Today we had help from Katie Riley because I know these kids, but they came after I moved back, so I haven’t been around them as much to describe them in the best way possible. Liza is a absolute joy! She came to us around two weeks old, and now is close to celebrating her second birthday! I was actually there when Liza arrived! Liza has down syndrome, and all the kindness and joy that comes along with it. She does not appear to have very many developmental delays, and reaches most of her developmental milestones at an age-appropriate rate. She is very high functioning. This is really thrown it through loop since most of our children don’t learn how to walk or talk quite this young!! Liza loves to follow people around and talk and ask questions in her Spanglish baby speech. She is so intelligent, and her eyes are always attentive, curious about every new thing she sees. She learns a lot from her sisters, the other girls in the home. She learned her crazy mad dance skills from Oli and B, and she learned to gently pet the dogs from Alison. Liza is working on her developmental milestones similarly to neurotypical kids her age-- learning to climb stairs safer, learning more coordination with her spoon at meal times, and pronouncing words clearer. She is naturally nurturing and loving, but she is still learning to share, not hit, and that sometimes she has to wait for breakfast! This one can be hard! It has been a joy to watch Liza grow, and very exciting to watch her learn and conquer new things. We sure love this sweet, adorable little lady.
We will work together reading books and working at her develokmental age. We will work on sensory toys and doing lots of art. And of course many dance parties will happen.
So excited to get to know Liza more and love on her!
Jenny
Little Jenny is so gorgeous, and has one of the most unique personalities in the home! She has had a long journey, and is growing so much. Jenny has downs syndrome, and when she came a little under a year old, she also had intense spasms every time you tried to feed her, and she was pretty malnourished. We believe she also has some sensory processing struggles and may be on the autism spectrum. Through so much loving patience, and some meds to help with spasms, Jenny can now drink without pain. Sadly, these early set backs have left her with an aversion to eating.
We questioned at first if she would ever walk or crawl, but as her strength grew, so did her curious nature and off she went crawling into everything!! I believe this one is unstoppable!
Jenny loves climbing onto things too tall for her, and coming up to say hi when specific caregivers come for a visit. Her smile is massive on her tiny face, and her laugh is so contagious. She has very high emotions whether joy, or... not joy!
Jenny's greatest challenge remains eating enough. She has begun to touch food to her mouth, and even let it enter. While playing with the food, she now allows us a few spoons into mouth! This child really is unstoppable!
Jenny is also working a lot on walking and can now use a walker to cross a room alone! She is working on sensory input as well since this is pretty huge for her.
Jenny is a curious, intelligent and crazy cute little woman, and it is a delight to spend time with her.
We will work with playing with toys and having fun. Some rhythm time with music and toys, dancing, and of course some dance breaks.
Santi
Santi is the youngest boy, now over 2 years old. He too came to us very young. He has many developmental delays resulting from complications at birth. His vision is somewhat impaired, and he may not walk, and does not tend to handle toys. Through a lot of therapy, he has learned to sit up and lay down on his own! He is not a fan of therapy time, so it is a challenge to encourage him to sit for expanding periods of time. Santi LOVES being held and cuddled and would spend every second in someone's arms if possible!! He also loves it when someone engages him through talking, playing peek a boo, or just making funny sounds. His giggling response is pretty fantastic! When he is not being held, he likes to find a fun surface to kick his feet against. He will continue to spend time in therapy working with sensory or tactile input, and developmental milestones. Santi can now hold his sippy cup alone, and with time we hope he will reach for cheerios and use his hands with food. We will work with sensory toys and doing art.
We will also work on helping him hit his developmental milestones. We will do a lot of music therapy as well. Santi is a sweet, cuddly little man who makes you feel like the most special person in the world when you hold him.
Kevin
Kevin has his tube now, so he has gained weight. Terry Cook has been trying to use eye tracking with him. He hasn’t fully connected with using the system yet, but we believe he will! He absolutely loves the one on one time with her! If he is set cross legged, he can hold sitting on his own for a little time. Kevin seems much happier overall these days, and he has more people that he connects with. Kevin is such a fun little guy. He came super malnourished to the home. Now, he is at a much healthier weight and has the best smile.
We will also work alongside Terry to work on the eye gaze system with him. Another thing will be music time! We will make sure he gets a lot of extra attention and love! Another thing is working on sitting up. Hopefully, he will be able to do that for longer time on his own. Lastly, we will read and as always take some extra cuddle time. ❤️
Mimi
Mimi is the princess of the family! She came as an infant, and with her microcephaly, she is a forever baby– that is, she will always need full care and be the best of cuddlers. All of her siblings in the home adore her, and everyone who meets her finds her precious.
Mimi has had a lot of health struggles and is one of our more severe kiddos. She had a g-tube placed this year, and since then she has grown tremendously! Her spasms are now under control as well and she is much more content than before.
Mimi’s therapy goals mainly have to do with tactile stimulation. More than anything, she just needs loving! That’s exactly what all her caregivers and siblings in the home want to give her!
That is exactly what we will do! Read together ane mostly just love on her.
David
I spent a good bit of time with David while I was an intern at the homes. Let's just say, our quality time was mostly spent around 3:00 AM because someone was causing the other to not sleep because they were crying all night. 😂😂 David, now, is much happier and wakes up a lot less. He does lose interest in eating and has not gained as much as they would like.
For David, we will spend a lot of time just snuggling because the quality time will be the best for both of us. I will also do some sensory therapy, read books to him, play music, and just enjoy loving on him.
And I mean, that smile ❤️❤️🥰🥰
B
Meet this sweet one. Because of the situation, I will not be sharing her name and covering more of her face.
She joined the crew last year. Initially she was malnourished and had some major health concerns, but with time and quite a bit of back and forth with doctors in Guatemala city, she is healthy and thriving now. She loves helping out the younger children, and sometimes forgets she is not their parent! She rocks out her own dance moves whenever kids worship or disney songs are on. She speaks many words, but her speech is pretty garbled. She loves school, and is so excited for that time each day when she gets to learn and grow. She enjoys playing with therapy related toys like legos that allow her to build and create, and she often spends time drawing circles in her notebook.
We have been working with her on speech, and fine motor skills. We are also trying to help her learn age appropriate boundaries as she is such an affectionate young woman, but has gotten a little big for sitting in an adults lap like the younger children. She is a joy and adds so many dimensions to the home.
We will work with reading books together, dance therapy, art therapy, and maybe even working on speech some. She may be able to help with some of the younger ones as well depending on how everything goes. She is going to love some of the amazing toys and therapy things we been able to receive through our wish list.
Cesar
And our last introduction from Home 1.… Cesar!
Cesar is one of the older ones in the home now. He has a lot of trauma from his early life that is causing most of his behaviors. He really is just the sweetest kid. Sometimes, he just needs some hugs and words of affirmation. He loved playing with water and balls. He also loved pushing his trucks around the home.
Cesar loves screaming Jay's name when he is on the balcony of the home until Jay comes down 😂😂
We will do art together and work with sensory toys. We will also try to do some music time together. We will make sure to do some water play as well since it’s one of his favorites.
If you feel led to join our time through financial support we have many different ways that you can donate.
Venmo-- Kelsie-wester
Paypal-- kgwester@gmail.com
Cashapp-- $Kelsiewester
Through clicking the button below. You will press "Individual Support (F-Z)" and our names will be on the drop down list. This way is tax deductible.
If you would like to support the art, dance, and therapy ministry I will be doing, you can do so through the options above or by helping us with supplies off of our Amazon wishlist. I will add a button below for that.
Thank you everyone for your support so far. We could not do it without any of you.
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