Wednesday, May 5, 2010

A week to celebrate momas!


This past week at Spoiled Rockin' has been very blessed, busy, and fun! We had the pleasure of meeting a family this week that touched all of our hearts and I just wanted to share them with you.

We had a typical "Party like a rockstar" birthday party package on the books for a little girl turning 5 years old. Nothing out of the ordinary, or so it seemed. When the 6 little girls showed up big eyed and anxious to play "big girl" for the day we were excited as usual to be part of the memory making for another precious little girl. Her name was Resiana and at first look you knew she must be adopted because of her beautiful dark skin and obvious ethnic heritage and her mother as light skinned and American as they come. But again nothing out of the ordinary. Until we are started singing Happy Birthday and the moma teared up. Then we found out Resiana had only been with her family for about 3 weeks and was a victum of the terrible tragedy in Hati. Her birth mother had been living on the street with Resiana, doing the best she had the means to do until she realized she could give her daughter a better future by making the ultimate sacrifice and giving her child to an American family. What a VERY brave and unselfish person this woman must have been! If only we were all a little more like her.

Resiana's new family was giving her 5 birthday parties this week to make up for the 5 birthdays she was never allowed to celebrated. How cool was it for my little shop to be choosen as one of the places to celebrate! After speaking more with Crystal, the birth mom, and reading her blog about the journey of the adoption process, I realized the lifestyle Resiana had been subject to was unimaginable. Things our society take for granted..like shampoo, warm beds, toothbrushes, mirrors, birthdays, hot showers, and even the basics such as food, were all major commodities for Resiana and her single mother.

Resiana had never in her entire 5 years on this Earth had her hair washed with shampoo, or taken even a luke warm bath, she was terrified of a soft bed and sleeping indoors. Her hair was matted and scalp torn up from the brutal elements of living outdoors. She didn't even know what the word "daddy" meant. (Even at 27, my Daddy is one of the most precious things in my life!)This is terrifying for me to think of the hundreds of thousands of children out there who think living this way is the norm, but even more scarry to me is the hundreds of thousands of people in our country alone who want to pretend these children don't exist. We all want to turn a blind eye to the terrible things happening in this world. I hear people say "our system here in the USA doesn't work. It is ridiculous how long it takes to get an American baby!" And although this is very true, these children have the same blood running through their veins and they are after all still kidz. So to me it doesn't really matter where they are or where they come from saving a child is remarkable!

It seems as if Resiana has adjusted very well to her new life here in Alabama and is one lucky little girl, but so too is the family who adopted her; she is quite a special child. The birth mother is expecting another child in July and wanted to make sure Resiana and her new sibling could grow up together so soon Crystal and her husband Slick will be adding another addition to their family in late Summer. What a fanastic, but bitter sweet gift.

Looking at Resiana, I couldn't help but to think of my own 2 girls and how I could never stand the thought of them ever going school without the perfectly matched bow with their outfit or clean shoes, so I couldn't even imagine sending them to bed hungry day after day. I can understand why singing happy birthday to her little girl would make her emotional, Crystal was thinking of what Resiana was doing on her birthday just a year ago, how hungry and cold she must have been. I do not think I will EVER sing Happy Birthday again and not be greatful. Thank you Crystal for reminding me of what is really important in this world.

To read the Resiana's entire story please visit her blog here. If you are not touched, you do not have a pulse, but warning pull out the tissue before you ever sit down.

Now off my emotional soap box, this week was a weak to celebrate motherhood and what a better way to do that then our kreative kidz "Mommy N' Me" class. We had a great turnout on Sunday and both parent and child seemed to have a blast creating something together. I know my own two girls were incredibly proud of their finished work. So here is to all the rockin' moma's out there..CHEERS!