We have a tradition at our house. When kids visit, they get a Rudy’s bar-b-que cup with their name on it. This was born partly because we had a bajillion Rudy’s cups leftover from various events, and partly because I hate when someone uses a cup, puts it down, forgets it’s his cup and gets… Read more »
Rebeka
Rebeka vs The World . . . Rebeka Wins!
It has been exciting to get to know Rebeka these past few days, and it has been eye-opening. I am amazed at how she has adapted to life with twisted feet and hands and arms that don’t work the way ours do. I’m also amazed by how brave she is, traveling to America, away from… Read more »
These Are a Few of Her Favorite Things
As we get to know Rebeka, I love discovering what her preferences are. She likes grapes, but not the skin. She peels them with her teeth and spits the skin out. She loves the water, but she has no interest in going deep and trying to float. Here are a few more of her favorite… Read more »
Sucking Lemons
She’s a lemon eater. I had some lemons on the counter last week and she, in typical Rwandan style, raised her eyebrows and nodded towards it. “A lemon? You want a lemon? You don’t want a lemon. It’s sour. Ewww.” But she insisted. Clay handed her one that had been cut in half, and she… Read more »
One Down, ?? To Go . . .
Rebeka had lots of visitors this first week of being in a cast, and racked up an impressive array of signatures. If you didn’t get a chance to sign this first one, there will be a new one each Wednesday! I didn’t realize the real benefits of a “soft” cast versus a hard cast until… Read more »
Figuring It Out
Just signed my third cast in three weeks this afternoon! How many times does a person get to say that? We got a good report from the doctor. The casts appear to be working, the bones in Rebeka’s foot are moving. Slowly, little by little, but it’s enough to be encouraged. And so we stride… Read more »
Football and “Fritas”
This week Rebeka experienced her first Friday night football game. Alayna danced at halftime with the Knightline, Nate was introduced with the sixth through eighth grade football players. Benji ran wild behind the stands like he usually does, while Clay and I chatted/watched the game and Rebeka got busy eating a bag of skittles and… Read more »
No Questions Asked
There was something that became apparent to us early on with Rebeka, she didn’t ask questions. Even when we had a translator here, she didn’t ask questions. She sometimes would respond if we asked her a question, whispering “yes” or “no”, but sometimes she’d just act all embarrassed and shy, or she’d stare into space… Read more »
Normal Hope
Guess what? A large college fair is not a good place to bring a wheelchair, or a ten-year old girl who may feel slightly conspicuous with all the stares coming her way, even though I’m pretty sure most of those stares were because she looked so stinkin’ cute. That’s right, a college fair. I… Read more »
We’re Booked
And now, a riff on a little picture book I love, called What Can You Do With a Shoe? by Beatrice de Regniers, illustrated by Maurice Sendak. What can you do, what can you do, what can you do with a looooong sock? You can use it as a scarf Or tie it on your… Read more »
I love sharing stories like Rebeka’s in Her Own Two Feet. That’s what this blog is all about. My stories. Other people’s stories. Writing stories for children. Once upon a time I told the story of our family traveling around the world for nine and a half months. You can find those here at Faces in the Street.
