My darling daughter's Ukrainian orphanage had a piano. Even though I never saw the piano being used, it quickly became obvious that it was frequently used. Natasha sang all the time.

I asked my translator about one song. It was a children's song (in Ukrainian) that sounded similiar to the "Jack and Jill went up the hill".

Natasha has been home for 5 years now and she sings all the time. She made up her own lyrics and sings them to me. When she was 5 years old she made up the following song.

Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti I love... more

Honesty time...... I didn’t want to medicate my baby with a controlled substance. So I didn’t push the doctor on the ADHD diagnosis, but after an unsuccessful kindergarten and first grade (unsuccessful because she still couldn't recognize 1/2 of the alphabet and she was struggling with focusing) I knew something was wrong.

But instead of listening to myself, I listened to others. Her first grade teachers suggested repeating first grade. I was told, "Sometimes children don't start reading until 8 years of age". I didn't have any better idea and the public school... more

Part 1 of this story is here. Just a quick note..... when Natasha's first kindergarten teacher told me that my daughter had ADHD, I discussed it with her pediatrician. An ADHD diagnosis (DSM-IV diagnostic criteria) wasn't quite met. And she had SID which sometimes looks like ADHD.

So my daughter spent her kindergarten year under stress and not learning very much..... other then she did not understand things that other children did.... more

My daughter’s kindergarten teacher diagnosed my daughter with ADHD and told me that I really should medicate her. My first reaction was explain Sensory Integration Dysfunction (SID).

My sensory seeking daughter received SID diagnosis (and occupational therapy) about 6 months before she started kindergarten. The therapy had helped her but she still had a ways to go.

The teacher thought that I made... more

My daughter loves art of any kinds; painting, drawing, singing, acting. But she really enjoys playing with the Microsoft Paint program on my PC. This picture is a recent creation named "Natasha's Prettiful Colors". She is 8.5 years age going on 15 years.

When my darling first came home from Ukraine (at 3.5 years of age) she didn't know how to play. And her gross motor skills were so delayed that playing with clay and trying to color were frustrating. But she loved singing. It was her form of self-stimulation. She would sing to herself... more