Watermelon Delights !

 Hot summer days are here, and what better treat to cool down with than watermelon?  Well, ice cream is good too, but watermelon is definitely healthier - and helps keep you hydrated too!  Or, you can do what our little ones tried recently, and have your watermelon in an ice cream cone.  You know, a "watermelon cone".  🍉🍦 😆 

 Or maybe you are craving some skewers?  We love BBQ skewers, but that's not really a project for a preschool classroom... so we substituted watermelon. 💕🍉

Never tried one of these delicacies?  Let us show you how it's done...

First, you start with a cone.  Ask a grown up to halve or quarter the watermelon.  Then you peel the bananas.  Oh, did we forget to mention the bananas?

Once your bananas are peeled, use your ice cream scoop to scoop balls of banana and watermelon in your cone, like this:

Once your cone is filled with fruit, you drizzle a little bit of yogurt over the top:

Voila... ready to enjoy!

And then for those skewers... these are even simpler than the cones.

Scoop balls of watermelon:

Once you have scooped out a bunch of watermelon balls, thread them on the skewers:

You can enjoy them right away - no cooking or waiting required! 

Hope you enjoy your watermelon as much as we did!

Mama's Little Helper

 Baby N was a newborn weighing only three and half pounds (1600g) when he was abandoned in early 2020.  

This was a time of great uncertainty, as China was just beginning to formulate policies to control the brand new Covid-19 pandemic.  Little Ning was sent directly to the hospital and spent many weeks there while the orphanage was on lockdown.  When he was 2 months old it became clear that he no longer needed that level of care but transferring him out was a bit of a logistical challenge.  We were quick to agree when his orphanage asked if we could help.

Little N is now 4 years old, and things are very different from when he arrived!  

He is no longer a tiny little fellow in quarantine with his baby room nanny, but lives in a foster family in our family model of care.  He is smart, active and has a very cheerful personality.  He loves to help his foster mom with household tasks, just as he sees the bigger kids doing.  

He hasn’t had any other medical issues but does suffer from speech delays.  He’s receiving speech therapy and is learning many new words, however he hasn’t yet started stringing them together in phrases or sentences.

It is our greatest hope that N will be placed in an adoptive family.  His orphanage is also pursuing that goal, but so far all of the families who have considered him have been fearful of his ongoing speech delays.  We are so grateful to all who have chosen to support us in this work.  You are making a difference for little N and all of the other children in our care!