Family in Auburn - Adopted Haitian girl named Claire (Debbie & Scott Parents)

* From a crowded orphanage in Haiti, Claire Marie Bryditzki seems to have landed in a little girl's dream world.
Her bedroom is on the second floor of an elegant home overlooking a lake. She sleeps in a queen-sized bed with her name painted above the headboard, and she has discovered the joys of pizza, yogurt and McDonald's french fries.
But the transition from life in the Western Hemisphere's poorest country to a world of wealth and privilege in the home of her adoptive parents has had its bumpy moments.
Claire, 7, speaks only a few words of English, making communication with her new family and friends difficult and frustrating. She has had some "emotional meltdowns" at school, and can be wary and occasionally aggressive when she is upset.
It's part of her adjustment to life in America, said Debbie Bryditzki, who with her husband, Scott, brought Claire into their home about a month ago, shortly after Haiti's disastrous earthquake.
"She has shown incredible defiance at times. She has pushed us as hard as she can," Debbie Bryditzki said. "But I have never once questioned that we did the right thing for her."
At age 7, Claire is a quick study. She's made friends at her school and on her cul-de-sac in a gated community near Auburn. She calls Debbie and Scott Bryditzki "Mommy and Daddy" and has bonded with her new siblings, Brandon, 15, Ashley, 22, and Danielle, 25.
Every day brings new discoveries. Cars and airplanes. Faucets that produce hot water. Toilets that flush. Escalators. Cell phones and computers. She has a closet full of clothes, a fluffy pet dog named Daphne and a bedroom filled with stuffed animals, dolls and children's books.
She was a special guest at Disney on Ice at Arco Arena, and is looking forward to a ride on the lake in her new family's boat once the weather warms.
"She is fascinated by everything," Debbie Bryditzki said on a recent afternoon as she sat beside Claire at the kitchen table, helping her finish an art project for her adoptive dad, who owns a food brokerage company. "She just lights up."
But loud noises intimidate her, Debbie Bryditzki said. "Anything that sounds like an earthquake."
The Bryditzkis had no intention of adopting a child when they visited Haiti with a church group in 2007. "We were looking forward to the empty nest," Debbie said.
That changed when they met Claire. She lived in an orphanage in the hills of Petionville that was nothing fancy, Debbie Bryditzki said. Some days, Claire and her housemates got by on one meal of beans and rice. But it was among the better orphanages in Haiti.
"She was in my arms the entire week we were there," Bryditzki recalled. "My whole family just fell in love with her."
Soon they were making plans to adopt the girl, whose biological mother placed her in the orphanage when she was a year old because she was too poor to care for her.
The process was just about finished, and Claire was getting her visa and passport when the earthquake hit. After a few frightening days of trying to confirm that the girl was OK, the Bryditzkis worked with a family friend to get her to the United States on a private plane.
Since Claire's adoption was in the works long before the earthquake and her Haitian parents had agreed to give her up, the Bryditzkis were not part of a controversy involving youngsters allegedly taken out of the country in emergency airlifts, against the wishes of relatives. Claire is in regular contact with people at her former orphanage, which currently houses more than 100 children, Debbie Bryditzki said.
The girl's biggest adjustment so far, her adoptive mother said, has been the language barrier. Shy with strangers, Claire answers only "yes" when asked if she likes her new home.
"It's been very frustrating for her," said Bryditzki, who uses a translation book, hand signals, and a few English words to communicate with Claire. "She's very smart, but especially when it comes to behavioral things she can't understand everything."
Claire has lashed out at other children at school, Bryditzki said. Sometimes she refuses to brush her teeth or put on her shoes and pushes and shoves to get her way. She is learning that her meals "are not going to be her last ones," and to eat more slowly, said Bryditzki.
Each passing day seems less stressful, Bryditzki said. Claire is, for the most part, energetic and cheerful, exploring her new environment, watching Dora the Explorer, entertaining her family with her dance moves and singing Creole renditions of songs including "Old McDonald."
"She has an incredible spirit and strength within her," Bryditzki said, "and we see her going back to her country some day and making a big difference. I see a big future in front of her."


I think this is great of them! I have been wanting to adopt for many years! It is so expensive and not as easy as most people probably think.

-Daily Writing