Merrill and Roberta Simon and Family

Hard as it is to believe, Our "baby" turned 8 years old today. You see, we call him our "baby" because he was our first infant and he was the only baby we ever got to bring home from the hospital. McClain was the 12th child we adopted and he just somehow brought the entire family together as they loved on him, doted on him and we all just downright spoiled him. It is amazing that he has turned out so well :o) McClain loves to play computer games. From the time he was two years old he just seemed to know what to do with them. This has been a blessing and also cause for pain as at first we only allowed learning games, but now he has learned all of those so he is now realy for the "real" game....not sure we are, but we will have to adapt.      McClain makes us all laugh. He loves Grave Digger and has a room full of that Monster Truck. It is hard to believe he is 8 years old. We are so proud of him and the person he is becoming. We are al...

Maverick Winchester-Sloan Simon What a great name!!! It embodies all that I miss about Dallas. More than that, it means unconventional, standing up for what you believe, going against the grain. This much we know, adopting a baby at 50 and 52 is all that and more. We are in love with this happy little man who keeps us beyond busy. He just knocks our socks right off. He makes us all laugh. It is worth it to have him. Getting ready for the ice cream party. Whoohoo , Gary, LisaMarie, Pat and dad taking on the earthquake. They won. LOL A tender moment with dad sharing the ice cream, Sharing our first family photo, with everyone except Mallory. So that is 14 boys and one girl. Such an amazing thing really. I am so proud of them.

Our family was asked to meet with Senator Ensign. I have to say that it was just an unreal visit. He is such a neat person and he took the time to talk to us, to share about his family and his son and to actually play with the kids. It is hard for Merrill and I to fathom why someone of his importance would even want to take the time to meet us and the children. We are still tickled as we think about just how special that day was. Below is a picture, although not that good of the plaque that he presented to the family. We are truly humbled to have received this recognition.

I am not even sure how to write this BLOG. It feels so undeserved and for the most part nearly selfish. I went on a seven day vacation without Merrill or the children. Yes, you read that right, no other members of this family went with me. WOW!!! It all started nearly a year ago with a email sent to my brother and sister. For any of you that follow this blog, you know that our daddy passed away just a bit over two years ago. Our mama has been gone for most of our adult lives. The harsh reality that it is just the three of us, well it was really settling in at that time. Bobby called us, put us on speaker phone and told us that he was going to take Tammy and I anywhere in the United States that we wanted to go. It was our choice. Well, it took a few months, but we decided that we wanted to go to Disney World. On many levels, that is just plain funny, but it turned into a trip of a life time. It was so way over the top that it was nearly unreal. It involved first class airline tickets,...

Press Releases Media September 25, 2009 ENSIGN: CARSON CITY COUPLE TRULY ANGELS IN ADOPTION Washington, D.C. – Senator John Ensign is proud to announce that his nominees for the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute’s Angels in Adoption Program have been selected to represent the state of Nevada for the extraordinary contributions they have made on behalf of children in need of homes. Roberta and Merrill Simon, of Carson City, have adopted 18 children over the past 30 years—most of whom have been special needs children. “When you come across people like Roberta and Merrill Simon, you see what good there really is in the world,” said Ensign. “Having been adopted by my dad when I was a child, I know what an amazing gift adoption is. For the Simons to open their homes and their hearts to 18 children is beyond extraordinary. There is no better word to describe them than angels.” The Simon’s children range in age from 15 months old to 30 years old. They have adopted children wi...

Photo taken by Cathleen Allison. Nevada Appeal Two years ago, 16-year-old Micah Simon weighed 129 pounds and didn't have the stamina to make it through a shopping trip.So his mother, Roberta, made changes to his diet and worked with Dayton Intermediate School to increase his exercise. Now, he weighs 106 pounds and keeps up with the family on regular outings. “He's like a new kid,” Roberta said. As Micah, who suffers from Down syndrome, fetal alcohol syndrome and low-level cerebral palsy, made the transition to Dayton High School, his mother wanted to ensure he remained active. Vice principal Tim Logan approached River Vista Fitness owner Phil Cowee about allowing Micah to use equipment there. As the conversation evolved, Cowee agreed to donate a recumbent exercise bike to the classroom and allow the students access to the gym. “It started as something for Micah and blossomed into something wonderful that be...

Our beautiful little girl, our angel, Miss LisaMarie, born October 8, 1999. Time has flown by as we have had the joy of watching her grow. She has always thought she was born a princess into this home and had had a very hard time accepting she was a mere commoner :o) She loves sports and really loved taking swimming. My guess it was the crush on the teacher that brought her the furthest. She could have been in the Olympics if he had kept it up. It was wonderful. She is our pride and our joy...our Rose amongst the thrones as he daddy says. Yes, today she turns ten and life is passing us by fast. All to soon she will be a lady. We will have to cherish the days and years ahead. We love you LisaMarie. You are one of God's greatest gifts to our family. All our love, Mom and Dad.

Today has been a busy day. This family is always busy on many levels. I have been at the schools so many times in the last four weeks that it nearly makes my head spin. IEP's out the yingyang. We have made the choice to have Micah moved out of the school he really needed to be in and have him start High School. Yes, he is 16, but he will be in school till he is 22, so we did what we felt was best for him. It became obvious to all that it was not and he had to make the move. He starts next Tuesday. Also last week Merrill and I got word that we have been nominated to receive the Angels In Adoption Award. While we really do consider it a very high honor, why do they only give you three weeks notice? In that three weeks we are to secure travel to Washington DC, get care providers for 11 special children, get the time off from work, make arrangements for a place to stay while in DC and on and on the list goes. As Merrill and I faced the task at hand, it has become clear that it will not...

Merrill and I have always said that God has always provided for all of our needs and many of our wants. We sometimes never know where the blessing come from, but we give Him the glory. We have wanted and dreamed of a larger play set for the children. Lookie what arrived at our home!!!! This play set is huge and the children have been so happy with it. Mordachi can use his arms to pull his body up so he can slide down. It takes work, but he has such a sense of accomplishment and the joy on his face is priceless. Adults can even go up and slide down and they can swing on the swing. We have ordered a ground cover so that Joseph can go out and enjoy it also. Right now there is too much dirt to kick up so it is not safe with his trach. Micah had so much fun in the dirt, but hey, he had a blast. Jericho enjoys the swings. Maverick is eyeballing it already. It is fun to watch his 15 month old mind going to work already. He will be ready to go soon enough. Enjoy the pictures. I promise to post...

Story by Master Sgt. Michael J. Lacuesta Sgt. Merrill Simon is a force to be reckoned with. Standing an impressive 6 feet 11 inches, he is looked up to more than people look up at birds in the sky. This resident of Moundhouse, Nevada, a small community east of Carson City, is looked up to with respect and dignity. Simon was born on October 18, 1955 in Long Beach California. Simon met his wife, Roberta at Bethany Nazarene College in Bethany, Oklahoma in 1977. Roberta and Merrill were married on June 30, 1978 and are the proud parents of 16 children with one more on the way. Early in their marriage, Roberta and Merrill Simon learned they would not be able to have their own children, along with events early in Roberta's life, they decided to look at Special needs adoptions. Each one of these children has severe emotional and/or physical special needs, ranging from fetal alcohol syndrome to more severe medical needs such as blindness, deafness, tracheotomy, Cerebral palsy, wheelchair d...

Malachi Isaiah-Jacob Simon 10-22-90 to 07-29-97 How does a family ever really have to say goodbye to a child? How do they watch the suffering from something as painful as liver cancer? How do they move on from that place in their lives, the place that hurts so deep in places you never knew you could hurt? I am not really sure, but I know that God plays a huge part in that painful recovery. We loved Malachi more than life itself. He was a part of what made Me Roberta. When he died a part of me died also. Today we celebrate his life. We celebrate that in his passing, we have indeed become a stronger family. We enjoy his memory and all that he brought to this family. We find joy that his siblings that never really knew him, now know him. We take great pride that he chose us to be his family and allowed us to help him though his toughest days. He taught us to be strong and to cling to the fact that one day we will see him again. Yes, he was ripped from us at such a young age, but his l...