Evan and the Babies

News on the children

2011-04-21T15:38:00.000-07:00

I have two volunteer friends at the hospital in Barlad this week. The four children who went to the Center for Children with Special Needs (Ion, Marius, Alina and Ionut) are now at the hospital. It is unclear what will happen with them next but except for Ionut they are much less disabled than the children at the Center and it wasn't the right spot for them. So this is mostly good news for them in the short term at least as they are now with some familiar faces.

Petre, who went home, has already ended up with CPS as it didn't work out at home. Not clear if the parents contacted CPS or if CPS discovered a problem. Anyway, he ended up at the hospital to see the Dr. and had a joyful reunion with his buddy, Ion. See the link to Pat's blog below.

http://patbiswanger.blogspot.com/2011/04/reunited-and-it-feels-so-good.html?showComment=1303425316296#c2938996292963564731

Home

2011-04-17T15:30:00.000-07:00

I've arrived home safely. Yesterday (was it only yesterday?), Dorel drove Dan, Cathy and I to Bucharest. Cathy and I had to laugh as it was sunny when we left Tutova but cloudy by the time we got to Bucharest. We are jinxes for bad weather I guess.

Spent yesterday afternoon and last night at a hotel by the airport. I thought about going into the city but I was just too tired and still somewhat overwhelmed by the events of the past 3 weeks. So I watched movies on my computer and read and finished typing up the team journal and got it out to everyone on the team.

Usually I'm quite anxious upon my return to make a photo book of my pictures from the trip. I think this time looking at those little faces will be a lot sadder. There is always concern about the childrens' future but I think this time it is even more worrisome.

I'm not certain if I will go back to Romania to volunteer or not. The volunteer opportunities are changing and I might like to try a new program in a new location. Although if Gaby surfaced somewhere I'd be back there in a minute! Will wait and see.

Thanks to everyone who emailed me with your support throughout these difficult weeks.

Last Day

2011-04-15T11:13:00.000-07:00

I have to say our last day at the Children's Hospital in Barlad was a much easier day than our last day at the clinic in Tutova. While the latter was an ending and quite sad, the former is hopeful. We had a good-bye party with Dr. Magda, Dr. Eva and some of the staff. Dr. Magda was very appreciative and clearly looks forward to having volunteers continue at the facility. They tell us there are plans to renovate the neuro psych floor that we were on in the next few months. Dr. Eva agreed with us that improving the bathrooms is a priority! (Hint for future volunteers at the hospital: use the bathroom on the 2nd floor, same floor as Dr. Magda's office, but be sure to bring toilet paper.)

Cristi and Paula both had good days today. Cristi was clearly feeling better and back to his old self. Paula had a very good day. A fair number of smiles and MANY walks up and down the hallway. She seems to understand she can't go into every room like she did at the clinic. She knows exactly which door is the playroom. She is still a bit off schedule and sleeping from about 3:30 to past 5 but that is to be expected.

I realized last night I forgot to write about Raul but was too tired to power up the computer again. He hasn't been doing so well; not eating much. Dan told Dr. Magda about Caroline's efforts to help Raul and she seemed very supportive. Raul has a new roommate: a little girl that we think is only a few weeks old who was born without arms and legs. She has such a pretty face. Caroline said Raul seemed a bit jealous when the little girl was crying and Caroline picked her up. At breakfast, Caroline showed us a beautiful photo book she did of Raul to give to his parents. Caroline and her mother plan to meet with his parents when her mother arrives.

We also had a new girl in the room with Cristi and Paula. She is 15 years old and has severe cerebral palsy. She is 15 years old and quite thin. She seems to be able to see and hear and responded to our voices and stroking her cheek. We put the mirror and felt book in her crib for her to have something to look at.We also would put the lightly scented hand sanitizer on our hands and put them up to her face for her to smell.

We heard Ana Maria and Nicoletta would be back from Iasi today but they hadn't arrived by the time we left. No word on Celine and how things went for her in Bucharest. Hopefully she will be at the hospital next week and volunteers can learn more. We also hope all goes well with Cleo, especially if she ends up having surgery.

As I understand it the next team will be all experienced volunteers. There will be 6 people total of which 1 will be here for the first week only and Caroline's mother for the last 2 weeks; so 5 at any one time. It is sounding to me like GV will end up having volunteers at multiple sites in the community going forward and that volunteer experiences will be more varied. I'm sure it will take awhile to evolve but long-term I trust it will be in the best interest of the community and program.Mihaela and Bud seemed to get a lot accomplished in the last 2 days to establish a new GV program here going forward.

For those of us who volunteered in Tutova, the children and staff will always have a special place in our hearts. GV did an amazing job of transforming the clinic over the past 12 years, and now others will benefit from GV's resources and the volunteer's services.

Our team had many wonderful thoughts for the day. Here are a few that seem especially appropriate to the circumstances:

"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." The Serenity Prayer (Thanks to Cathy)

"If ever there is a tomorrow when we're not together, there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think, but the most important thing is, even if we're apart, I’ll always be with you." Winnie the Pooh (Thanks to Terry McCarter who shared this quote on a prior team with me.)

Pa to Tutova.

Paula

Cristi

Raul

Next to last day

2011-04-14T11:11:00.000-07:00

Our girls weren't back from Iasi today so we only had Cristi and Paula left from our Tutova group of children. We spent some time with other children on the floor. Caroline has become quite popular in the "camera de joaca" or playroom. Mind you the playroom consists of, as of today, two new black leather sofas, a table and a tv. There are some paintings on the walls and some efforts made for the room to look cheerful. But no toys. So we take some of our toys in there.

This morning Cristi and I spent a lot of time with him sitting on a very small square green table that Dan decided reminded him of the red sofa at Tutova. I had to keep banging away at the table or he would take my hand and tell me in his own special way to keep at it. Turns out he has strep throat so they have put an IV in his left arm so he can get periodic IV antibiotic treatments. He seemed to be feeling better today although he slept a lot this afternoon.

Paula had a good morning but a not great afternoon. We think that the change in schedule is affecting her and that she may not have slept enough mid-day. We also think she was hungry. We tried all our tricks including me making a humming noise that would calm her down for a few minutes and then she would start crying again. She finally fell asleep which is what she needed.

Big Andreea was leaving as we arrived this morning. We heard Cleo's parents signed the papers agreeing to her surgery and that the surgery may occur next week. There is a 2-year old girl with hydrocephalus on the floor and while her head is much smaller than Cleo's she is more impaired. The mother is 27 and has 4 other children at home and a husband working in Spain. The mother was asking us about Cleo and seems to want to fight for her daughter but not sure how much can be done for her. The Dr. on the floor asked us to individually spend some time with the mother and baby to provide her with some support.

The hospital served us lunch today in a nice little dining area. This was arranged for by the Director of the hospital. Bud and Mihaela met with her and she told them she was very appreciative of our work. So we seem to have made a good first impression. I'm thinking maybe Big Andreea's grandmother told the mothers on the floor about the volunteers at Tutova so maybe that helped. I told Bud we might have had some "street cred."

We had dinner with Bud, Mihaela and Dan at the creepy doll, I mean Allona, restaurant. I want to note publicly that Cathy had the willpower to resist dessert unlike Bud, Dan, Caroline and I. I'm going to have to live at the gym when I get home.

Bud and Mihaela told us about some of their meetings today. It sounds like there are a few possibilities for other host organization relationships and like Global could end up at several places in Barlad. We will see what works out. The next team will be staying at the Occident so Caroline has to move this Saturday.

AND we heard from Mihaela, that Celine is coming back from Bucharest to the hospital in Barlad before going home or....TBD. Hope she arrives tomorrow and I get to see her before leaving! I did troll the general pediatric floor today looking for any of our Tutova children but didn't find anyone. Not that I want our children to be at the hospital but you never know.

Not many pictures today given our smaller numbers, Cristi's long nap, Paula's afternoon melt down, and
that we can't post pictures of other children at the hospital Hopefully, I'll have a few more tomorrow.

Cristi loves the piano

Paula dancing this morning

Cristi on the new black sofa in the playroom

Paula in the playroom

The Human Jumperoo

2011-04-13T08:39:00.000-07:00

No need for an exercise routine. I am perfecting the art of being a human jumperoo for Paula without too much damage to my back. Fortunately she has had other diversions, until this afternoon when her boyfriends, the older boys who have been regular visitors to our room, left the hospital.

Cleo left for Iasi today and Ana Maria and Nico have not returned so we only had Raul, Cristi and Paula, and of course our new friends. Unfortunately I can't post the picture of Caroline reading to the boy who must be about 12 and is almost as tall as she is as he was sitting on her lap. She read through every book we had. It didn't seem to matter to him that they were all in English.

When Mihaela started talking to the younger of the two boys we discovered that he had been at Tutova and left there about 5 years ago. Sounds like he has been in several foster families. It was so cute watching him smile as he talked to Mihaela. This also explains why he has been so gentle and sweet with the little ones in our room, especially Cleo and why when Caroline showed him pictures on her camera he said "Tutova."

Cristi was a bit fussier today than the past two days - almost as if he couldn't quite figure out what would make him happy. I think he is off his usual routine. He can't get down on the floor and crawl into corners or under things as he did at the clinic. He did eat 2 and 1/2 yogurts. He was so tired this afternoon and finally was able to sleep.

The piano that Jane brought has been such a great toy - both for our kids and for making friends with new kids. Everyone loves it. Thanks Jane. BTW, we have been keeping all the toys for our kids in the nurse's room next door to our room. We gather them up at lunch time and the end of our shift. Hate to do that but apparently there are worries that people will take them. Same for the radio/CD player that Jane bought that we have been using.

Paula continues to do well. I am learning "to speak Paula" and since there are so few children we are pretty much at her beck and call. No wonder she is doing well!

We heard from the nurse at the hospital that Nicoletta's father called and asked when he could take her home. So we are not sure what will be happening when she returns from Iasi. We aren't clear on the home situation. Hopefully if she does go home they will be able to get care for her when her frequent respiratory infections occur - or maybe she will be exposed to fewer germs at home. Who knows.

We also heard that Cleo may have a shunt put in. Previously, Cleo saw specialists in Bucharest who said surgery wasn't possible. We are now hearing there is a new kind of shunt made in Germany that might work for her condition. It isn't clear how this would benefit her as I believe it wouldn't change her overall prognosis. Her mother would need to sign for the procedure so we don't know what will happen with her. The most important thing is that this little angel be comfortable and loved in whatever remains of her short life.

My big Andreea goes home tomorrow. I pop in and out of her room during the day to give her kisses and pat her face. She is lucky to have such a caring grandmother.

Caroline and I made an executive decision that we will cut and paste from our blogs this week into the team journal that we do. Cathy is appreciative of the reprieve from having to write this week!

Bud, the GV CEO, arrived in Barlad on the train from Bucharest at about 5 pm. He is staying at the Occident where we believe the next team will be staying. Mihaela and Bud will be meeting with possible host organization partners tomorrow and Friday. I'm not sure what the next team that starts on Saturday will be doing when they start work on Monday. Flexibility is always important but our team and the next team need it more than most teams.

The last two days we ate a take out lunch from the Raluca at the hospital. Today Mihaela took us to the Da Vinci for lunch - quite a treat. It is gray and raining so we especially needed some cheering up.Tomorrow we are invited to eat hospital food. We hear it is good. Be prepared for the report tomorrow night. Not sure what vegetarian options there are so I'll be prepared with a protein bar.

Last night I started worrying about whether Gaby's family had bottles to give her as I wasn't able to get her to eat from a spoon or eat finger food. So then I started thinking what if she isn't getting enough to eat. I'm hoping the family situation is better than we think or there are relatives or neighbors or a village priest or someone to make sure she is ok. I feel like I'm back doing social work feeling helpless about children in bad situations.

Not too many pictures today. Hopefully a few of our girls will be back tomorrow.

Paula

Cristi talking to Tigger

Paula and Thomas the Tank Engine

Cristi drinking his bottle in his sleep

Paula

Cristi is doing great at standing

Article about hospitals in Romania

2011-04-12T10:01:00.000-07:00

This link is courtesy of Robin Elsing, a frequent Global Volunteer in Tutova. While it isn't completely accurate (the clinic in Tutova did not have all severely handicapped newborns), it has interesting information about the state of health care in the country as a whole.

http://www.nineoclock.ro/close-a-hospital-and-you%E2%80%99ll-open-a-graveyard/

April Showers

2011-04-12T09:56:00.000-07:00

This has been a "gray" trip on a lot of levels including the weather. We've had some slight rain the past 2 days and it has been cold. Caroline said she saw a snow flurry out of the hospital window yesterday.

Nico and Ana Maria were at the hospital in Iasi for testing today so we only had Raul (on a separate floor), Cristi, Paula and Cleo. Our room is a popular place since we have all the toys. There are 2 CPS boys, one in particular, who are in and out, mostly in. The one who appears to be maybe 11 or 12 was obsessed with my camera today. He is good about asking if he can take a toy from the room and bringing it back. He kissed us all good bye yesterday and today brought a chair over for me. I suspect it is hard for him to not have a mother around like the rest of the children.

We have decided Paula really likes these boys. She even let one of them put a bib on her today. They can get in her space without consequences. Yesterday she was giving Caroline nose kisses and today I was the lucky recipient. Zero melt downs today. I think she does better with fewer children and of course more attention. The only problem is the lack of a jumperoo and for a short period of time I was the jumperoo for her today until my quads gave out.

Cleo slept most of the morning and we were a bit worried about her but in the afternoon she was awake and more active than I've seen her in a long time. Either she was feeling better or she liked the penguin we put for her to look at or all of the attention and stimulation but for whatever reason she was moving both arms and smiling and even lifting her shoulder a bit. The staff continue to be good about changing her position. I suspect she will end up staying at the hospital and am a little concerned that she won't get enough attention when there aren't volunteers there. Having said that there seem to be a fair number of staff and they seem to be caring with the children. And the head doctor on that floor, Dr. Eva, has spoken with us quite a bit and seems to have the children's best interests at heart.

Cristi had a good morning but slept most of the afternoon. He hasn't been as congested and we were wondering if they are giving him an antihistamine that helps with the congestion but then tires him out. It is nice to see him not having to deal with such a stuffy nose all the time. The physical therapist came in and worked with him a bit today.

Dr. Eva brought a young Romanian man into our room this afternoon. He is a "social assistant" of some kind with some university training but not a degree in medicine or psychology. He is a volunteer and helps them out a lot. He spoke English and was interesting to talk to and helped us manage our new friend.

As were leaving after lunch, we saw Maria Alexandra aka papanasci with her mother. Sounds like she is there with a cold. Her face looked thinner. While we were sorry to see that she was at the hospital so soon after leaving the clinic, at least her mother knew she needed care. Her mother came over to us as we almost didn't recognize Maria with her thinner face and little cap on. Before we left, Caroline sneaked on to the floor where Maria is and the mother ok'd her taking some pictures. So check out tutovababies.blogspot.com for updated pictures of Maria.

After lunch we made a short visit to the Center for Children with Disabilities. It is north of the Children's Hospital at the edge of town right next to a sports field with a track. So if volunteers end up there you can run laps at lunch time. They have rooms for physical therapy, play therapy, "learning" therapy (tutoring I think), hydrotherapy, art therapy, and probably something else I'm forgetting. The rooms seem well equipped. It sounds like they provide these resources to the children who reside there in the mornings and to non-residents in the afternoon. In fact, we saw Ioanna receiving tutoring I think. Ioanna's foster sister is in one of Mihaela's classes and Mihaela had a nice chat with her.

In addition to having children who come for services during the day, they have a respite program for parents of children with disabilities. Parents can bring their children for 3 hours a week and staff care for them while the parents get a break. The manager of the clinic, Mirella, used a space that was supposed to have two bathrooms for a play room so she could provide this program. I thought that was very progressive of her.

They have separate houses for groups of what appeared to be 8 children in each house with 2 staff in each house. (This is what we saw so I'm not sure how accurate this information may be.) The premises and children seemed clean and there were lots of toys. There was a not large living room/play room in each house and relatively small bedrooms that had 4 children each. We saw Sammy who seemed good and immediately tried to pull Caroline's hair. We also saw Ana Maria in another house who looked quite good and was smiling. One of the staff said she is spoiled.

In the house where "our" other children are we also saw Maestra. She looked great and seemed fine until she got upset when we left. When we walked into the room where our babies are they were very happy to see us. Well, except for Ion who was asleep (it was the end of their nap time) and who Mihaela gently woke up! Ion sat there next to Mihaela just beaming. Alina was all excited when she saw Caroline and even usually quiet Marius was quite happy when I picked him up. Ionut appreciated being tickled. I didn't ask if we could take pictures - didn't quite seem appropriate under the circumstances.

All of the children except Marius had some bites on their faces - not sure what kind - but they were otherwise clean and nicely dressed although Marius was in pink. Alina was quite the girly girl and had a whole closet full of clothes since is so small and the center had donations that didn't fit their other children. We had always heard they don't take babies but there was a little girl who will be 1 year old in July (on my birthday) who had a cast on her leg. Not sure what was going on with her.

In addition to children up to age 18, there is an adult house. We saw some children with Down's Syndrome, like Sammy and Cristi, but we also saw some children who seemed to have more profound disabilities like serious cases of what looked like cerebral palsy. Apparently Bud has a meeting on Thurs. with someone in CPS who is the boss of the nice woman who runs the Center about volunteers working at this facility.

BTW, the Center is over capacity as the need has exceeded their space. One of the things I'm reminded of is that this is a rural and poor area and it has even less resources than other parts of the country.

I think every day about all of "our" children and how they are doing. I think I'm most worried about Alexandra, Petre and Gabita. There are so many children needing assistance throughout the world. I guess I should just keep remembering the starfish story about the little boy who said he knew there were lots of starfish that needed help but at least he helped one.

Go Cristi!

I gave "big" Andreea the little stuffed bunny that Louanne donated.

Andreea showing off her gold hoop earrings - and hair

Raul only smiles for Caroline

Cristi

Note how Cleo grabbed on to the side of the crib

Paula was a happy camper today

Cleo was a happy camper this afternoon

At the hospital

2011-04-11T11:56:00.000-07:00

Today, Caroline, Cathy and I worked with "our" children at the Children's Hospital in Barlad. There are 6 children from Tutova at the hospital pending determination of where they should go. Raul is on the floor with the preemies and the others, Paula, Christi, Cleo, Ana Maria and Nicoletta are all in the same room on the neuro pysch floor. The hospital was clean and while not as cheerful as Tutova it wasn't bad. There seemed to be a fair number of staff around and of course here mothers are expected to stay at the hospital with their children. So we were stand in mothers for our Tutova children.

We brought some toys from the clinic so were able to have some things for the children to play with. Cristi was very happy to see Mickey Mouse and Ana Maria once again was able to enjoy playing with the Lamb Chop puppet. They also enjoyed the piano Jane had brought and other miscellaneous toys. Cleo has a port as she is getting antibiotics. And Nico wasn't feeling well this afternoon and had a fever but perked up a bit after getting some medication. Otherwise, they are doing fine. Paula even seemed to be doing ok with less activity. In fact, when we arrived there was an aide walking with Cristi.

And I got to see "big" Andreea, my former favorite, who left the clinic about 18 mos. ago. She lives with her father and grandmother and she seems lucky to have a grandmother taking good care of her. She is now 5 years old and longer and thinner. She still doesn't have much head and neck control but seemed happy enough. We heard she is there for a cold. She had cute little gold hoop earrings. Her grandmother understood that we knew her from Tutova and let me take a picture of them. In fact, in the afternoon, the grandmother came into our room and seemed to remember Cristi from Tutova.

Tomorrow, Ana Maria and Nico are supposed to be going to the hospital in Iasi for the day for testing and Cleo is supposed to go for testing on Wed. Sounds like they are doing full work ups on the children. The hospital manager said she has asked CPS to look into the home situations. I know the children can't stay at the hospital long term, nor of course would that be a good thing for them. Given Raul's and Cleo's medical situations thought maybe they will stay. Who knows at this point.

Mihaela is working on plans for what the next team will be doing and where they will be staying. I think Bud the CEO from Global arrives on Thurs. We hope to visit the children at the center for children with disabilities tomorrow. Of course we are thinking of all of the children and wondering how they are doing

Spent the last of the donation money on disposable diapers and wipes for the children at the hospital as families are expected to provide those items. Will see what else they may need.

Here are a few pictures.

Nico and Tigger

Cleo and Cookie Monster

Cristi and Mickey

Cathy and Ana Maria

Paula

"Big" Andreea and her grandmother

Link to another news video

2011-04-09T10:43:00.000-07:00

Although this is in Romanian, it shows some of the clinic. The baby in the red onesie is Maria Cleopatra who has hydrocephalus and has already lived longer than expected. The mobile over her crib is one I brought for her on my last trip. (Mind you, we took the 3 mobiles at the clinic for use wherever the volunteers go next.)

The child they show standing in the crib who has kind of a purple/pink shirt on holding a ball is my Gabita.

The mother they interview is the mother of Daria who is going to Iasi for her second cleft palate surgery which was originally scheduled for next month but got moved up. Daris is a pistol. The mother may lack resources to care for her. She was asking the aides what to feed her. We sent some baby food and things home with her.

http://videonews.antena3.ro/action/viewvideo/802663/Vaslui-20-de-copii-care-sufera-de-boli-grave-au-fost-lasati-in-voia-sortii/

Light a candle

2011-04-09T07:27:00.000-07:00

It has been such a relief to get away from the trauma and drama in Tutova. And then I think how lucky I am that I can get away. I confess despite the distraction I've thought about the children, especially Gaby. Today I worried about her 3 sisters taking all her balls that we sent home with her and her not having one to play with. I have to stop thinking about this. Still, Cathy and I lit candles for the babies at one of the churches we visited today.

The hotel is quite nice. I'm not usually one to take pictures of hotel rooms and it isn't like this is the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in or even that special but somehow it seems special in these circumstances. It also has been great to be outdoors and get some fresh air and even some bits of sunshine. It has been very windy with a few raindrops here and there and I swear a few drops of hail but maybe that was my imagination.

Radu took us on a tour of Iasi today. I had visited the painted monasteries and Moldavia with him and some teammates before and he is just the nicest guy and a good guide. I had been in Iasi before and wasn't impressed but clearly just didn't have the right experience! Glad I gave it a second chance and thanks to our teammate Jane for the hotel recommendation. And thanks to Cathy who let me join in on her trip at the last minute.

Tonight I'll be making two international phone calls. The usual Sat. call to my Dad but also a special call to my niece Shannon who turns 21 today. Happy Birthday, Shannon!

So here are some pictures that won't tug at your heartstrings....

A Home for Andrada

2011-04-08T01:51:00.000-07:00

We are such slackers. We had breakfast at 9 today and then went over to the clinic. First we say the news van from the first day the media descended upon the clinic. Then to our great surprise and pleasure we found a foster family there to take Andrada home with them! Maybe her baptism helped and if there is a God s/he decided to look down on this little baby. The foster parents seemed like very nice people and had brought her clothes to go home in. They live in Vaslui and their other children are grown. Thank goodness for a happy ending for her and for our last day at the clinic. We probably said thank you to the foster parents a million times. There were fewer tears today.

I did ask Ramona more about what happened when they took Gaby home yesterday. She said Dan would tell us about how Mihaela was which led me to believe things weren't good. We heard Nicoletta say Miha was "triste" (sad) and "murdar" (dirty). I asked Ramona if there was a way to get CPS involved to keep an eye on the girls (not to mention their 2 sisters.) She said there are social workers who visit the villages maybe once a month (unlikely) and if there was a problem they would tell CPS. If it is like CPS in the U.S., neglect is often not enough to justify intervention. So I am not hopeful. I don't even want to think about it.

At breakfast we discovered that we all had dreams about the babies last night. My dream was amazingly hopeful. I found Alina in a pile of sand, brushed her face off and said "Alina is that you" and she said "yes" because of course she speaks English. Then I took her with me and got on a bus and someone told me I could be accused of kidnapping her. So I went to her mother and had her sign an official notarized document giving up Alina. I gave the mother flowers as a thank you and off we went. So there must be some small amount of hope inside me or my psyche was giving me a comforting dream!

We said good bye and thank you to the aides and left the clinic about 11. We gathered up some toys and disposable diapers we had missed being able to give to Daria. I grabbed all the puppets thinking they would be good for playing with the babies in their cribs. Jane grabbed Tigger and the thing with the mirror and hanging bird that Cristi likes to lay under. I cleaned the mirror when I got it back to my room.

Caroline grabbed some of the things they use for Raul's bandages. I think Caroline has been supplying the clinic with the bandages they use for Raul and may need to do the same for the hospital. Her mother is coming in 2 weeks and will bring more. I know, don't get me started about what will happen to him. The good news is Caroline has been making progress with getting his medical visa to bring him to the US for treatment. I think she now has power of attorney for him as well.

Caroline and Jane are off to the hospital in Barlad this afternoon and Cathy and I are escaping to Iasi. I am not looking forward to next week but at least we will be able to give some attention to the children.

Cathy and Andrada

Andrada and her new foster mother

Coca, Jelina and Andrada

Nicoletta and Andrada

Andrada and her foster mother

Andrada and her foster father

Antenna 3 Link

2011-04-07T11:18:00.000-07:00

http://videonews.antena3.ro/action/viewvideo/802702/Copii-aruncati-din-Spitalul-de-Cronici-de-la-Tutova/

Down the Rabbit Hole

2011-04-07T11:09:00.000-07:00

The last few days have really felt like Alice going down the rabbit hole into a series of bizarre and surreal encounters. And today was no exception.

When Dan arrived at the hotel this morning at the regular time we were already on our way out the door having decided to get to the clinic asap before another child left. We then found out from Dan that Dr. Delia had asked him to drive Maria Alexandra home at 7 this morning. Don't ask me why. Malika went with him. So we were unable to say good bye to "papanasci." (I think I've told you Robin called her this after the Romanian donut dessert.)

Upon our arrival, there was the ubiquitous television crew, today's from Antenna 3, a major channel. Then there was this pretty good looking photo journalist who works for CNN and other international networks and publications who was taking pictures. He spoke good English and was interesting to talk to.

Also when we arrived, Petre's parents were there. The situation seems a bit worrisome.It looked to me like the mother had some developmental disability. I think they sent some food home with him as well as one of the big blankets from the toddler bedroom and of course toys and clothes. He left mid-morning.

That left us with Gaby, Raul, Andrada, and Cleo. We were told Cleo and Raul would be going by ambulance to the hospital in Barlad and Gaby would be going home but it was unclear when or how. There seemed to be a big push to have all of the children out today. We played with the children in the play room but also in the entry way sitting on the red couch. There were all kinds of aides there I think partly to say good bye to the children and also there was something going on with their labor contracts with the new manager of the senior home. (Some will work there we think. We also heard there are several more openings at the hospital in Barlad.)

I got lots of quality time with Gaby although I did make sure to share her with my team mates. We were half laughing and half crying about having "baby therapy" to deal with being sad about the situation and having to share the remaining children among all of us.

We said we weren't going to go to lunch in case the babies disappeared while we were gone. Dan assured us Dr. Delia would call us so we went off to have our lunch and planned to return to the clinic asap. As we finished eating, we got a call from Dr. Delia that she had called the ambulance to pick up Cleo and Raul so we rushed back and waited for what turned out to be 2 ambulances (don't ask me why) and for Andrada and Gaby to wake up from their naps.

Raul and Cleo leaving was pretty sad even though we may see them if we volunteer at the hospital. I suspect they will not be as well taken care of at the hospital. I put Cleo's night light in my purse so we could take it to the hospital ourselves and hopefully find a place to put it and ask the staff to use it. I'm not holding out much hope for that.

The priest was also around a good part of the day. We were told he was going to baptize Andrada in the late afternoon and we were invited to attend. The television new story said she is the last child there and she is being baptized so God will protect her" or some such drama. We are being told she is going to an emergency foster family tomorrow. It sounds like they don't have a regular foster family for her yet.

Then the day became truly bizarre. There was something going on about the news crew though Andrada was the last child there but Gaby was still there so how were they going to exit Gaby from the clinic. Dan and Malika were taking her home which is apparently north of Barlad. We asked if one of us could go and didn't really get an answer. I did understand that it could be intrusive to the family.. Apparently the family didn't have a way to pick Gaby up and quite honestly I'm not sure that they are expecting her or want her. Nevertheless, we gathered up every ball we could find and clothes that could work for her or her twin Mihaela who went home last year. I also took 2 of the toddler blankets for them, one pink and one purple. (Not the white one with the pink flowers as I figured it would get too dirty.)

So we are playing with Gaby and I'm putting some more clothes in the bags for her and the next thing we know they are rushing around to put a coat on her and her and "snuck" her out the back door. Really. The good news is it kept me from crying too much because it was so shocking. I really hope CPS will keep an eye on her at home because I am seriously worried about if/how she will be cared for. Dan told us at dinner that it took them awhile to find the village the family lives in. The family wasn't expecting Gaby and don't necessarily want her but she isn't a CPS case so there was apparently no choice but to send her home. Dan said Mihaela, Gaby's twin, was a bit thinner but otherwise talking and seemed ok. There are two older sisters at home that Dan guesses are about 4 and 5.

At this point, it was about 4:00 and without much discussion we made a unanimous decision to leave Andrada to the aides and the priest and go back to the hotel. With Mihaela's ok, Caroline gathered up the mobiles and we took a few other things we didn't want to disappear and headed out the door. We decided to skip Andrada's baptism. Frankly from my perspective, I'd had enough of the Romanian cultural experience for the day. We did see some of the Tutova footage on TV at dinner time and saw Andrada being dipped into the baptism font. We had heard Dr. Delia wasn't going to allow the crew to film it but I guess that changed.

Oh yes, I got interviewed by Antenna 3. My team mates chickened out and as some of you know I'm pretty good at winging it. They asked me where I was from and how I came to be there or something like that. Then they asked some interesting questions: 1. How would these children fare if in the US? and 2. Had I heard about what was going on with hospitals in Romania right now? Generally, I talked about how Global Volunteers has been committed to the community for 12 years and hoped to continue to contribute. I said we were worried about the children and how they would be cared for recognizing that people lacked resources. I was trying not to be disparaging and make it clear that it was more of an economic issue. I said if they were in the US they would have more access to services like physical therapy and occupational therapy and that there would be more resources available to help parents care for the children. And I said I had heard on the news about what was happening with hospitals in Romania. I may have ended up on the cutting room floor. Who knows. Who knows is the answer to just about everything these days.

And by the way, the news story today about hospital "reform" was about how adult patient(s) have died as a result of not having a place to go to or there now being too great a distance for people to travel in an emergency to a hospital. Apparently in one community 12 "terminally" ill patients were left at a hospital that turned off the lights etc. Some people voluntarily stayed to care for them and the community brought them food. We also heard that the govt. now says it is reasonable for people to have to travel 35 km to get to a hospital. When we were talking to the photographer he said "any idiot" can make a decision but implementing it is another thing. And he is right - this could be a case study of having no implementation plan. What a mess.

So the latest is that we can go to the clinic tomorrow morning to see Andrada who we are now being told will go to the hospital because even an emergency foster home isn't available. Then we are supposed to volunteer at the hospital tomorrow afternoon.

Cathy had planned to leave at 1:00 tomorrow for a weekend in Iasi and I have now decided to go with her. I was going to stay here to go to the clinic this weekend but obviously that isn't an option and I think it will be too depressing to be in Tutova. Dorel, the driver, will take us there tomorrow afternoon and pick us up on Sunday. We are staying at a nice hotel and our former tour guide Radu (another good looking guy) will take us on a tour of Iasi. I saw some of Iasi on my first trip here and don't remember a lot of it and the guide wasn't that great so this will be fine. It will be good to get away.

I'm going to try and post a link here to the reality television video that showed yesterday. A former volunteer posted it on her facebook page and you can tell what is going on even without understanding Romanian. And you may see me in a blur playing with Gaby.

http://www.realitatea.net/zece-copii-abandonati-de-stat-dupa-ce-spitalul-tutova-s-a-desfiintat_822052.html

And here are some pictures from yesterday afternoon and today. Not necessarily sequential - sure you understand!

Thursday's tv station truck

Ionut

Coca and Petre before he left today

Nicoletta holding Cleo before taking her to the ambulance. She is clearly distressed. And they say she doesn't have much of a brain. I think she knew something was wrong.


Maria Alexandra and Andrada from yesterday afternoon - see why I confuse them all the time?!

Maria Alexandra

Alina

Jane and Caroline sharing taking care of Andrada this morning

Caroline and Coca wiping away tears as Raul is about to leave

Dr. Delia and Dan talking to the media

Caroline and Alina

Ion before getting ready to leave

Marius before getting ready to leave

Caroline with Alina dressed to leave

Ionut dressed to leave with Cathy

Ionut

Ion dressed to leave

Andrada in the about to crawl position

Maria Alexandra

Gabita

Jane and either Maria Alexandra or Andrada!

Gaby - these cars went home with Petre

Petre with my water bottle and a cookie

Gaby looking out the window

They asked me to take Gaby out in the stroller for a short while today

Cleo talking to a stuffed animal

Maria Cleopatra

Petre leaving

Andrada in the midst of getting her clothes changed

Gabita

Raul and Caroline

Walking! (ok, with help)

Talking with Gaby - BTW, we have the same haircut

Gaby being taken to the car to leave

Gaby dressed to leave

Icon placed in the pre-school room for Andrada's baptism

And now there are 7...

2011-04-06T11:57:00.000-07:00

The drama continues. Today we arrived at the clinic to find a television news crew interviewing Dr. Delia in the nurse's office. The aides were all with the children in the play rooms so the 9:00 bottle was delayed. They made a special point of filming Andrada, Alina, Ion and his scar and I think Cleo as well. Ion was entranced by the camera and I thought it was nice when the cameraman patted his head.I told Cleo I would be her agent for future television appearances and wouldn't take a commission.

We actually saw the feature on the tv when we were at dinner this evening. It was broadcast on a national reality network. They blurred the faces of the children although of course we knew who was who. They showed me playing with Gaby. One of the journalists this afternoon asked Cathy and I who were in the play room at the time if we wanted to make any comment about what was happening and of course we said

Everyone played pretty well this morning. Cleo joined us and Cathy patiently fed her yogurt. I found the lamp chop puppet I had brought some time ago and it is Ana Maria's new favorite toy. Caroline sprung Nico from isolation by putting a mask on her which of course didn't last too long. Raul joined us as well. The rules have been thrown to the winds. What are they going to do? Fire us?

All was going along pretty well until we got word that Andreea was going to a foster home today. The foster mother and a driver arrived late morning and there was the usual bustling around packing toys and clothes for her. The foster mother seemed nice and said not to worry Andreea was going to a home where she would be loved. I thought it was a good sign that she said that. She also said she has 3 daughters who are excited to have Andreea come and live with them. I am more hopeful for Andreea than any of the children so far and hope she will do well. Poor Jane, losing Cristi one day and Andreea the next. Coca, the aide, was in tears and I think got the mother's cell phone number or gave her number to her or something.

Then when we got back from lunch we discovered the hospital ambulance had come and taken Nicoletta and Ana Maria to the hospital. Yes, that was on the tv as well. We heard a baby crying that we think was Ana Maria.

Then to make things even worse the people from the center for children with disabilities arrived and took Marius, Ion, Alina and Ionut. At first Ion seemed excited seeing the cars but got quieter as they got closer to leaving. The manager of the center seemed to be a very nice woman. She spoke a bit of English and made a point of talking to us. She told Mihaela they opened up in 2006 with 8 children and are now up to 47. They apparently don't have room for more than the 4 children they have taken already but who knows. They have 6 houses but it isn't clear how the children are dispersed among the houses. I worry less about the children who have gone there than I do about the ones going to to the hospital as we know they can't stay there for long.

At dinner, Mihaela told us that Dr. Delia is driving Daria and her mother to Iasi tomorrow for Daria's second cleft palate surgery. And then she told us that Dr. Delia is driving Petre and Gaby home. It isn't clear to us why she is driving them and the families aren't coming to get them although we know distance and lack of resources can be a problem. We also don't know when they are leaving. It is all very distressing. This afternoon Petre was asking for "Ionny" and of course today of all days Gaby walked up and down the hall way multiple times. I told everyone she is practicing for our escape tomorrow and that we are going to make a break for it through the back door.

So tomorrow we could be down to having Cleo, Raul, Maria Alexandra and Andrada. But who knows. I have no idea what we will be doing next week. Jane leaves on Sat. so next week it will be Caroline, Cathy and me. Mihaela says we go where the children go but I'm not sure what that will mean in practice. Truthfully, I wish I was leaving on Saturday although I know that is selfish as if we can see any of the children next week in their new locations maybe that would be helpful to them. Who knows.

I posted the pictures below after lunch time and frankly am just too darn tired to post any more pictures tonight. And I have a sinus headache. I really thought the children would leave more gradually and not this soon.

Gaby and Evan (Thanks to Cathy for the photos of me with Gaby! Changed my profile picture on this blog.)

Mihaela and Daria

Gabita

Coca and Andreea

Caroline and Nico

Nico in her mask

Andreea all dressed up before we knew she was leaving

Andrada seems to be getting interested in crawling!

Gaby

Cleo and Lamb Chop

Cleo eating yogurt

Ana Maria and her new friend, Lamb Chop

Coca and Andreea

Andreea and Jane

Daria and her mother


Raul and the musical frog

More good-byes

2011-04-05T10:05:00.000-07:00

I'm going to have to start coming up with a subject line for these postings that doesn't have to do with saying good-bye. We arrived at the clinic this morning to see Ramona hurrying down the path with a handful of papers. My immediate thought was that someone is leaving and sure enough the twins' parents were there and took them home. The father seemed very affectionate with the girls, the mother less so but then it is a strange and difficult process I'm sure. I am glad the girls have a relationship as that will help them to adjust I'm sure. Plus we sent the drum home with them. Hopefully they will be loved and cared for and continue to grow and develop. Still it was sad to see them go.

Cristi and Paula also left to go to the hospital in Barlad. We understand this is an interim placement until it is determined where they will go next. I was expecting they would go to the center for children with disabilities in Barlad but it may. be that it doesn't have room to take on these children right now. I don't quite understand why they can't be at the clinic until it closes - getting attention rather than laying in cribs and being ignored in the hospital. Both of them have made such progress - hope they don't lose it for too long. Their departure was a painful scene. Both of them crying, the toddlers crying. I escaped to the non-mobile room to cuddle the babies as it was just too hard to watch.

So every day we just need to be prepared for some change. We threw some of the routine out the window today.. The toddlers/mobiles now include Ion, Petre, Andreea, Daria, Alina, and Marius with Gaby kind of in between. So I spent more time in and out of all the rooms and the toddlers spent the morning before Malika came generally running around.

We couldn't find Gaby's pink ball until afternoon so she played with a bigger ball for part of the day.. We also found a frog that played music and had flashing lights that she and Ana Maria enjoyed for awhile. At one point, Ion was pitching a fit so I took him on my lap and let him play with my camera. Now I have to get the settings right again! (It's worth it to have him happy for awhile.) Marius started out the day happy and wanting to be picked up and tickled and then enjoyed being in the hallway. He was not happy when Petre hit him on the head with a toy. Cleo came into the playroom and enjoyed Cathy reaching under her and rubbing her back and other attention she got. And the "girls" (Ana Maria, Maria Alexandra and Andrada) all got in their exercise and practice sitting up. Andrada was babbling away looking at herself in the mirror again and Maria Alexandra was having quite the conversation with herself as well.

At one point we were in the entry area and a man was taping a notice to the front door. Petre said "uh oh" and I thought to myself, how true. Turns out it was a notice telling workers if they want to work at the new senior home they need to go to the Tutova municipal hall and apply for a new labor contract. Of course no one knows who these seniors are, why they will be in the home or where they are coming from. We also hear it is funded for 3 years only. Once again on the lunch time news there was a story about "patients abandoning hospitals" throughout the country.

Jane brought her can of whipped cream in (she uses it on her hot chocolate.) Petre, Ion and Ionut loved it. Andreea was afraid of it and Alina didn't seem to like it either.

Wonder what changes tomorrow will bring...


Pa to Andreea and Roxana

Alina and Dan

Paula

Daria

Alina

Cleo and Mickey

Andreea and Alina

Ionny

Gaby says pick me up!

Maria Alexandra

Alina now weighs just over 14 pounds

Maria Cleopatra

Ana Maria tries out the jumperoo

Ionut

Caroline and Raul

Maria Alexandra

Andrada

Andrada in the jumperoo

Nicoletta is still in isolation

Gaby

Paula

Cathy and Ana Maria

Gaby

Gabita

Hyacinth in my room

Jane trying to hide Cristi under her shirt when the ambulance came (somehow I didn't get a decent picture of Cristi all day)

Jane and Andrada


Ana Maria and the frog

Gaby and the new ball

Andreea

Petre

Paula

Ion at the window

Pa to Alexandra

2011-04-04T10:56:00.000-07:00

Much to our surprise, Alexandra's mother and a young man arrived to take her home this morning. Mihaela had left for a meeting with CPS in Vaslui so we didn't have her there to fill us in on what was going on. Some of you know that Alexandra has gone home before and her family has brought her back to the clinic. Now what will happen when the clinic isn't here and they can't care for her? Alexandra has been quite withdrawn since her last trip home. When I leaned in to give her a kiss good bye she didn't pull back and almost put her arm around my neck. Caroline had a similar experience. I may be misinterpreting this but I suspect she didn't want to go home. Caroline and the aides quickly packed up a bag of clothes and a few toys for her. Caroline put a magazine in the bottom even tho Alexandra hasn't been looking at magazines and books the way she used to.

Celine left early this morning before we arrived. We understand Dr. Delia will suggest to Celine's mother that she go with Celine to the hospital for a week when her testing is finished before taking Celine home but that will be up to the mother. Andreea was knocking on the door to the mobile room looking for Celine this morning.

Ramona, the social worker, was back today. We thought she had already had her last day but maybe she is there to help get the children discharged. We heard there was some kind of meeting with Dr. Delia so there were fewer aides for part of the morning meaning the 12 noon bottles were delayed until about 12:30 and the children ate in their cribs. Jane and I fed Ion, Petre and Andreea cottage cheese we had brought and tried unsuccessfully to get them down for their naps.

Later in the afternoon we had a dance party in the mobile room with the 4 of us volunteers, the twins, Gaby,, Cristi, and Alina. Cristi was dressed in a penguin outfit Jane had brought him and looked quite dapper. He is doing so well with his walking practice unlike Gaby who wasn't too enthused about it today. The staff seem to no longer be in their routine of putting shoes on her and having her practice each day so I've been trying to do it but can only do so when someone can be in with the mobiles for me.

At dinner tonight Mihaela asked us how we were doing with our goals. "Staying present" is the hardest but probably one of the most important right now. I'm definitely less focused on learning more Romanian this trip. One individual goal was to laugh every day and the good news is that we are definitely doing that. If nothing else, the kids can make us laugh. The twins keep making faces in the mirror and are babbling and just a riot. And of course Alina is always good for a laugh.

Mihaela and Dan's daughter, Delia, joined us for dinner. She is almost 8 years old and nearly as tall as me, but not quite. She did quite well speaking some English with us.

Enjoy the pictures!


Cathy and Andreea

Jane and Cristi

Caroline and Alina


Evan and Gabita

Raul

Gaby standing!

Cristi Daniel thought it was very funny when I danced and clapped my hands

Ionut in big boy clothes

Marius is fascinated by the camera, not me

Roxana

Daria leaves for the hospital tomorrow for her 2nd surgery


Andreea

Andreea and Roxana

Gaby and her beloved pink ball

Roxana

Trying to escape

Gaby

Petre

They were fascinated watching black smoke from the maintenance room

I think this is Maria Alexandra

Andreea and Ion

Jane and I had lost control by this point

Jane feeding the dogs

Daria

Cathy and Roxana

Alina

Gaby

Roxana


I make sure no one steals her pink ball that Jane has repaired with duct tape

Alexandra and her mother and unknown young man

I had bulgarian salad for dinner: cucumbers, tomatoes, red peppers, cheese, hard boiled egg and olives with a carrot flower garnish

Climbing Over the Gate

2011-04-03T05:42:00.000-07:00

Jane and I headed over to the clinic this morning to find everything locked up. Not to be deterred from our babies, we scaled the gate. Thank goodness I've been working out. We found out several of the aides did the same thing. How in the heck do they expect people to get to work?! Fortunately, as we were leaving there was a man with a key to let us out.

With some trepidation, I took the twins into the non-mobile room with me. Ionut was in his crib with a fever and I didn't bring Cleo in as I didn't think I could protect her. The twins did well and enjoyed playing with the drum. It was one of their favorite toys 6 mos. ago. Gaby squealed with delight in the jumperoo. Andrada, Maria Alexandra and Ana Maria had their exercise sessions, practiced sitting up and played sus and jos with me. The twins requested the itsy bitsy spider song (they make the motion with their fingers) and the other girls seemed to enjoy it as well. I do need to develop my repertoire though. Cathy said she has been singing every song she knows including Broadway show tunes and the Beatles.

I was hoping to go for a long walk today but it is gray, cold, and windy. A good afternoon for a nap and a book.


Maria Alexandra

Ana Maria looking fabulous in purple

Andreea

Girl time

Andreea

Gabita

Today Cristi talked to the monkey

Playing with our keys

Roxana

Alexandra

Celine leaves for tests in Bucharest tomorrow

What a smile

Sealed

2011-04-02T10:37:00.000-07:00

Yesterday when we left the clinic, the doors to the adult section of the hospital were sealed by the Tutova government. (Picture below.) And yesterday morning new locks had been installed on the gates and we had to enter by the side door next to the gate to the main hospital. This afternoon when Jane and I arrived at first we didn't think we could get in but then discovered that door was secured only by a flimsy wire we could remove. Jane informed me she had scaled the gate before so I was ready to try it if we had to (despite being 15+ years older than her!) Then this afternoon when we got to the pediatric clinic door it was locked and we had a moment of panic. Then I saw the nurse at the computer and we knocked and he let us in. I think they are so short staffed on the weekend they are locking the door.

A rugby team joined us at the hotel for the weekend. Apparently they were here last weekend as well. Unfortunately they were at Caroline's end of the hall and she had to listen to awful polka type music last night and this morning. One of the team members spoke to Cathy and I this morning after breakfast and said he is from Brasov.

The students from Mihaela's high school were at the clinic this morning so Cathy, Jane and I took a taxi into Barlad to go to the open market, the Plus market and to walk around a bit. Then back to the hotel and to the clinic after the baby's mid-day nap. I spent the afternoon with the non-mobiles (and Gaby and Daria) which was lots of fun. I even managed to get Cleo out of her crib safely. I did have to banish Daria to the toddler room for hitting after awhile.

When Mihaela joined us for dinner last night we talked about what will happen with the children leaving the clinic. No definite information and it is hard to feel helpless. I'm reminded of Jane's goal about "staying in the present" and just doing what we can for the children in the moment. I did remember a former team putting together a "chart" on each child that talked about where they were with their developmental milestones and other information. The charts are nowhere to be found but I contacted my former team mate Mela and she sent me a photo of the document. So I'm doing my best to recreate it on my netbook and we will try to fill one out for each child. Mihaela will translate them in to Romanian. This way we can take some of the wonderful information that the volunteers have shared about children in their individual journals and share it with their new caregivers. It may not make a difference but it feels good to try and do something.

There have been news stories on the television about hospitals closing throughout parts of Romania. There is video showing patients being taken out of hospitals and put into ambulances to be transferred to other facilities. Saw a baby in an incubator being transferred. There have also been news stories of teachers demonstrating about salaries. A very difficult time for this country.

No water at the hotel this morning. First time I've had that happen. (There have been a lot of firsts this trip - and lasts.) I'm reminded of my friend Stephanie's trip to Tanzania and know this is a minor inconvenience compared to other places!

This posting is a bit rambling but it has been that kind of day - and trip.

Seals on the door of the adult section of the hospital

New lock on the gate

Ana Maria - she wiggles when I sing - hope that doesn't mean her ears hurt

Ionut

Daria

Andrada

Maria Alexandra

Gaby is a bit big for the jumperoo but it is good for exercising her legs

Cristi still talks to his penguin

Gaby and Cleo

Cleo laughs when you give her raspberry kisses

Andrada

Gabita - BTW, I think she now knows her name

Cristi pulled himself up!

Nicoletta

Andrada had quite the conversation with herself in the mirror

Couldn't find the boppies so used mickey mouse for Maria Alexandra's tummy time

Gabita

Cleo

Cristi

Funky Town

2011-04-01T08:18:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not calling Tutova or Barlad "funky town." Found a toy that plays the song, "Take me to funky town" so guess what song I will have going through my head for the next day or two.

I have never gotten sick at the start of a trip here but I officially have a cold. It isn't too bad so all of the emergen-C I'm taking must be helping. Glad the weekend is coming up to get some rest although I will probably still go over to the clinic. I'm staying away from Nico who is sick already and doing more hugging and tickling of babies and no kissing. Although a fair number of them have runny noses anyway which is no doubt where I got this.

Interesting morning. The priest came and seemed to be doing a full blown service complete with icons and incense in the pre-school room. A few of the aides were in there. Then Dr. Delia appeared with 2 women who we heard were from CPS. No idea what they were doing there as they didn't appear to be seeing any children but more touring around. Ion was pitching a fit and I figured it wasn't good for him to be banging his head while they were there so I gave him my camera to play with. He loves cameras and Jane's Iphone.

I'm really pleased that Marius is more social and coming over to be hugged and tickled. Still not great with eye contact but better. Alina was hitting children today and was banished from the non -mobile room into the mobile room where she did more of the same. I was able to distract her a bit with playing patty cake but it is a struggle with her. Time out in the corner doesn't really work with her - or with any of the children for that matter. In fact, in the afternoon, Alina hit Gaby with a toy and made her cry and Gaby doesn't cry all that much.

The twins were a riot this afternoon. Roxana was chasing Andreea around the room and catching her and they were laughing and laughing. Unfortunately, Roxana is copying the hitting and she got a time out as well. (Time outs last for about 15 seconds.)

It was a gray day and colder again so no outside play time. Thank goodness for Malika in the afternoons. She is a wonder with the children. As we left, big Andreea, Celine, Ion and Petre were all at the window waving good bye. Breaks my heart.

We had soup and only soup for lunch (our choice.) Oscar pancakes for dinner. We are trying to do dessert only every other night. Last night at Alona (or as Jane calls it creepy doll restaurant because of all the dolls) some of the group had papanasci, the Romanian donuts. Now I know how to spell it.

The clinic

Alina

Daria loves the tunnel

Gaby held the cheerio but wouldn't eat it

Marius

Eating cheerios

Alina

Alina and Roxana

Celine

Roxana

This is as far as Gaby gets in the tunnel

Petre

Celine

Andreea

Cristy and Cathy

Cristy

Roxana chasing Andreea

Gabita

Gaby

There can never be too many pictures of Gaby

Ana Maria and Cathy visited us

I finally had to take this bird away from Alina when it became a weapon

Paula

Andreea

Alexandra

Service in the pre-school room

We plan to go to Barlad tomorrow to the open market but I'm so nervous about the children I'm almost tempted to go make sure they are still there in the morning. Will probably go over for a bit in the afternoon.

Pa (Bye) to the nurses and Robin

2011-03-31T12:29:00.000-07:00

Don't ask me why but today was the last day for all of the nurses. There will be 2 nurses (who have never worked with children) from the adult part of the hospital for the next 2 weeks. It was also the last day for several of the aides, the older Lily, Vale and I think Mirella but am not sure about that. I think Mirella has a job to go to. It is unclear exactly what is happening and when to the staff.

At least the sun was out today and the toddlers and mobiles got to go out. Maybe it will warm up enough for the non-mobiles to go out soon. Alina loved going down the slide and I would catch her at the bottom. Even Andreea and Roxana decided outside was ok although Andreea was a bit reluctant at first to get in a swing. At lunchtime when I went back to the clinic big Andreea was looking for "Mama Jane." Too cute. Petre is fascinated by the dogs but wary of getting too close - probably a good thing. A male patient came outside and of course Alina went right up to him to be picked up but he quickly handed her off to me.

Nico is still in isolation. Paula seems to have fewer and shorter melt downs. Daria's mother came to visit again today. Ion hit a dog but fortunately the dog didn't hit back.

More crying and sad faces from the aides today. Can certainly understand why but it is definitely a different mood and much harder than usual at the clinic. The routine is a bit off as well. Bottles came early at lunchtime. We did buy baby food at the store last night and hopefully that makes life easier for the aides.

Dinner at Alona tonight. I almost didn't go as I feel like I have a bit of a cold coming on or maybe it is my chronic sinus problems or allergies although I take an allergy pill every day. I'll take some good old Romanian cold medicine tonight. I have been taking lots of Vitamin C and we've been getting oranges at breakfast so hopefully that will stave off any major illness.

Path from the road to the clinic

Children at the gate after lunch


Our hotel - note new signs - they will need the business after Global leaves the hotel

Celine and Malika

Andreea - today was tutu day

Ion

Andreea on the path leading to the clinic

Andreea dressed to go outside (in something like high 50s or low 60s weather)

Daria and her mama

Ramona (on the left) visited; her last day today

Outside the clinic

Roxana and Gaby

Alina aka the sugar plum fairy

Alina Ballerina

Cristy in the panda hat

Jane at work pushing swings

Alina having fun going down the slide

Marius

Petre

Caroline surrounded

Alex and Nicoletta

Roxana and Lily

Celine

Gaby and Vale (one of her few smiles today)

Gaby's latest favorite toy

Cleo - we hear she will likely go to the Children's Hospital in Barlad - where the babies get bug bites and lice

Blue skies

2011-03-30T10:50:00.000-07:00

Wish I could say the blue skies reference was to more than the weather but no new news on the children. Still, it was great to have some sunshine today and we even got the older children out briefly this morning. Of course they were all bundled up against the "cold." The crocus are starting to bloom along the pathway at the clinic. Still a fair amount of mud though when Cathy and I took a short walk after lunch.

The twins were making faces in the mirror today. Too funny. And Marius had a pretty good day until the older kids came in and he was pulling my hair - really pulling hard! I think he does better when there are fewer children in the room. Hope I didn't do too much damage to my wrists lifting children and flipping Gaby over in somersaults. She loved it though. She has taken to "dancing" sitting on her knees and is making more noises. Progress can be slow but at least I see some progress.

The aides are having a hard time of it. Some are better able to focus on the children than others. Lucky we have experienced volunteers on the team. And Cathy is so great with the kids - born to do this. Unfortunately, Robin needs to leave on Friday as her sister is quite ill and in the hospital. I know it is hard for her to leave but she is doing the right thing. We will miss her.

Nico is still in isolation with a terrible something in her chest - sounds awful..

Jane and Andreea - check out the beautiful yellow sweater Jane brought her.

Marius (not sure where he got the scratch over his eye)

Petrica

Paula starting to climb out of her crib....

Andreea

Roxana

Gabita

Celine

Andreea, Alina, and Ion


Ion aka Ionny

Cleo

Daria

Gaby

Auntie Evan and Gaby

Alexandra

Maria Alexandra

Celine and Corinna

Marius

Alina and Jelina

Dismal

2011-03-29T12:18:00.000-07:00

Not a very uplifting title but the brightest spots in the day have been the children's smiles. Otherwise weather and moods are dismal. I did have a good start to the day when Alexandra wanted to be held for awhile. We danced around the room and looked out the window. I did get my cardio in with games of sus and jos (throwing babies up and down), dancing, chasing and bouncing. Also did a few choruses of Old McDonald and Wheels on the Bus when the CD player wasn't cooperating. This is the only audience I've ever found that doesn't cringe at the sound of me singing.

Daria's mother came to visit today. Daria's second cleft palate surgery is scheduled I believe for later in April or May. They may try to move it up. I expect Daria will go home. Daria was nestling her head on shoulders and more cuddly than usual today. She has a nasty cough so maybe she isn't feeling well. Daris is saying Mama pretty clearly and doing great with walking.

I hear Celine's mother came to see her as well and to check on their trip to Bucharest next week for further evaluation for Celine. Apparently her mother is young and quite pretty and lives in a village with her grandparents. We know where Celine got her good looks from!

Tried to get Gaby to go through the tunnel. She has latched on to playing with 1/2 of a plastic Easter egg so Jane tried putting it part way through the tunnel hoping she would see it and go after it. She went only as far as she had to and stretched to reach it and then scooted right back out. Probably she can't see well enough to be willing to venture through.

Alina and I have picked back up on our games of patty cake although now the twins are anxious to play as well. I'm trying to reinforce Caroline teaching her to say I'm a US citizen. The first part comes out pretty well but citizen is a struggle.

We broke early for lunch as the aides all got called into a meeting. I was surprised when bottles came 30 min. early. We are not sure exactly what happened at the meeting but think Dr. Delia was telling them about jobs in the area.

You'll be glad to know that I found the "stop motion" setting on my camera so can get some better pictures. I've been with a small group of children though so am having a hard time getting everyone's pix. Check out Caroline's blog: tutovababies.blogspot.com. She has some great ones.

We had dinner at Trattoria Da Vinci and I confess I indulged in pasta and chocolate cake. Stress eating. Went to the market afterward and I did get a small supply of wipes, baby shampoo and baby food even though we don't know how long the children will be at the clinic to use them. They can always send items with the children wherever they go.

We are learning that what is happening to the pediatric recovery clinic in Tutova is happening to hospitals all over Romania. There are a number of hospitals being closed, although I don't think any with a similar population. At this point we don't know what is happening and when. Information seems to be evolving. So we are taking one day at a time. I am hoping that Global Volunteers will be able to establish new working relationships with other organizations in the area, perhaps the ones where some of the children will be sent. I think the CEO of Global Volunteers will be here in 2 weeks or so to work on that.

Meanwhile, here are some pictures. Will try to get around to see some other children tomorrow but of course caring for the babies comes before taking pictures!

Maria Cleopatra

Marius loves being tickled

Alina

Classic Gaby with her 2 fingers in her mouth

Andreea

Roxana eating a cookie


Andreea paying a quick visit..


Daria

Alina and the tunnel

First Monday at the clinic

2011-03-28T11:26:00.000-07:00

Woke to a dreary, foggy and slightly rainy day. The pleasant weather we had in Bucharest on Sat. is past and it was quite cold today. At least the path to the clinic isn't too muddy.

Lots of hugs and kisses with the aides. It has got to be so hard for them knowing many will be out of work soon. Vale noticed I had lost weight and asked if I was sick. I reassured her that I wasn't. I asked about her children and she appreciated the inquiry. All of this in my few words of Romanian and nonverbal communication!

On previous trips I have been with the non-mobiles.This time I said I would be with the mobiles. They mobiles though seem to be divided into two groups. The "toddlers" who are more mobile and/or older were in the pre-schoool room with Jane and I was in the big playroom with the twins, Gaby and Marius with Alina in and out. In the afternoon Jane was also with us while the toddlers were with Malika in pre-school. Then after pre-school ended we had the whole gang in the playroom. Jane brought this great silk like fabric tunnel that the children loved. The ones that were reluctant to venture through it liked the texture of the fabric and playing with the outside. Something for everyone.

Felt like I didn't need to do my in-room workout before going to the clinic what with chasing babies, lifting babies, tickling babies, and being bombarded by babies. If only I had more arms and laps It is fun to see the twins, Marius and Daria walking. Gaby is a little further along in that she is generally more willing to walk but still needs to have both hands held. Alexandra doesn't seem to happy these days. Not sure what is going on with her. Celine taught me the Romanian word for horse when we were in looking at the new musical mobile I brought that has gone in Nicoletta's crib. (Nico is in isolation...again.)

Not sure if it is operator error or my camera or the older children being in constant motion but I didn't get too many great pictures today. Here are the best ones.

Me with Gabita

The twins check out the tunnel

Maria Cleopatra

Roxana and Lily looking out the window

Andreea

Cristi (as noted on his special outfit brought by Jane!)

Marius

Cristi and Jane

Nicoletta

Daria makes it through the tunnel

Alina

Gaby took 1/2 of a plastic easter egg and moved it along the mirror with her mouth

Andrada

Cathy with Gaby and Andrada

Ana Maria doing her WC Fields imitation

Maria Alexandra aka pappanoush

Ionut

Getting ready

2011-03-27T10:52:00.000-07:00

Spent today in orientation including a quick visit to the clinic. The usual routine of establishing goals and talking about team characteristics had a different flavor. In addition to the more typical goals of caring for the children and learning about the culture, I had a personal goal to stay positive and strong. I especially liked Jane’s goal to “be present.”

And the usual team characteristic of being flexible also takes on a special meaning in these circumstances. We talked about things like having empathy and patience and the particular need this team to take care of ourselves so we can take care of others. I’m confident that together we will persevere despite the difficult situation.

I was even more excited than usual to arrive at the clinic and see the children. I heard a baby crying and walked in to pick up Ana Maria and found the the room of children all awake. And there across from Ana Maria was my Gabita looking smaller than I remembered but more animated and excited to be picked up. It has been 6 months since I was last here and I can see changes, be they big or small, in some of the children. The twins, Andreea and Roxana are walking and Lea Celine is talking up a storm. Paula is definitely doing better. There are 2 new additions, Andrada and Maria Alexandra aka pappanoush (which is a Romanian donut dessert) and Robin’s BFF. I understand Caroline has been teaching Alina to say “I am an American citizen” to prepare for her entry into the U.S. Although Mihaela did remind us that kidnapping children violates Global’s rules.

At 7 pm we were joined by the waiter Ovi and I’m sure former volunteers and supporters around the world in a few minutes of silence and prayer for the children and staff. We just have to hope and trust that in this dark cloud there will be a silver lining. As I write this I’m remembering that the Chinese character for crisis includes opportunity. Or something like that. We’ll hope for the best.

I usually don't take pictures on the first day at the clinic but plan to take some tomorrow. We don't know if some of the children will be leaving sooner rather than later. Dr. Delia is in Jerusalem, I suspect praying for the children and staff, and will return late Monday. Mihaela hopes to have more information at that time about what is happening and when. Meanwhile, we have a job to do. I'm going to be with the mobiles which will be a change for me as usually I'm with the non-mobiles. Hopefully we can spend time with everyone. So hopefully I will have pictures to post tomorrow.

Prayer Request

2011-03-26T13:10:00.001-07:00

Our local host has asked that everyone who is willing and able, pray for the children and the staff on Sunday at 7 p.m. Romanian time (12 p.m. EST).Although with the time change maybe it is a different time. Regardless, say a prayer even if you don't pray...

Uncertainty

2011-03-26T13:05:00.000-07:00

I've arrived safely in Tutova, but confess to being more than a little worried about what the next few weeks will bring. Dan picked us up at the airport and said we may hear more definite news on Mon. or Tues. about the timing for the clinic closing and where the children are going. It's strange to think that I left social work many years ago when I decided it was just too hard to feel helpless working with at-risk children. And here I am again. I've gotten more back than I've given these little ones. Wish I could have more hope for their futures.

On a lighter note, there are 5 of us on the team for the next 2 weeks and then 3 for the 3rd week. Although it is sounding like some other former volunteers may try to get here soon to say good bye. Oh wait, I said on a lighter note. Anyway, the "light" part is that I'm sure we will have a great team. Caroline, Jane and Robin (who has been here and I didn't realize was staying on) are all veterans like me. I had the pleasure of spending today with Cathy, our new volunteer, and as with others I feel like I'm making another friend. We went into Bucharest and went to the Village Museum and the older part of town where I've stayed before. I managed not to get us lost and got us back to the hotel and then to the airport to meet the team.

The weather today was quite nice - not too cold although a bit windy. I heard it may cool down again though. And Romania changes clocks ahead an hour tonight so I'm losing an hour's sleep twice this year. I didn't sleep much on the plane flights on the way over and I can tell my body clock is off even though we did a lot of walking around and being outside today.

I just may need to sneak over to the clinic tomorrow before orientation starts but then I'm afraid I won't want to leave and come back to the hotel to sit in a meeting. Who wants to be in a meeting when we can be with the babies....
.

Romania Bound

2011-03-07T07:56:00.000-08:00

I'm leaving for Romania on March 24th and will be on the March 26th team for 3 weeks. For anyone who can't wait for my blog for news and pictures, check out Caroline's blog, tutovababies.blogspot.com. I volunteered with her before and she always does a great job of posting information. She will be staying for the March 26th team so I get to see her again. A side-benefit of these trips - making new friends.

Driving with Dan

2010-09-25T09:47:00.000-07:00

Dan and I set off in his car this morning for Bucharest at the very civilized hour of 8:30 a.m. I suggested we stop at the clinic and pick up Gaby but he didn't seem to think it was a good idea.

Thank goodness Dan is a good driver because the way people pass can get kind of scary. We saw lots of people selling fruits and vegetables on the side of the road especially tomatoes, potatoes, and red onions. We also saw people selling plastic bottles of must (fermented grape juice.) In fact, I saw a sign in a restaurant window today that said, "Avem Must" which I assume means "We have must." (Kind of like when Nouveau Beaujolais appears the end of November!)

When I arrived at my hotel (the Rembrandt in old town Bucharest), I saw lots of stalls with blue awnings. There were about 2 blocks of stalls with different crafts - jewelry, clothes, etc. It was fun to look and since my suit case is so much lighter on the way home I bought a few small things. I also went to the Piata Unirii shopping center to the Diverta store and bought a 3 CD set of music for children in Romanian that I can mail when I get home.

So I just finished typing the team journal (ok, I cheated as I cut and pasted from my blog for the last week.) I also updated the list of the childrens' birthdays. Here they are:

Alexandra 8/16/02

Paula 9/17/06

Cristi 12/23/06

Alina 11/11/07

Ionut 12/12/07

Ioan 1/3/08

Lea Celine 2/4/08

Marius 3/12/08

Gabriela 3/15/08

Mihaela 3/15/08

Maria Cleopatra 7/26/08

Andreea 12/13/08

Daniela 2/17/09

Petre 4/18/09

Roxana B. 6/3/09

Andreea B. 6/3/09

Daria Roxana 9/30/09

Raul 10/19/09

Nicoleta 11/29/09

Ana Maria 2/10/10

Costel 4/16/10

And here are some pictures from the road and from the area around the hotel. Wish me luck with my travels home tomorrow. I've charged my computer for movies, my iphone for music, and my Kindle for books. So I should be all set for the long journey.

The window of a wedding store near the hotel (took this for my nephew's Ian's fiancee, Lauren)

Here you can see how the lanes are and how people pass

Avem must

For sale

From a van belonging to some kind of NGO in Bucharest

View from my hotel window - the room is tiny but fine

View from another window in the hotel (I'm on the 6th floor)

Stalls with the BCR bank in the background

There is a glass laid over some ruins and I took this picture where you can see the ruins and the building reflected in the glass

My favorite church in this neighborhood

Shopping arcade - many of the cafes have narghiles (water pipes)

Last Day at the Clinic

2010-09-24T11:42:00.000-07:00

On Steve and Lorraine's last day, Steve quoted Dr. Seuss, "Don't cry because it's over; smile because it happened." It has been a wonderful 3 weeks with many smiles. Somehow the leaking shower at the hotel and the overheated play rooms get forgotten and it is the time with the children that is most memorable. I did feel badly that I couldn't spend as much time with some of the babies this week but you just do what you can. I found out the next team member is in her mid-20s so I'm sure she'll have lots of energy compared to me. I am pleased to report that I stayed healthy all 3 weeks. If I get sick on the way home, who cares.

A bit of political news before I talk more about the babies. I heard the demonstration earlier this week made the US news. Today there was an authorized rally of union members in Piata Victorei. The President was supposed to speak and didn't show up. So the lunch time news was full of the unauthorized march from the square to the president's residence, "Palatul Cotroceni." Dan said he thought he saw police men as part of the march. Sounds like the issues are the same as before - concerns about salaries etc. People are worried that it will be more difficult to survive on less money in the winter when expenses are higher than in the summer.

The weather today was not as warm as yesterday but we put jackets on the non-mobiles and took them outside with the mobiles for a little over an hour this afternoon. Miha made fewer escape attempts over the fence BUT later in the mobile room she did demonstrate that not only can she climb on to the window sill she can open the window. I was in the room alone with the kids and I didn't know I could move that fast across a room.

Nicoletta is still in isolation but was all smiles whenever I went in to see her. She was making noises and would grab for my face and hair. Ana Maria and Costel are still in isolation as well and sleeping a lot but I did catch each of them awake once today. Ana Maria is quite the charmer - not only does she smile she practically laughs. I wasn't able to spend much time with Raul but I think Dan has been in with him some. Fortunately Maria Cleopatra is a regular visitor to the play room so that is great. Except for this afternoon at 6:00 Mirella the aide seemed to think I could take Maria back to her room. I actually did try and lift her and there was no way I was going to be able to get her off the ground and me off my knees without doing major damage to both of us. So I went and got an aide.

We had our good bye party as usual during afternoon nap time. Dr. Delia wasn't working today so I didn't get to say good bye to her. Instead, we had Andreea, Ion and Miha as special guests. I'm surprised they didn't get tummy aches with all of the stuff they ate. Then when we were outside they were eating apples and then Jalina brought them cookies. I like that I'm getting to know the aides names better and talking to them a bit more. Mind you "talking" is their limited English and my limited Romanian but still we can get a few things across. I tried to take as many pictures of the aides with the children as I could so I can send copies after I get home.

I did go through all of the babies' journals and wrote an email to everyone whose email addresses I could find giving them this blog address and telling them that volunteer numbers are down. Whatever we can do to get more volunteers here is great as the children will make more progress with more attention.

I sure hope someone does a blog with pictures in the next few months! Meanwhile, enjoy these last ones.

Our good bye party - that is me, 2nd from the left - glad the picture is from far away

Petre and Daniela with the stability ball

Ion at the good bye party

Maria Cleopatra

Marius loves the ball - I love that smile

Mihaela, the next Nadia Comeneci

Gabita looking at the sunlight

Roxanan and Andreea

Ionutz

Alina listening to me knock on the rocking chair arm

Roxana and Andreea outside in their matching jackets

Malika helping Daniela on the teeter totter with Andreea

Daniela

Petre and Ion - hanging out eating our apples

Ready or not, here I come

Marius

Lea Celine - so busy and so smart

Petre waving "pa"

Alina actually pulled Petre's hair when he was behind her on the swing

Mihaela

Ion eating a cookie

Gaby and Daniela

Gabita almost fell asleep on the swing

Cristi

Roxana

Outside!

2010-09-23T10:55:00.000-07:00

Much to my surprise, we got to go outside for about an hour this afternoon. Of course, I got shoes on all of the non-mobiles (except Ionutz and Maria Cleopatra) and then the aides changed diapers and took the shoes off so I had to put all the shoes back on. Not as easy as it sounds due to wiggling children. It was quite pleasant out.

All of the non-mobiles took their 3:00 bottles without a problem - the first time in awhile. The twins who started out eating well have gotten kind of fussy about it again - mostly Roxana. Of course it is always a challenge to get Alina to eat. And Gaby who used to eat laying on her back on her own now has to sit on my lap to eat. Thank goodness for Cristi who holds his bottle and chugs away. I think I forgot to mention yesterday that Mihaela brought bread and spreadable cheese for the mobiles who sounded like they liked it. And I bought honey cheerios at the clinic's request as the mobiles have been eating them with their fingers. It is good to see them getting more than bottles. Today instead of yogurt the non-mobiles had pureed banana and loved it. I put Gaby in the jumperoo, rolled up her sleeves and put a bib on her and she ate it with her fingers (since she refuses a spoon.)

Costel had a blood and urine sample today and was having his temperature taken. I think they are checking on his progress. Ana Maria's progress is quite noticeable but it is a little less so with Costel.

Dan and I went to Barlad for dinner tonight. I would have skipped going into town but I wanted to get some last minute yogurt, wipes, etc. for the babies. I figure since there is just one volunteer coming on the next team that she may not be able to get things like this. I decided to write her a note and have Dan give it to her welcoming her to Tutova and giving her my blog and email address in case she has questions. We can be her virtual team!

BTW, I am just about finished with the "Dracula is Dead" book and while the title is weird it is actually quite interesting. Mihaela and Dan want to read it so if you are here and looking for it and it isn't in the cupboard at the clinic ask them for it.

Still seeing lots of evidence of harvest activity. Machines in the fields and carts going by with corn and watermelons and various things in them. Lots of haystacks emerging as well. Being a city person, all of this country side activity is quite new to me. This morning I heard this sound while I was getting ready and for the life of me couldn't figure out what it was. As I walked down to breakfast I realized it was the owner's cow mooing in the field behind the hotel. (To my sisters: At least I knew it was a cow not a horse.)

Can't believe tomorrow is my last day. Hope someone else is here that does a blog with pictures as I will miss these little ones.

Ana Maria looked quite fetching today in her pink polka dots

Cristi has taken to pushing this chair around the room - his way of practicing walking I guess

Lea Celine carried this doll around most of today

Ionutz does not like the jumperoo

Gaby in the swing outside

Petre smiling for the camera; Alexandra doesn't like the camera much these days

Check out the Popa twins, Miha and Gaby, with two fingers in their mouths

Andreea

Roxana (does it count as twin time when they are back to back in the swing?)

Alina a few seconds after Andreea pulled her hair

Ion looks great in these colors

Ion and Petre playing with the stability ball I turned over today after using it to exercise in my room for the last 3 weeks!

Two Days Left

2010-09-22T10:01:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe I only have two days left at the clinic. I found out today that there will be only one person on the next team, someone who hasn't been here before. There were supposed to be 2 people and sounds like one person had to cancel at the last minute. It actually crossed my mind to see if I could stay for another week but I think I need to get home for multiple reasons, like making money so I can come back. Apparently the team after this next one has 2 people, then Nov. has 6 people, then 2 people in Dec. and after that I don't know. I am worried about these small teams, especially with new babies and others who need attention.

Before I forget, there has been a big scandal with the government all over the news. Apparently a vote was taken on a pension bill that included among other provisions raising to the retirement age from 63 and 65 for women and men respectively to 65 and 67. One political party left the chamber so only 80 people were there to vote, yet the vote results were 160 in favor. They were talking about redoing the vote - don't know what got decided. At lunch today, the tv news was full of info on a protest in the Piata Revolutie by trade unions about pensions and salaries and who knows what else. Looked like there were lots of people.

Mihaela was at the clinic today and picked up Delia at lunchtime and brought her back. I didn't see them during the afternoon but expect they were with the mobiles. Delia showed me her backpack with all of her school work at lunch time. She had many papers that said "foarte bine" (very good) on them. In free time, they can draw and she had done some excellent drawings. She is probably the only child at her school that has drawn a picture of an orphanage and orphans. The good news is the orphans were happy.I asked Delia what her favorite thing was about school today and she said religion class. Romanian Orthodox is the state religion so religion is taught in the public schools. If a child isn't Romanian Orthodox, the priest or whomever at their church needs to write them a note to get them excused from the Romanian Orthodox religion class. No separation of church and state here.

The 6:00 bottle came a bit early today so I went into the mobile room and hung out with Miha, Lea Celine, Alina and Andreea for a bit, and brought Gaby with me.I tried the singing and dancing routine to keep them amused and keep Miha from climbing up the radiator to the window sill and then tried bouncing them on my legs and then ran out of ideas. Plus it was time for dinner so I was ready to leave. Unfortunately, the aide had locked the door to keep the kids from escaping as they are known to do. So I waited for about 5 min. or so until Jalina walked by and I got her attention. BTW, the aides have been really good about helping me feed the children at bottle and yogurt time.

I've started writing in the childrens' journals that we leave for the upcoming volunteers. It is always fun to read back, especially to entries I wrote when I was last here in February. Some children have made good progress and for others it is very slow. I was pleased to see Cristi Daniel who has Down's syndrome becoming more active and then I realized he is 4 years old and probably not even at 1 year developmentally. Still, as long as they are doing better that is the most important thing.

The day started out foggy and then became quite sunny and pleasant. The children are being dressed in their warmer clothes though so I don't expect any more outdoor time. I have gotten away with opening the window a bit in the non-mobile play room. What are they going to do, fire me?!

Costel

Raul was withdrawn at first today but then he started to respond and smile a bit

Andreea is doing really well with standing

Gaby is the only one I let get near Maria Cleopatra

Cristi talking to Winnie the Pooh

Alina

Gaby and Nicoletta - and the penguin

Cristi behind the rocking chair - again

Tv coverage of the protest in Bucharest

Roxana admiring her hands

Ionutz

Marius visited the non-mobile room briefly this afternoon

Gaby (my flash was doing something strange)

Andreea dancing

Miha did not want her picture taken today

Keeping Busy

2010-09-21T10:20:00.000-07:00

I have to say the day went really quickly today. I've been trying to sneak in to see the isolation babies before our official 9:00 start time or by coming back earlier from lunch or leaving the play room when an aide is in there and there is relative quiet. I'm hoping Ana Maria gets out of isolation the end of this week; not sure about Costel. I think Nicoletta will be in isolation at least another week or two. And of course dear Raul is in there all the time with his little bandaged arms and legs.

Dr. Delia was at the clinic when I arrived this morning. Apparently the new tiny babies haven't been taking all their bottles so they are going to give them smaller amounts more often. That is, if I understood all this correctly.

The twins, Andreea and Roxana, were fussy today, especially Roxana who wouldn't eat two of her bottles. Not sure what was going on with her - no fever and no one seemed to think she is teething. For the most part the girls are doing better with their eating. I think Andreea may be out next one to walk. She stood from a sitting position on her own today, much to her surprise. Roxana can stand for about 5 seconds without falling over but needs help getting to a standing position. She is also less interested in walking.

Alina and I have been playing pattycake. All I have to do is say the word and she puts her hands up. For all her disabilities she is one smart little cookie.

I'm hoping I stay healthy for the rest of the week. I put a bottle of hand sanitizer in the play room and I use it every time after I wipe a runny nose. That is probably 30 times a day.

Tonight Dan and I went to Trattoria Da Vinci for dinner. I had to try and their pizza and it is just as good if not better than the pizza at the Raluca. I'm going to need to hit the gym more than usual when I get home!

Dan and I also went to the pharmacy and store to spend the remainder of Steve's donation money. Thanks to his very generous friends we bought more medicine, baby wipes, newborn pampers, tissues, and baby shampoo. I bought some of the latter two as well. The boxes of tissues are a new thing since the last time I was here and hopefully easier on those runny noses.

Enjoy today's pictures!

Gaby on the donkey that Dan brought into the play room today

Lily and Andreea

Daniela, Malika, and Petre

Maria Cleopatra's beautiful smile

Another beautiful smile from Celine who joined us in the non mobile play room this morning

Dan and "Cleo" as the aides call her

Petre - I haven't had a chance to see much of the mobiles the last two days

Nicoletta

Dan tried putting Ionutz in the jumperoo today. Ionutz did ok for a bit but didn't last too long. Too hard for him to hold his head up.


I put Alina in a "time out" for hitting by strapping her in this chair. She wiggled out after a few minutes. I do think there is a tendency for the kids to look for negative attention by hitting.

Daniela

Ana Maria in her cute winnie the pooh outfit

Haircuts

2010-09-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

Oh yes, the haircuts continued today. Be prepared for some pictures of kids with really short hair. The non-mobiles have escaped the scissors so far. Mihaela says they want to cut their hair now when it is getting cold so it will dry faster and they won't have wet heads for as long.

There were quite a few aides working today so even though I didn't get to spend time with all of the children I felt like they all got attention - at least I hope so. I was mostly with the non-mobiles (including Maria Cleopatra) although I when there were several aides in the room I snuck out to visit Nicoletta and Costel. Unfortunately Ana Maria was asleep. I had planned to see Raul after lunch but instead had the pleasant surprise of meeting a Peace Corps volunteer who is at the primary school in Tutova. Her name is Alexandra and she is from New York. That is as much as I know because Mihaela took her off for a tour of the clinic and then she was helping with the mobiles and I didn't see her again. I think Mrs. Malika (the pre-school teacher, I think that is her name) brought her to the clinic today. Hopefully she will come often. She did say it was different to hear Mihaela and I speaking English. Perhaps I can have dinner with her before I leave although I don't know where she is staying.

The children are always a bit cranky on Mondays when they've had less attention from volunteers and aides over the weekend. In my room we had several who refused some of their bottles. After lunch, when I went into room #3 where the twins, Gaby and Ionutz are there was an awful smell. I figured dirty diaper(s). It was more than that though. Alina was in the room and she had done a strip tease before falling asleep and her clothes and her dirty diaper and some of its contents were on the floor. And she looked so peaceful sleeping there completely naked.

Oh yes, it rained today. The morning was chilly and very windy as if it was about to storm and sure enough it started after lunch and lasted most of the afternoon. Fortunately it stopped by the time I walked back to the hotel but the path was muddy. I'm used to that though.

Celine and Miha with haircuts

Ion, Petre and Andreea (Petre got his haircut after this picture was taken)


Celine, Roxana, Andreea, Miha

Miha about to go up and over

Cristi likes this spot behind the rocking chair

Costel today

Maria Cleopatra

Roxana and Maria Cleopatra (gives you a sense of size comparison)

Ana Maria

Mihaela and Gaby

Mirella and Andreea (or is it Roxana? they were in matching outfits today)

Celine standing!

Nicoletta and Gaby walking!

Daniela getting her hair cut today

Ionutz

Andreea standing and Cristi saying "who is this girl and why won't she get away from MY mirror?"

Cristi slept a lot of the morning today but generally he is a lot more active and wanting to play

Yin and Yang

Andreea is almost pulling herself up to standing on her own

Nicoletta is still in isolation

Alina, our free spirit

Live chickens being sold at the Saturday market in Barlad

Selling bags at the Saturday market

Flowers from the Saturday market

Tutova

Weekend

2010-09-19T08:26:00.000-07:00

I haven't taken many pictures at the clinic this weekend so I will post pictures tomorrow. Sometime between my Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning visits, many of the mobiles got hair cuts. Be prepared to see Ion without his curls. I can understand that it is easier to wash hair if it is shorter. I'm really hoping they don't cut Andreea and Roxana's hair as that is one of the main ways I can tell them apart right now!

You won't see a picture of one of the more amusing of today's work at the clinic. When the aides were changing diapers at noon time, they had all the mobiles lined up in the cribs in the room where Cristi, Marius, Daniela, etc. sleep. They asked me to stay in there with them while they went to change other diapers. So Marius was banging other children's heads on the side of the crib and Ion got hit by someone and Mihaela of course was trying to climb out so I tried a diversionary tactic. This involved me singing a medley of children's hits such as the wheels on the bus and dancing around to get their attention. I admit it was a success as they
were mesmerized by this dancing and singing fool. I even got "bravos" from Andreea and Mihaela. So clearly the fact that I sing off key didn't matter to this audience.

I've been reading for the last 5+ hours and my vision is blurry even with my glasses so I better give my eyes a rest. I've read 5 books so far on my kindle. Steve gave me a non-fiction book called "Dracula is Dead." It is written by a former US Ambassador to Romania and his journalist wife. It is mostly anecdotal and is organized around their travels and time in Romania so a bit haphazard. Still very interesting and worth a read to anyone interested in post-Communist Romania and some history thrown in. For future volunteers, I will put in the cupboard where all the books are at the clinic when I am done with it.