Next to last day

The most amazing thing happened today. I was walking down the hall with Alina and Luca in the walker and saw big Andreea's grandmother! Big Andreea was one of my favorites at Tutova and she went home to her grandmother and father. I had actually brought a few pictures of Andreea and planned to mail them to her grandmother from here. Instead I got to hand them to her! And of course I got to see Andreea. When I gave the grandmother the card (with a little something extra), she started to cry and of course I couldn't tell what was going on. I asked Dan to talk to the grandmother and found out that Andreea had a serious seizure this morning that lasted a long time. They were giving her meds in an IV.

It is interesting to me that Alina often brings me the book, The Bossy Bee to read to her as she is definitely the boss of the playroom. She keeps asking me to sing Old McDonald and to liven it up the farm now has lions and monkeys and snakes. And bees. Who knows what will be next?

It may be wishful thinking but I do think the children adjust to the new routine with the volunteers and start to become more active after there has been a break. Of course it makes me feel extra badly that there isn't another team until March.

Yesterday Alina went to the endocrinologist in Barlad. Apparently he said she needs genetic testing, probably to determine what type of dwarfism she has. She is so bright. I wish she was with a family. She seems to be doing less pinching and is gentler with the other children.

We brought bananas today and between that and yogurt and biscuits and a bottle of tea Marius's oral fixation and/or hunger was satisfied today. He seemed to be on more of an even keel. We call him the busy bee.

Luca is so cute when he sucks both thumbs. He has intervals of lap time but hasn't been napping as much as he apparently used to do.

Special thanks to Pat B for sending the surgical gauze. Coca was happy to have it when she changed Cleo's head bandage today. I was feeding Andrei as she was doing it and could see that it is a very difficult task. And Cleo has some sores that they are treating. Coca was being so careful and Cleo seemed to handle it ok.

I got out the bubbles I brought and it was some new tangled thing that I couldn't figure out. Of course Dan did so the children enjoyed a bubble fest. You can't see the bubbles in the pictures but I'm sure you can guess the ones where they were looking at them. One even landed on Cleo's head bandage!

No Gabi yet. Every day I hope she will appear. If nothing else I hope we can go see her at the placement center tomorrow.

At dinner at the hotel tonight two women heard us speaking English and came over to talk to us. They are with an NGO in Barlad called Bridge of Love that works with abandoned children. They have a summer camp and sounds like they may work with foster families. Not really sure but we will ask Mihaela and Dan about them tomorrow.

For volunteers who send packages, a reminder to address them to both Mihaela and Dan. If Mihaela's name is on it the new procedure at the international post office in Vaslui is that she has to pick it up and Dan can't do it for her.

AND last but definitely not least thank you to the people who gave me donations. Global seems to have a budget now for diapers and wipes etc. so Mihaela asked that we use the money for some cabinets for the children's clothes. She got a deal on someone making them in the same colors as the cribs! And to Coca's delight they have locks. They were installed today and the first thing that Coca did was scrub the insides. Now it will be easier to find clothes that fit the children as many of them are in locked suitcases that are hard to access.

Better go pack. I went to the landing on our floor to get a better Internet connections so am posting this from my IPad. It was easier to transfer pictures from my phone with a stronger signal.