Baby Love

Today I had the privilege of going to Shimo La Tewa, a slum at the bottom of the hill, where I met a beautiful woman who is taking care of her 3-month-old grandson because his mother abandoned them. 

Mya with baby Isaiah

Even though he is 3 months old, he is about the size of a 1-month-old because he is malnourished. His grandmother has only been able to give him maize meal (very fine corn meal powder) and water, which is obviously very bad for his tiny stomach. 

I heard about this baby a few days ago after Hannah went to visit with her, so Hannah and I first went to the store to buy bottles and formula and then took them down to their tiny mud hut.  I made him a bottle, and taught the grandma how to make it with boiled water and the right quantities. At first he didn't drink, and I got to wondering how long it would take him to get his sucking reflex back, since I don't know if he was ever breastfed at all.  We sat there for a while with the bottle in his mouth while I tried to squeeze some of the formula onto his tongue. I decided I needed to start praying for this little man. No sooner did I say, "Lord, please let him remember how to suck, and allow him to start drinking . . ." then he started gulping down the formula, and of course I started crying. 

Getting baby Isaiah to take a bottle for the first time!

The Grandma informed us that the name he was given was not a good name and she needed to rename him. I suggested Isaiah 'cause it was the first thing that came to my mind, and Hannah loved it, so now I guess his name is Isaiah. :-) 

He has bumps all over his body that we can't identify, and he also has 2 stitches in his shoulder that have been there for several weeks. The grandma told us that he was pushed by his mother when he was newborn, and he got cut. They were able to get him stitched, but now she can't afford to get them removed. We will take him to Sister Freda's tomorrow to get a full checkup and get the stitches out. 

Feeding her Grandson with his new bottle . . .  happy Grandma!