I thought I would write a little blog post about the boys in my house. The other morning I was greeted by them as I always am and thought that people should know about these cheeky chaps that start my day by making me smile.
So, I have 4 boys aged 2-3, I arrive at Nala (my house) at 8am every morning, and every morning the first thing I hear is ‘Ausi Emily! Ausi Emily!’. They either chant this from their potties which is very cute! Or they come running up to me for a hug. I then help them get dressed and put on their shoes. The other day two of my boys had the same trousers on so one of them ran up to the other and they started jumping together, whilst pointing out that they had the same trousers on. My house mother and I just looked at each other and laughed, it was very funny! Another thing they do whilst I’m feeding the babies is play with the lid of the bottle. They always like to pick it up and show me, each of them one after the other will do this, and then they wait for me to say ‘leave it’ before putting it back down again. Feeding time is also full of fun, one of the boys always likes to be fed first so if he isn’t he throws himself to the ground and makes a whole scene of it! Quite the drama queen! Another boy, to show that he’s finished likes to touch my nose and then I touch his and then he goes to his potty.
On Monday the youngest of the 4 got to meet his new parents for the first time. This came as a shock for me because I didn’t realise this was going to happen. But I managed to say a goodbye before he went. Hopefully his adoption ceremony will be soon and I’ll get to see him with his new parents! Things like this often happen here at BG, without notice one of yours kids could be meeting their parents, or you’ll see a new baby in one of your cots, or your house mother will suddenly be feeding a new child. This can be quite hard emotionally but in the back of your mind you always know that these kids aren’t yours and that you will have to say bye to them one way or another.
I also have 2 other boys in my house, one is almost a year old. Last Friday he got reunified with his family which was great news but I was worried because reunifications don’t always work out as the family realise that they can’t deal with looking after a child. And sure enough my boy returned to BG just 6 hours later. I pray that this little guy will be able to be adoptable and that his family will sign off their rights so that he can have a family one day.
My other boy is a nearly a month old. We had a clinic day on Monday, which means that all the kids get measured and weighed to see how they are doing each month. I was weighing my little boy and the scale read 2kg. A normal baby AT BIRTH is 3.5kg, this just showed how tiny and fragile this baby is and how important BG care is to these vulnerable children. I’m praying that he will gain weight over the next month.
I’m still not feeling 100% but I’ve come to realise that I don’t think I’ll be feeling 100% for a while. But of course, prayers are welcome. I hope everything is good at home! I’m especially thinking of those taking exams in the next couple of weeks.
E x
