Jillian came to LWB’s attention late last summer. Her belly was alarmingly swollen, and she couldn’t absorb nutrition properly. LWB’s Medical Program arranged to have her rushed to the hospital for evaluation and treatment, where she was diagnosed with severe food allergies and a blood infection. The doctors prescribed IV antibiotics and a specialized formula called Neocate. Read more.
Carlos was born late last year with unilateral cleft lip and palate, as well as syphilis. He entered LWB’s Starbridge Healing Home soon after and was immediately placed in the hospital for treatment of his syphilis.
Weighing 5.5 pounds when he came into our care, Carlos has already gained nearly five pounds…thanks to the loving, patient care of our wonderful healing home nannies. Carlos has a very wide palate and feeding takes a great deal of time, but his nannies have carefully and patiently helped sweet Carlos to grow in preparation for having his lip surgery. Read more.
Although we see babies with all types of health problems, until recently it has been relatively rare for us to take in a baby with congenital syphilis. However, in the past year we have seen multiple cases of this and wanted to explain what it is and how it is treated in the babies in our care.
Syphilis is of course a sexually transmitted disease caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum and is on the rise in many countries around the world. If a woman contracts syphilis during her pregnancy, then there is a 60-80% chance she will pass the disease to her unborn child if she does not receive treatment. Sadly, untreated syphilis in pregnant women results in infant death in up to 40 percent of cases. Read more.
When we started our second adoption from China, our son McKade made it known that he was not staying home this time around. He wanted to go to China! Read more.
Xin Nián Kuài Lè! Today begins the most important holiday in China — the Lunar New Year. Also known as Chinese New Year or Spring Festival, this fifteen-day festival is a special time when families come together to celebrate the coming year ahead, have parades, honor ancestors, and, of course…eat delicious food! This year, we say goodbye to the year of the snake and welcome the year of the horse. Read more.
Pablo was born with bilateral cleft lip and palate. When he entered LWB’s Starbridge Healing Home (SBHH) at two months old, he weighed just seven pounds.
Upon arriving at SBHH, Pablo was very weak and fussy, but under the love and care of his new nannies he started to eat better and gain much needed weight. He appeared much older than his reported birth date, and so his nannies started adding rice cereal to his milk, and he began to thrive. He began to receive daily exercise to help him get stronger in hopes that he could quickly have his lip repair surgery. Read more.
It was the little leg that did me in. We had received a request to take in a new baby for medical care, and as I glanced at her photo and saw her tiny leg sticking out from the blanket, I was a goner. Baby Jillian needed us immediately.
When she was found that morning, she was severely malnourished and extremely weak. Over the next few months, I watched her reports from our Starbridge Healing Home and was overjoyed to see her start to turn the corner and fill out. Read more.
Coming in at number five is a darling photo called, “Three in a Row.” When this photo was taken, our Starbridge Healing Home had just taken in some tiny new babies.
Santiago, Dominic, and Charlie were all having a rest while waiting for their bottles. Read more.
It’s that time of year again — the countdown of our supporters’ favorite photos from the past year! While enjoying our 2013 Top Ten photos, we hope these children’s beautiful faces will remind our supporters that they are truly making a difference in the lives of children in need.
Coming in at number ten: Isn’t it a beautiful sight to see an orphaned child make a real connection with their caregiver? Read more.
Not only did our three volunteers visit foster care programs in Henan and Anhui provinces, but they also were able to visit three LWB Healing Homes: Heartbridge, Starbridge, and the Anhui Healing Home (AHH). Here are some glimpses into their visits to Starbridge and AHH.
Going to snuggle babies is a tough job, but someone’s got to do it! After a long day of visiting foster families all over Kaifeng, we were excited to visit LWB’s Starbridge Healing Home. The nannies there are so loving and kind, and the babies are cared for in a cozy, warm environment. Read more.
