Sick Baby

When we got to the baby house this AM, Aliya was not in her room, and after a bit of pantomime we determined she’d been transferred to the infirmary – confirming our suspicion over the last few days that she was not feeling well. We were able to visit with her, and it was actually quite nice because for the first time ever, we got to spend some time alone with her, without the distractions (for her and us) of 5 other babies and 2-3 caretakers. But she was clearly feeling poorly. We couldn’t get her to crack a smile, and she spent much of the visit just dozing in our arms. When she was awake, however, she was alert (if a little fussy) and didn’t appear to be in any significant distress.

So, inevitably, I’m worried about her. We’re not sure what specifically is wrong with her (she has a cough, runny nose, and conjunctivitis, but so do most of the kids in her room, and they haven’t been moved to the infirmary). Our coordinator speculates that she may just have a fever, which would be enough to result in transfer to the infirmary. They have already told us to plan on meeting her in the infirmary tomorrow AM, but I have all fingers crossed that by Sun or Mon she’ll be back in her regular room. Monday will be our last chance to visit, because Tuesdays schedule is very hectic. I can’t imagine having to leave her here, with her still ill.

On a happier note, we have made a photo album for her, half with picture of her with us, and the other half with pictures of Ava & the dogs. We will leave it with her caretakers when we go, so they can continue to show her our pictures. And, even if she doesn't like the pictures,the album has a stuffed teddy bear on the front, so no doubt she'll enjoy chewing on that!