Here's to Independence!

After learning how to walk, the logical next step for many of our toddlers is the slide, which often unintentionally multitasks as a kind of jungle gym too! You can't stop these toddlers when they're on the move and ready for more independence!

Wan, Wen, and Jie tottered their way over to the slide recently, and things started pretty normally. Wan made her way down the slide with a little help from Little Flower staff member, Peter. Wen followed close behind, eager for his turn!

Looks like Wen had a crazy ride!

You can see by his big smile just how much fun he's having.

Wan soon went back for another go. She got more courageous, unexpectedly deciding to slide down head-first. Of course, Peter was there to lend a helping hand. Their friends, Min and Jie, were also watching close by.

Wen, not to be outdone, was soon trying to climb up the slide. Step by step… Almost on top!

When he got to the top, he let himself slide back down backwards!

For his last turn, he really wanted to slide by himself without any help. Go Wen!

Wen was pretty exhausted after all that fun and took a rest in his nanny's arms.  

It’s hard work learning to be independent. Time for lunch!

Fei's Story: Before & After!

Little Fei arrived to us on October 22, 2013, from an orphanage in Hebei Province. He had been abandoned as a newborn preemie weighing only 1.5 KG (just over 3 pounds). In addition to being tiny and very weak, he also had a cleft lip. The orphanage staff told us that he was having major trouble breathing, and that from the moment they found him, he hadn’t cried once. The orphanage staff tried to feed him, but had had little success. They sent him to the Hebei Children’s Hospital, where they put him on a ventilator.

Eventually, the orphanage asked us for help with his case, and we went to pick the little guy up. For the next few months, Fei received careful monitoring, feeding, and plenty of kangaroo care in our Beijing Baby Home Preemie Unit! 

Over the few short months since he arrived, Fei has doubled in size. Watch his transformation in action!

This photo is priceless:

As time went by, he was getting to be chubbier and cuter than ever.

Just look at him in this photo!

Pretty soon, he was big and strong enough for a cleft repair. He recently had cleft surgery, and will be staying with us through his recovery period. Here he is (left) after his transformation, with his buddy Nian.

Here he is on the right, looking sleepy with his friend Zheng.

Pretty soon, he’ll be ready to find his forever family!

March 2014 Featured Child: The Rambunctious You

March 21^st is World Down Syndrome Day! To mark the occasion, this month’s Featured Child is little You. Many of you probably recognize her and her vast repertoire of camera poses from our posts on Facebook.

You is definitely one of the most rambunctious, stubborn, and mischievous little toddlers to grace the rooms of our Beijing Baby Home. Once she learned to walk, she was always on the move, constantly exploring her environment and getting into everything she wasn’t supposed to!

Babies with Down Syndrome that arrive at Little Flower commonly have some form of heart defect or gastrointestinal problem. For Little You, it was a TOF heart defect, which is a complicated heart defect, but also a problem that we commonly deal with at Little Flower.

Nevertheless, the doctors suggested that we wait until she’d gotten to six months before doing surgery. We agreed. Around her fourth and fifth months with us, however, she started to not do well. We called the hospital and scheduled the surgery a little early.

Well…long story short, the surgery went well, and You’s recovery was lighting fast! She’s a strong one. Not only was her physical recovery fast, but her developmental progress after the heart surgery was just amazing. At least in our experience, the average child with down syndrome walks at around two years old. You was learning to stand and walk on her own before that!

During her time at the baby home, she was always the sassiest, most headstrong kid in the room, and her photos on Facebook never failed to garner a lot of attention. She’s just got a magnetic little personality.

At the moment, we have one other little one with Down Syndrome in our Beijing Baby Home. Little Ting came with us with Meckel’s Diverticulum, an intestinal problem. She’s struggling to thrive at the moment, but we’re hoping that she’ll turn around. Keep this little one in your thoughts and prayers. We hope that soon, Ting will be just as rambunctious as You!

In January of this year, You made the transition to one of our Group Foster families—Group Home #1, to be exact. It was a bit of a bumpy transition; she’s a strong-willed kid who doesn’t love change, but now she’s well-settled in her new family environment. Soon enough, however, we’re sure she will find her forever family.

Three cheers for World Down Syndrome Day!