Birthday party at McDonalds!

One of the boys turned 7 last week for his "big party'' he went to McDonalds.

This young girl came to us in October 2007. Although she was born with HIV, the disease progressed very slowly and she was 13 before she became ill. When she came to us she was very weak and her CD4 count very low. Her liver function was also very bad so it would be dangerous to put her on any drugs which would also affect her liver.

One of the dangers of a very low CD4 count is that the body is unable to fight any illness so they lie dormant in the body. Once one improves the CD4 count, either through good nutritions, or medication, the illness "reconstitute'' themselves and this make the child very ill, even to the point of death.

It took us a while with juggling drugs to combat the skin problem the HIV was causing, while trying to improve her liver function enough to start her on her anti retroviral drugs. Finally, at the beginning of January we were able to start her on her anti-retroviral drugs. We monitored her very carefully for the first 3 weeks because that is the danger zone.

When she passed the 3 weeks without serious problem, we decided to let her go home because she was so keen to go back to school - she started high school this year. We will continue to monitor her health through our outreach clinic in Katlehong, the Township where she lives.


We misss her tremendously because , although she is quiet and shy, she has a lovely sense of humour and loved teasing us. Still we are so glad that she has a home to go to and a loving family to care for her.







Birthdays!

When our children turn 7, we have a special birthday party for them and take them out for the day. In February we have 4 boys turning 7 and trying to organize a different outing for each of these boys has been a mission because we have had so much rain. We're scared to plan an outdoor party because it would be ruined if it rained on the day.


The first of the parties is this afternoon so look out for the photos next week!

Because of her stroke (at age 2) this little girl goes for physiotherapy every Monday. In the beginning she used to scream but she is now getting used to it and even smiles sometimes.



It's been raining for the last 2-3 weeks and, as we said in our previous blog, the children always find a way to entertaim themselves. Well, one of the boys decided to jump on the couch even though he was not allowed to do this - he fell off and broke his arm and had to be rushed to hospital. He had to have an anaesthetic so they could put it back into place and put on a cast. We are happy to say that he is doing much better.
This little boy turned 5 on the 20th
This little girl turned 3 on the 21st

Every time we try to plan a pool party for the children it rains!

Last Friday was a birthday for one of our girls, who turned 8. Because it was raining , we had the party inside and we thought it was going to be difficult for the children, however they usually find a way to entertain themselves. We don't quite know what they were doing, but they seemed to be having fun.

The 1st birthday party for the year..

Trying to put a schedule together to move 30 Children between Nursery school, Pre- school and Primary School has been quite a daunting task, we fell as if we are planning army maneuvers!



Six of our children started Primary School last week Wednesday - what an exciting experience. Thank goodness they are all in the same class which helps with homework assignments.


These are the 3 children that started last year and are now in Grade 2. They were all very excited to be going back to school after their long Christmas break.

Happy new year!

Happy New Year from Lambano!

We hope that this year will be a year filled with joy and laughter for Lambano.














Our latest project is an eight bed hospice in a squatter camp in Germiston South. We were hoping to open the Hospice in early 2008, but we have been unable to collect the necessary funding so the project has been delayed until we are able to raise funds.

This is how far we have got with the Hospice. The shell has been completed, now we need money to plaster the walls, fit ceilings, install plumbing and electricity, secure the building and property and glaze the windows etc.






Mpho

The first child to come to Lambano started Primary School on Wednesday. Mpho was adopted by Lyn, our executive director so he stayed close to us. He was three months old when he arrived and now he's attending "big school''! we can hardly believe.








Mpho in his uniform!