Multiple multiples

The 29 week quadruplets delivered! Mom went into labor on Dec 26th. She delivered the first baby before making it to the OR, and then had the other 3 by C-section - one boy and three girls. The best news is that they are all alive and doing well at this point. Anna and I visited the nursery yesterday and found 4 sets of twins and the quads in the nursery. It is incredible to see how these premature babies can survive (without ventilators) when the resources compared to the USA are so limited. Anna got a chance to hold 2 of the quads. Below she is pictured with Dr. Alyssa Pfister, the pediatric doctor caring for the babies.



Below you can see the quads in the background and a set of 30 week twins in the foreground.



And if this was not enough for the nursery team to handle, there was a 25 week, 560 gram baby born this weekend who is also holding his own. I was not even able to touch babies this small when I was a medical student, but my seven year old daughter got to hold this little preemie!

The Gift of Jesus

Last week, a pregnant patient presented to Tenwek with heavy vaginal bleeding. She was found to have an IUFD (intrauterine fetal demise=stillborn) and a placenta previa (placenta covers the cervical opening). Dr. H was on OB call. During the patient's cesarean section, she did not stop bleeding and developed DIC (a condition where after massive bleeding, the body's clotting factors stop functioning). The patient needed blood. After receiving 2 units, the hospital was out of A positive blood. Dr. H and the nurse anesthetist during the c-section happen to have A positive blood. Both decide to donate blood to the patient. Thanks to their amazing selfless act, the patient is alive.

On Christmas Eve, we had the OB interns over for dinner. The intern on call received a page during dinner to evaluate a patient. This patient was also bleeding with an IUFD and a placenta previa. Her hemoglobin was 4.8 (normal is greater than 12.0). She also was in need of a blood transfusion, but the intern told us there was no blood available. The patient is O positive. Bryan is O positive. Without hesitation, at 9pm on Christmas Eve, Bryan went to the hospital to donate blood to the patient. By the grace of God, she also survived. She too will have to heal from the loss of her baby.

On this Christmas night, I give thanks to God for the gift of Jesus Christ who brought light into the world. I pray that we can walk within His light as we give of ourselves to others. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3: 5-6).

Beating the Odds

Today, another first for me on the OB wards at Tenwek. A pregnant woman presented with some spotting, leaking fluid and mild cramping. She should have been 29 weeks based on her last menstrual period. Her uterus on abdominal exam measured over 40 weeks. And on ultrasound we found four babies. Quadruplets! There is definitely a higher number of multiples here - but spontaneous quads are rare no matter where you live. A quick internet search states the odds are 1 in 571,787. So far, she is stable and we are managing her with antibiotics, steroids (to help mature the fetal lungs more quickly) and bedrest. Hopefully she will stay pregnant for a few more weeks and maximize their chance for survival. I will keep you posted.

Chinese Dumplings and Vietnamese Spring Rolls

Who says you can't have Asian food in Kenya? It may not be easy to find near Tenwek, but we learned to make it at home. We decided to have an Asian cooking feast with the McLaughlins. We made so many dishes that the meal had to be spread out to two days! We made Chinese dumplings, Vietnamese spring rolls, and Vietnamese cabbage salad. We also made samosas and apple empanadas (OK, these last two are definitely not Asian dishes but who cares...they were delicious!).

Eric teaching us how to make the dumpling dough

Rachel making the filling

Not bad, Anna!

Enjoying the results...


Tany Ngar (her family came from New Zealand to volunteer at Tenwek for 2 months) also taught us a few secrets about making the perfect dumpling!

Our 2010 Christmas Card

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Safari

Recently we went on safari to the Fairmont Safari Club here in Kenya. The trip was memorable from start to finish. We started with a 1.5 hour drive to the safari club. It is a paved road for the first half of the trip and then rugged roads the rest of the way. After about 5 minutes on the non-paved road, the car had a flat tire. Our driver changed the tire in 10 minutes flat. We were so excited to be on our way until our driver looked at us and said, "We really should return to the nearest town and fix the spare tire before proceeding on." So back to the nearest town. It was actually fascinating to see the flat tire being repaired. It was a three-man operation on the side of the road. They had minimal tools - no hydraulics or fancy equipment. Forty-five minutes and less than 2 dollars later, we were finally on our way. Thankfully, all the tires held up the rest of the trip.

As our driver changed the tire, a local crowd was gathering.

A well-oiled three-man operation

Once at the resort we enjoyed a fine dining and resort experience. It felt strange to eat restaurant food and swim in the pool - things we have not done for 3 months now. For the safari, we had two game drives each day which took us out into the Maasai Mara. At 6am, we were brought hot chocolate and cookies to enjoy before going out on the morning game drive.

It was very fun to watch the kids as we encountered many different animals, including elephants, giraffes, lions, cheetahs, leopards, rhinos, hippos, gazelles, wildebeests, and many more.

Anna and Leo with two rhinos close behind. Leo was telling his dad to hurry up and take the picture!

Enjoying a beautiful sunset on the Maasai Mara!

Our Charlie Brown Christmas Tree

There is no snow and it's 70 degrees outside here in Kenya. Since December 25th is less than a month away, we had to decorate for Christmas so that it would feel more like home. On a recent hike, we found a tree branch that functions quite well for the purposes we needed it to. After borrowing some ornaments and lights, we think our Charlie Brown Christmas tree is pretty cute. Bryan's mom recently sent Anna and Leo some ornaments and we hung it on our tree - adding a touch of home.

Laurel, a dear friend of mine from Butler, sent an awesome care package. It had yummy treats for the kids and for Mommy (chocolate and more importantly...coffee). She also sent this great Merry Christmas sign.

Thanks to some good advice from missionaries here, we had packed our stockings from the States. Anna and Leo asked if Santa would know to come to Kenya instead of Plymouth, Michigan. We tried to reassure them as much as possible! The Popps won't have a white Christmas this year, but we definitely won't have a blue one!

Eating in Kenya

We have been very pleasantly surprised by the foods available in Kenya. It's not difficult nor expensive to eat healthy here since there is an abundance of fruits and vegetables grown locally. We mentioned in a previous blog (Day to Day Life-October,2010) what produce was available here at Tenwek, but thought we would share some pictures.



The avocadoes were gigantic and delicious!


We were never brave enough to try the local beef but we did buy some chickens. Luckily, Bryan was willing to be our butcher.

IF we don't feel like cooking, we could always eat lunch at the Tenwek Hospital cafeteria. A truly yummy plate of beans and rice.

Anna's Volunteer Opportunities

We wanted to share some of the service work that Anna has been doing here in Kenya. Of course, she continues to be a wonderful big sister to her brother. She reads to Leo often and plays countless games of Matching and Uno with him. But she also has had time to help others.

The other day I needed to teach Preschool class at the last minute. Anna stepped up and was very involved helping the kids with crafts and reading to them.

From left: Elise C., Hannah B., Anna, Anna F., and Leo

She has had the opportunity to color pictures and take them to the hospital for sick children. She and her friend Anna F. recently visited a child in the ICU who was scared and not doing well. When he improved and was transferred from the ICU, we were told the pictures they colored for him were above his new bed and he had a great recovery.

Anna has visited the nursery to hold and love on the babies. It was neat to see her holding some of the small babies that we delivered. She was all smiles when she returned from this trip to the hospital.

Watching our kids make us realize that there are so many ways to serve and have a positive impact on the lives of those around us. We are very proud of her - our Anna is growing up.

Happy Thanksgiving

We will be having a Thanksgiving celebration on Saturday. Since Kenyans do not celebrate this holiday, Thursday is a regular work day for us. On Saturday, all of the Tenwek missionaries will gather for a potluck lunch. On the menu is turkey and most of the traditional sides (sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, corn pudding, cranberry sauce, and various pies). Apparently we will also be watching football - someone must have a satellite dish!

It is hard to be away from family during this holiday time, but we feel very fortunate to have new friends to share the day with. We have so many things to be thankful for...our health, family, friends, and faith. We wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving!

Sweet Leo- A Mosquito's Best Friend

If we had to come up with one downside of living in Kenya, it's the mosquitoes. The mosquitoes are probably not even as bad as they are in the Michigan humid summers, but it is the potentialof getting malaria from one of those pesky buggers. Fortunately, at Tenwek, we are at slightly lower risk of getting malaria because we are at an altitude of 6800 ft. Even so, we do take precautions. We sprayed all of our clothes with permethrin. We sleep under mosquito nets every night. Anna and Leo also take malaria prophylaxis orally every two weeks. We also have bug spray if we are ever out at night for an extended period of time.

Anna and Leo in their nets.

Unfortunately for Leo, mosquitoes are especially attracted to him. On Thursday morning, I went to get Leo out of his bed and saw a mosquito inside his net. I killed it and subsequently had blood smeared all over my hand. Apparently, this mosquito feasted on Leo all night. Poor guy, we counted 29 mosquito bites just on his face and arms. If you need a good bug repellant, just stand next to Leo. Mosquitoes are sure to bypass you and flock to Leo.

29 mosquito bites and counting...

Bosto Orphanage

On Saturday, Bryan, Anna, and I had the privilege of spending the day at Bosto Orphanage which is about a 90 minute bumpy car ride away from Tenwek Hospital. We accompanied Dr. Chuck Bemm and his three oldest kids; Leo stayed home to play with Hannah-the Bemm's youngest. In addition to working as a pediatrician at Tenwek (and having many administrative duties involving the medical interns), Chuck and his wife, Amy, make supporting nearby orphanages part of their ministry.

The children at Bosto ranged from ages 7-15. According to Chuck, some of the children were orphans and others actually had families who could not afford to feed and clothe them. These kids will most likely not be adopted because they are older. These children are again a shining example of how resilient Kenyans are. The children were waiting outside for us when we arrived. We were greeted with smiles and giggles by the most beautiful children. Though they have so little in their lives (according to our standards), these children are filled with faith.

Chuck and his children brought over 350 pounds of corn and a large bag filled with balls, jump ropes, hula hoops, and frisbees. For the next several hours, we played outside with all the children. I'm not sure who had more fun, us or the children at Bosto. Anna, who is prone to getting car sick, looked a little green when we got to Bosto. She made me smile when she whispered in my ear, "this was worth the car ride."

Doing the limbo.

What a small world...He's wearing an Indianapolis Indians shirt - our hometown.

There is much fascination with my Asian hair.

This is where all the meals are prepared.

We finished our time with the children by sharing in some worship time. We wish you could hear their sweet voices and feel their wonderful spirit, but alas, downloading our video clip is nearly impossible...

As we said goodbye and gave hugs, our hearts were filled with their warm spirits. Our minds, however, were filled with questions of how we could do more. In the Bible, Psalm 82:3-4 states, "Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. Rescue the weak and needy..."