Baby Shower!

Yesterday, I was able to celebrate 12 weeks of learning and friendships with the women from my childbirth class at AMOS Health and Hope by having a baby shower for them.  My hope is that these 9 women have learned a lot throughout this time and feel better prepared for labor and delivery and motherhood. My purpose is to empower them to be active participants in their health, because often in the hospitals and clinics here they are not given information or choices. They are such sweet women and have really invested themselves in this class, and I am proud of the changes they are making to better their health and the health of their babies.  Here are some pictures from the fun event:

The class is also attended by 2-3 community health workers who volunteer to work in the community surrounding the clinic where the class takes place.  Their experience and wisdom has been a huge asset to the women in the class. This is Juana loving on Jimena during the shower.

We had to play some crazy games, of course, which involved making diapers out of toilet paper and putting on diapers one-handed and blind folded.  The women had a blast!

Each woman received a gift bag full of diapers, wipes, toys, and clothes.  If you would like to donate items for future baby showers (they happen every 3 months), please let me know!

Each women "graduated" with a certificate of completion.

I invited their husbands to attend, but only one came.  We were happy to have him!  My dream is to have Andrew do a workshop for the dads to teach them what their role in supporting their pregnant wife and newborn children could look like.  I often reference what a wonderful husband and dad Andrew is when I am teaching them, and they are always shocked!

One of the women, Adeleida, couldn't make it to the shower because had had her baby two days before, but I was able to visit her in her home, meet her new baby and deliver her gift.

It was such a privilege to visit Adeleida in her home, although it was a real eye-opener for me.  She lives in a one room house made of tin and wood, with a dirt floor and no windows.  I can't imagine what it is like bringing home a newborn to this house, but she seemed so happy.

After visiting Adeleida, I also made a very sad visit to one of the other women, Anelika, who had lost her baby earlier that week.  This is the third baby that she has lost, all very close to term.  I was very nervous about this visit, especially with the language barrier, but I am so glad that I got to see her, tell her how very sorry I am, and give her several big hugs.  I also learned while visiting her that her husband had left her while she was in the hospital.  Please pray for Anelika.  I am very worried about her emotional health and well-being during this extremely difficult time.