Me You and Manu Day Two.

Well we finally got some sleep! We turned in around 9pm, set the alarm for 8am but couldn't sleep past 6:30. But we feel remarkably better today. We started getting ready and had breakfast at the hotel; a grit-like mashed grain with onions, herbs and spices and spicy cucumber yogurt. Very tasty! At 10:00am we headed back to Ashraya to see Manu. We played again all morning. At one point while Leslie had Manu, I started playing "catch" with an older boy and a little plastic ball. Well, after seeing that all of the other older children wanted to play too, simultaneously! Suddenly I found myself playing with 5 children, all throwing stuff at me at the same time. Around 11:30 we met with the directors regarding his paperwork. We also talked for a while about Ashraya and all of its children and women's projects throughout the area. We picked up a few souvenirs made by the older children there and watched a short documentary that was made in December for their 25th Anniversary. We continue to be touched be this organization and their mission.

After we finished with that is was feeding and nap time, so we left little Manu for the last time to head out in search of food and batteries! After about a 10 minute walk we found FabIndia, India's version of Pottery Barn plus clothing. We bought Leslie a bracelet, a few souvenirs for the house and 4 Indian-styled shirts for Manu; all sizes larger than he is (and he is a tiny little fellow) so that he can wear them in stages for several years. After that we found the batteries and lunch at a little place that served all foods on a banana leaf and you eat with your hand, your right hand only that is; if you don't know why, I'll explain it to you later.

Back at the Orphanage we said goodbye to the Aunties with the promise to return tomorrow at 3:30 for tea and so that they can see him one more time before he goes. We carried him back to our room, changed his diaper and his outfit. We mixed up a bottle of Lactogen and attempted to feed him. We finally got him to finish it after trying 2 bottles and 4 different nipples, none of them really to his liking. After cleaning up a small mess, we put him in the baby carrier and took a walk in the park adjacent to Ashraya. He took it all in stride, mesmerized by the sights and sounds that were foreign to him. Back to the room for more play and bonding, the baby formula made it's second appearance of the afternoon, only this time not in a bottle. As we expected, the change in diet isn't sitting well with his system: he spit up probably a third of the bottle over about an hour, soiling several outfits, his included. But through all of that his spirit wasn't dampened; he continued to smile, laugh and crawl around on the floor. About 3 hours later it was time for cereal, so we mixed it up and hoped for the best. He seemed to really like it and it's been 2 hours and no spitting up. Tomorrow morning we'll try again with the Similac to see if we get better results, and after that we're off to a local baby store for more nipples and a different sippy cup.

Bath time for baby! We stripped him down and plopped him into the sink in our room. We thought this might actually make him fuss, but not yet as he seemed to enjoy the bath and attention. It was only after Leslie and I fumbled with dressing him in a new outfit that he put up any fuss at all. But now he smells more like baby and less like sour milk, so it was worth it!

As I'm writing this we are trying to get him to sleep, but the new setting and parents are just too distracting and he's fighting it. Wish us luck!