Growing up, getting better
Welcome back Papa Mohammed
A week ago I had the privilege to collect the father of Mohammed from Erez, to bring him back to his lovely son. The father took some rest for himself back in Gaza with his family for a few weeks. When I brought him to Mohammed’s room at Sheba hospital, he was very happy to see his little boy again. During Mohammed’s father’s absense, an anut took loving care of tiny little Mohammed. She said she loves him like her own son. I think we all are witnesses of her loving regard for Mohammed. We witnessed it many times while visiting her. We all enjoyed visiting her and tiny Mohammed in the hospital. Co-worker Georgia described this aunt once as “the queen of calm” and I think that description is exactly right for her. Each time we were a bit stressed in the hospital, we knew we would be calmed if we went to visit her. But even if she loves Mohammed with her whole beautiful heart, she is tired as well after her two months with him and is leaving him with one sad and with one happy eye. Mohammed is still in the process of growing and it takes time. So it is good that his father is back now with new strength and patience for his cute son. Mohammed’s father and the aunty were happy as well when they saw each other and they were laughing and talking a lot together.

A happy time together
A catheterization for Mohammed
Waiting and growing
No results of liver biopsy as yet
Despite the language barriers associated with visiting parents or other relatives in hospital, it is always nice to visit them and communicate with them in some way. When co-worker Carina and I visited little Mohammed and his loving great aunt today, she was happy to tell us that Mohammed has gained weight. He is now eating a little on his own, but is still mainly fed through the nasal tube.
Every time we visit her, she is very happy about it and offers us to sit down. This time, too, she asked how everyone was doing back at the community house and that we should send them her love. This extremely kind woman is filled with God’s love and patience.
The results of the liver biopsy done for Mohammed are not in yet. The only thing Mohammed’s great aunt told us was that the blood in his liver artery was clotted. This can possibly be solved with medicine. The VSD has thankfully become smaller and therefore his heart can now supply the body with blood better than it could before.
However, your prayers are still needed for precious little Mohammed, that the results of the liver biopsy will come quickly and that the doctors will know what is wrong with Mohammed, as his coloring is yellowish. Thank you for your prayers.
Liver biopsy necessary
Probably I could write on every blog that it is absolutely lovely to visit the parents that are in the hospital at this moment. But the truth is, that is how I feel. Every parent is just so lovely and made so different by our heavenly father. It makes me think of how beautiful God created all parents and all of us with different weaknesses and strengths. I love to think about it and how everything is fitting so much together in the end.
The tiny bird
A last embrace from papa
Thank you so much all who prayed with us for Mohammed and his father. I’m sure you all knew from previous blogs how Mohammed’s father needed a little reprieve from the hospital and would exchange places with Mohammed’s great aunt. I had an additional perspective on this event that I wanted to share.
We collected Mohammed’s father from Sheba hospital yesterday. He was holding his son in his arms the whole time. How beautiful to see this demonstrative paternal love! Mohammed’s great aunt, who arrived and quarantined in Jaffa a few days before, is now with little Mohammed in hospital. The father is very blessed and thankful for this possibility. Before leaving Israel for Gaza, after leaving the hospital, he was shortly in Jaffa; there long enough to say good bye, have some coffee, visit with volunteers and stroll on the beach. We had a wonderful time together.
We bless this father with rest! Thank you for continued prayers for Mohammed, that he can return to his family soon, healthy and whole!
Precious things
Improving little by little
Our precious Mohammed is still not eating on his own and is being fed through a nasal canula. His father was happy to know that he will get some rest in the next few days, as I collected Mohammed’s great Aunt at the Erez border crossing and brought her to Sheba to exchange places with him for a time. All our children require a parent, guardian or chaperone of some kind and sometimes they need breaks.
Mohammed still likes just one specific pacifier. His great Aunt is extremely friendly and loves Mohammed a lot. I could feel that whilst I was visiting Mohammed with her today. She took care of him in a lovely way, and couldn’t stop looking and smiling at him.
Even though Mohammed is not eating on his own yet, thank God that at least he is getting better little by little which I witnessed myself today. His eye and head movement is improving. He was following my finger with his eyes and turned his head.
So thank you all for praying and please continue to keep this precious little boy in your prayers.
Patient father needs some rest

Today I visited little Mohammed and his father up on the fifth floor of Sheba Medical Center. This cute baby boy was sleeping when I came into their room and his father wanted to go outside for a bit of fresh air. So I offered to stay with Mohammed.
I could observe him and saw that his monitor signs were good. But his father also told me, as he came back to us, that the night was not so nice or restful, that Mohammed had a light fever and some emesis. This meant that Mohammed’s father, of course, could not sleep very well during those long hours.
Now, thank God, the little boy is better and resting. His father feels very tired and he would like to have some rest from hospital-life as well. The condition of our lovely baby is unchanged however. He is still getting some of his nutrition via nasal-gastric tube because Mohammed is yet unable to eat enough of what he needs.
We give this situation to our heavenly Lord! Please keep praying for Mohammed and his caring father.
The favorite pacifier
The small Mohammed is still in the normal Pediatric Station at Sheba Medical Centre. The general condition of this lovely boy is stable. I didn’t get updates on changed procedures with him.
As I arrived at their room today, a nurse and a therapist were busy on his bed assisting Mohammed in his medical and physical activity. He, of course, was crying. After the exercises were finished, the therapist told me how good the therapy was for his development and explained to me how I can continue with this measure.
Mohammed is an intelligent little boy. He was following my voice by turning his head and looking at me with his inquisitive eyes. It was like a play for us together.
Mohammed is still also in the process of learning how to drink by himself. He had a different pacifier today, which should help him to restore his sucking process. But he loves just one of them. All the other he throws up! He knows what he likes.
Please keep praying for his recovery!
Underweight but no weighty problems
Praise God that what was written in the last blog on the progress of our precious Mohammed, became true when he was moved to the normal Pediatric Station at Sheba Medical Center.
Happy dad and son
When I came to the Sheba Medical Center Pediatric Cardiac ICU to visit Mohammed and his dad, a nurse was checking him with a stethoscope. Then I went into the room and saw Mohammed awake, with opened eyes and without the ventilator. For me it was the first time seeing him since he had had his surgery and it was so encouraging to see Mohammed smiling and looking so good. Also his dad was very happy and told me that Mohammed is doing very, very well. Then little Mohammed was washed and dressed into some new clothes so I could take these nice pictures of him.
Another nurse came into the ICU area and told me that they want to move him out of the ICU today to the normal Pediatric Station and that they are thinking about discharging him and bringing him to a hospital in Gaza near their home.
Thank God for this quick and very good recovery process of Mohammed, please pray that it will continue.
The respiration of beloved Mohammed
When co-worker Carina and I went to the Children’s ICU of Sheba medical center to visit precious little Mohammed and his father today, he was already extubated.
Beloved Mohammed
Our beloved Mohammed is still in the Pediatric ICU at Sheba Medical and still intubated. However, praise God, we received good news when co-worker Alena and I visited him today, which is that he can be extubated, Lord willing, in the next few days.
The nurse told us that before extubating is possible, they want to apply ‘Total Parenteral Nutrition’ (TPN), that is, more infusion per vein. Mohammed is a very small baby. We pray for more strength in his body. Please join us in this prayer.
Little by little, the day after surgery
When I went to the Sheba Medical Center ICU today to visit Mohammed, his father welcomed me. He was very friendly and still happy because Mohammed’s surgery yesterday went so well.
My Arabic is getting better “shwaie shwaie” (little by little) which is why I was able to ask the dad how Mohammed is and he told me he’s doing pretty well after the surgery yesterday.
PTL and please continue to pray for cute little Mohammed, that he will get better and stronger soon, and for his dad’s peace of mind.
Waiting and expecting
Today it was the day for Mohammed to have his surgery, he has already had one surgery and one catheterization. After Mohammed was brought into the surgery room, his dad and I were waiting with some others in the waiting area directly near the door from which Mohammed would come out again after the surgery. So we knew that it would probably take about four or five hours and even if we didn’t communicate that much because of the language barrier, we just sat there waiting together for Mohammed’s return.
After about four hours, we asked a nurse about the surgery and he told us that it‘s just finished. It took again some time to prepare him to come out of the surgery room, but then finally, the doors opened and Mohammed was rolled out in his bed.
Following them to the ICU, they said that the surgery was successful. We had to wait again for Mohammed who was being connected to all the tubes and electrical appliances in his room. His dad was really happy about the good surgery, thanks to our heavenly Father! For now, Mohammed will stay in the ICU to recover from his surgery. Would you pray for him?
With eyes opened
When we visited Mohammed today, he was even awake which was very nice. It was so cute to see him with his eyes opened. A nurse told us that it‘s not sure yet when the surgery will be and also what they will exactly do. So please pray for wissom to figure out and decide what to do.
Bringing all things into the light
As Mohammed’s father and I waited outside the cath lab this afternoon, we prayed that this new investigation would shed light on the reasons Mohammed is still unable to breathe on his own five weeks after his surgery. Suddenly a large medical team burst through the doors, hustling Mohammed back to the ICU:
When we caught up with them, they said they were finally able to see the causes of Mohammed’s difficulty, and doctors will put together a plan to take him back to surgery.
“Look how valuable your son is,” I told the father at one point. “Eight people are working on him at once.”

Catheterization planned for Tuesday
Today Jonathan and I visited Mohammed and his dad in the ICU. They have tried to take the ventilation with the oxygen away but he wasn’t able to breathe on his own. Dr. Sheron came in to look after Mohammed and check him. She will do his catheterization on Tuesday. So would you pray for him that he will recover and will come through his cath well on Tuesday?

Trusting our Father for Mohammed
Today we found Mohammed still intubated, with an elephant toy lovingly propped opposite him. His nursing staff tell us there’s still a long road ahead, with few signs of improvement at this point. The father adds that financial pressures are growing on the family while he is with his son and unable to work. Let’s continue to trust our Father for every need of this family which he loves.

Continuing to be stable
Mohammed has been moved to a new department of the Intensive Care Unit of Sheba Medical Center, indicating that his condition is perhaps continuing to be stable.
Intubated again
Please keep this little one in your prayers, that he would be granted the strength to fight back and receive a full recovery to the glory of God.
Slowly recovering
Today, I was able to visit little Mohammed and his dad in the Sheba Medical ICU. It was nice to see them and to see how Mohammed is doing.
He is recovering well, but very slowly his father said. He also took a very nice picture where you can see that Mohammed is still a happy baby despite his circumstances.
Let‘s persevere in prayer for him so that the good recovery process will continue.
Brave little one
Thank God little brave Mohammed is now stable. His father has said that he is getting a little bit better every day. He is recovering very slowly, but still this is good news for the little man.
Let us continue to pray for Mohammed and his father, that the little one will soon be well again and that the father will get strength from God to continue to get through all this.
Mohammed still unstable, prayer needed
We found Mohammed this afternoon under close observation, his faithful nurses telling us he is still not stable following yesterday’s surgery. Prayers are needed for him in these next 24 critical hours.
