Back in CEBU!

Yeah! We're home. There is much to fill in since my last post. Computer access is always very spotty during our annual trip to the D.C. area each spring. I'll give it a shot...

After we left Mexico we flew back to the D.C. area and stayed the night with some friends. Andrey spent the following day at the headquarters office of his job in some kind of training. I got the day to myself but had the task of getting to the hotel where we stayed during the annual prayer gathering (the main reason for going to DC every spring). A coworker of Andrey lent me his Ford Ranger truck. My job was to bring all four of our heavy bags down three flights of stairs into the cold rain and into the truck. I did this, one by one while thinking of how silly I would look doing something like this in the Philippines. I realized how thankful I was for life in the Philippines where there are porters to help you carry stuff. Yeah, I know I sound lazy but it made me appreciate life in the Philippines.

I learned that being in a big city without a cell phone driving on massive freeways that I don't know in the rain in a truck with an unfamiliar clutch is somewhat intimidating. I kind of forgot how to interact with drivers in the U.S. No honking, that's for sure unless you really want to piss somebody off. I was shocked - completely surprised when someone stopped and gave me space to make a U-turn to get ahead of him in a long line up at a traffic light. Shocked. What is this? I also find I'm nervous going through intersections with a green light. I'm scared to just blow through them, anticipating and expecting someone to pull out in front of me. People in the U.S., not always I realize, actually stop and wait at read lights. These are a few ways in which I experience culture strain when I come the U.S.

I made it to the Sheraton after all. That's the hotel where the prayer gathering was. We stayed there for three nights. The prayer gathering was FANTASTIC. This is where 900 people came together to prayer for the work around the world. Andrey's parents, sister and brother-in-law joined us and we had several good times together. It was very great having them there.

Andrey and me with Lisa & Mike (beloved sister and brother-in-law)
Mom, I stole this photo from your blog, I trust you don't mind :)

I can't share a ton about it here but I can tell you that the prayer gathering is a big highlight for us each year. It enables us to step back and get a bigger picture of why we are in Cebu. Plus, being around so many people who support and pray for us is AWESOME. We go away feeling exhausted at first, especially for Andrey since it's a lot of work for him, but overall hugely encouraged and refreshed. I get a chance to hang out with the other spouses of the directors serving around the world - in India, Africa, South America, Southeast Asia - and Andrey gets to spend a week afterward in a beautiful location on the Chesapeake Bay with the rest of the overseas field office directors. The spouses also joined them there for the first two days of the week. I reveled in the fresh, cold air and ample open space to enjoy outdoors. What a privilege to be a part of this organization and this work. They take great care of us!

While Andrey was at the rest of Team Week, as it's called, I stayed at Sean & Shannon's house in Virginia. Sean & Shannon lived in Thailand while we were there and we became very close with them and their kids. A friend of mine from Thailand, who now lives in NYC, came to visit for two days while I was there. I took her to see the cherry blossoms and the monuments and the White House. I am very Metro savvy now. I love getting around on the subway in DC. I also spent a day at the Arlington Cemetery with spouses of other directors - a British woman who will soon be moving to India and a politician from Zambia. I felt the most proud of my country being there with foreigners. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to be a very good tour guide as my level of knowledge of historical facts is sadly scanty. Shameful even. I blame it on my not-so-great public school experience and having probably one of the worst history teachers who actually convinced me that history wasn't practical or of any importance to our lives today. Or at least that is what I gained from class that consisted of copying his notes from the overhead projector instead of him teaching us anything interesting. I now think differently. I'm getting better though and learning more, little by little. It was a gorgeous, sunny day and I learned even more about the cemetery, as it was my third visit there. My cousin is buried there.

The last portion of our visit to America was spent in a cabin in rural West Virginia with Sean & Shannon and their two kids. Sadly, our camera bit the dust and so I currently have no photos of our time there. I'm hoping to get some from Shannon later. We spent four nights in a lovely wood cabin right near a river. On the first of our three full days we took a four hour hike through the Dolly Sods Wilderness. It was a beautiful, sunny and warm day. When the kids got tired of walking Sean told them stories to get them through. Katherine got to ride in a kid carrier backpack on Sean. That also helped. We stopped along the way and ate our packed lunch. So fun!

Dolly Sod's Wilderness (photo taken from here)

The next two days were spent either in the cabin or outside by the river for short periods of time because a storm came in and it SNOWED! It snowed for 36 hours and dropped at least 6 inches of powdery snow. It was beautiful. Snow is still quite a novelty for me so although I was a little worried about whether we'd get out of there, I was more excited about seeing it snow outside. We had a fire going constantly and I did lots of reading and relaxing. We did get out a few times to play in the snow. We even built a fire by the river while it was snowing and then Sean went fishing in the river. It was a gorgeous place to relax.

Early yesterday morning when we packed up and left we weren't sure we'd get out. The cabin is deep in a valley so we had some distance to travel uphill. After one scary 5-point-turn at the base of a hill we found an alternate route that got us out to a main road. The road was snow covered and icy and we remained in a winter scene for about an hour and then suddenly it looked like spring again. We made it to the airport on time, early even.

We had an easy trip back to Cebu on Korean Airlines. DC-Seoul-Cebu. It was the best itinerary we've ever had. Every time we travel like this we try to enjoy every bit of it, being just the two of us because we can't help but wonder if it will be our last trip without children and extra stuff to tote around. We watched three movies, ate several meals and slept quite a bit. We're enjoying it while it lasts because something tells us (hmmm, let's say families with kids sitting near us and every one else we know who travel with kids) that traveling just won't be the same. Although we really look forward to being parents, here's to living in the moment and being grateful for today!

It's great to be back in Cebu.

A Few Shots From Mexico

A waterfall outside of Monterrey at Cola de Caballo.

"Guy" taking shots of "Bud" on a very short donkey ride

The view of Monterrey from our hotel window

Rey del Cabrito "King of Goat" restaurant in Monterrey, displaying their specialty - As it turns out, not one of us was interested in trying it.

Parque Fundadores in Monterrey

We were only in Monterrey a few days. We spent the rest of our time in Torreon in Dana & Andrew's home but I didn't take any shots. That's when our five-year-old camera started going on the fritz.

Thanks Willms Family for showing us a fantastico good time!

In Mexico

Hi friends. Just want to share that Andrey and I are having a blast hanging out in Mexico with Dana and Andrew and their two kiddies. We spent the first two nights in Monterrey at a great hotel. Yesterday we drove to Torreon, where we'll be until Wednesday when we fly back to the D.C. area.

I don't have any photos to post right now because I didn't bring my computer or the cable I need to download any photos. Will have to do that another time.

Best things so far about being in Mexico:

• Quality time with great friends including lots of chats and laughs and silliness (for the kids' sake, of course)
• Real Mexican food - spicy salsa, gorditas ("little fatties") for breakfast, endless amounts of tortilla chips and fresh limes, queso, yummy cerveza... if i keep this up I'll turn into a gordita myself! I've just been ignoring the painful burning in my stomach post spicy salsa. I figure it will be over soon...
• Dry air - the chapped lips are a bit annoying but the novelty of dry air is being enjoyed just for that reason; it's even a bit cool here still in the morning
• Seeing Andrey and Andrew chatting it up and giggling like a couple of girls, just delighted to be in each other's presence
• Dana & Andrew's trampoline

Not so fun things:

• Burning stomach after spicy food and indigestion after too many gorditas
• Looking like a dumb-ass when I give the nervous blank stare when someone speaks to me in Spanish; Dang it! This dumb foreigner tourist thing is just uncomfortable. Thankfully, Dana and Andrew's Spanish is quite good (as if we would know) so at least they look good, which is the way it should be

We're very blessed to have this time with D & A. We've made the trip since it looks like they won't get to join us for Nerdfest in August this year so it might be a while before we see them.

Hasta luego!

In America

Andrey and I made it to the D.C. area today. We had one of the best itineraries. We flew Korean Airlines. Cebu-Seoul-D.C. The flight out of Cebu left just before 2 a.m. It was just okay as it was a smaller plane and we both found it difficult to get any sleep. But that flight was only four hours. We had a 3 hour layover in Seoul, which has a very nice airport. The best part was the seating that was very conducive to sleep. Andrey worked on his computer and I took a nice, long nap.

Our long flight to D.C. was great. We slept on and off throughout and enjoyed good food and excellent service. Korean airlines is great. They fed us two nice meals. I chose the Korean option both times and loved it. We watched Slumdog Millionaire, which we really liked. It was probably one of the most enjoyable 15 hour flights we've ever taken. In my sleepy state, I recall hearing fussy babies and toddlers nearby and I thought about how tired I felt and wondered what it would be like to take a flight like this and have a child or two to care for. Oh dear. I guess I'm enjoying these days while I only have my own whiney needs to deal with.

Now we're at a friend's house. We'll be staying here tonight. We're going to Mexico early tomorrow morning to visit Dana & Andrew. We're meeting in Monterrey, where we'll stay in a hotel for a few nights before driving to Torreon. We'll be back in the D.C. area on Wednesday, where we'll be until we go back to Cebu on April 8th. We'll be attending the global prayer gathering before Andrey has a week's worth of work-related meetings. Then we get to spend a few days in a cabin in the woods with the Litton family. Their daughter is our god-daughter. We were quite close with them during our time in Thailand so we're really looking forward to spending some quality time together. We are so blessed with such great friends and so many fun things to look forward to on this trip and others.

For now, the goal is to stay awake until at least 9 this evening. The coffee is already wearing off so I'd better keep moving. Maybe a walk outside in the brisk air will help.

Our Compassion Child, Ivy

When our former Compassion sponsored child graduated from her program in Africa, Andrey and I decided to sponsor a child from the Philippines. We knew that the child they picked for us could come from anywhere in the country. What we didn't expect was that the child they'd assign to us would not only live on the same island, but would live an hour's drive from Cebu City. Perfect!

Andrey's mom is a Compassion advocate, which means she represents Compassion's sponsorship program and finds sponsors for waiting children around the world. In January, while Andrey's parents were in town we made it a point to visit our sponsor child together. Her name is Ivy.

The four of us drove an hour south of Cebu City along the coast to a small town called Sibonga. There, we met with the leaders of the local church that run the Compassion program. It's a new program that provides sponsorship to 100 children in the area. The children receive everything they need to go to school and regular medical and dental check-ups. The pastor and administrator who hosted us were very excited to meet us. We were the first sponsors to visit one of the children.

In Sibonga, we met at the church where the program is held and were introduced to Ivy and her mother. We chatted for a few minutes and then we all went to lunch together at Jollibee in a bigger town nearby. Jollibee is the Philippines version of McDonald's. Kids light up when they see the restaurant's mascot, "Jollibee," which is just as it sounds - a very jolly bee. Ivy was ecstatic when she heard where we were headed.

Like most Filipino children, Ivy was incredibly shy and nervous to be around tall, white people. She would barely make eye contact with us. In the car on the way over her mother kept telling us (in Cebuano, thankfully I could understand her) that Ivy is so shy around us because she is afraid of our long noses. Filipinos make a very big deal about the differences in our noses. They are quick to make disparaging remarks about their own short, flat noses. It usually comes either just before or right after the self-deprecating remarks regarding the "blackness" of their skin. Why can't we all just be happy the way God made us!? Anyway...

We enjoyed our time at Jollibee. After lunch we followed the leaders to Ivy's home where we gave a few gifts and were stared at by a gathering crowd from the community. We met more of Ivy's family before we drove back to the city.

Ivy enjoying her lunch at Jollibee.

Andrey, Ivy and me with Jollibee (the poor girl was terrified of us)

Walking to Ivy's house

Ivy at her door step

Ivy with her grandmother, brother and mother

Starved Baby Boy

Can I just tell you another ridiculously shameful story of crap that happens in the Philippines that I have the joy of witnessing? It would be oh so easy to assign 100% of the blame on the poor excuse of a city hospital here but in this case the mother herself left me bewildered.

Last week we had to transport a patient to the hospital because she was in early labor and the heart beat of her baby decelerated to a dangerous level. This patient was 38 weeks pregnant with a fundal height (belly measurement) that reached 30 centimeters at its largest. At the time of admission her fundal height was 28 cm. This is incredibly small.

During the first half of her pregnancy her belly was growing as expected but since about 20 weeks or so, the growth of the baby really started to lag and never caught up. All through her chart there is evidence that our staff advised her to eat well and take her vitamins. Numerous midwives explained to her the importance of good nutrition in pregnancy and the risk to the baby if it doesn't get the nutrition it needs and doesn't grow well. She claimed she didn't have money for food, yet there was evidence that she actually did have more choices available to her.

In fact, she was spending her money on white bread and fortified, powdered chocolate milk drink, which has a lot more sugar than protein. We know for one that the milk powder is a lot more expensive than fresh vegetables and eggs, for example. And since she apparently had no problem paying for meds we prescribed for an infection she had and the lab work we required, several of us agreed that something just wasn't right about her story.

We have numerous women in our clinic who have very little money and who truly struggle to eat well and pay for needed labs and meds but this woman didn't fit the usual profile. Most of these patients still find a way to eat at least three meals a day. It may not be the ideal diet but at least it's not one that induces the level of malnutrition seen in this woman and her baby. In addition, our women who are truly impoverished do not have a husband with a decent, stable job like this woman does. And this was her first baby so it's not like she had many other mouths to feed. Each midwife attempted to get to the root of the problem but she maintained that it was a financial problem that kept her from eating.

So that brings us to this point, where we were last week with this patient in early labor and her baby giving us some very nonreassuring signs of its well-being. Unfortunately she was only 2 cm dilated so there wasn't much we could to facilitate delivery. We hooked her to IV. We filled a bag of medical supplies and gave it to her husband to hand over at the hospital to alleviate some of the cost just like we do for all of our patients who get transported. I called the OB resident and told her we were coming. We took her to the city hospital. After waiting over 30 minutes for a doctor to see our patient, the OB finally determined she needed an emergency C-section.

They informed me that the provincial hospital (the only other public hospital in the city) is closed for two weeks for fumigation just like it does every year and that because of this our patient was 5th in line for C-Section.

24 hours later... Yes, 24 hours later our patient had her C-section. Although I haven't confirmed this, we heard that the woman just ahead of our patient, in line for C-section because of dangerously high blood pressure (preeclampsia), went into eclamptic shock and died - waiting for C-S.

As for our patient, she delivered a three and a half pound baby boy. He required resuscitation at birth. Once he was stable they did a gestational age exam and determined that he was indeed 38 weeks (full-term) and therefore was confirmed to have suffered from intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), which is in most cases a result of extremely poor nutrition. It was exactly as we had suspected. That in and of itself is more than enough for a little baby to be up against.

Unfortunately though, in addition to this the baby clearly experienced hypoxia due to the decelerations of his heart beat and was likely in metabolic acidosis at birth. (Acidosis is what happens when there is deprivation of positively-charged oxygen molecules in the tissues and organs, and there is a subsequent build up in hydrogen ions, which have a negative or acidic charge. Organ and tissue damage is certain when prolonged.)

God knows what additional damage has been done just by leaving him in so long. His heart rate was dipping down to 80 beats per minute when we took them to hospital, which is always an emergency situation. A normal fetal heart rate is 120-160. Since then (a week ago) the baby has stayed in the ICU (which is really just a small room adjacent to the pedia ward with 3-4 babies to a bed, no incubators, and only 1 oxygen tank) and has been receiving meds for metabolic acidosis. We learned yesterday that he coded again and had to be resuscitated again. So far, he's still alive.

According to the obstetrician that works closely with our clinic and who saw our patient in the hospital, the patient admitted she didn't eat because she didn't want a big baby. I can't say for sure that this truly was the reason why she decided to starve her baby but the thought of it is heart-breaking. Awful. Awful. Awful.

Internet Troubles

After days of little to no internet connection, several phone calls to the phone company, and a long-awaited visit from a technician, our internet connection is back up! Yeah!

Without internet connection for what we consider to be a significant amount of time, we were surprised at how disconcerted and discombobulated we felt. We felt isolated, disconnected and cut off from the world and from friends and family especially. It's an awful feeling actually.

It makes me realize how much having the internet enriches our life overseas and how different life would be without it. At the same time it's disturbing at how dependent we are on it. I'm not sure it's worth analyzing whether it's a good or bad thing. It is what it is. I'm just thankful we're back in action.

Seedlings

Vegetable gardening is a new adventure for me. A few weeks ago when A's parents were still here I finally planted some seeds that I'd been accumulating in hopes of starting a small herb garden including a few other plants. I planted seeds for dill, cilantro, oregano, basil, and thyme as well as cherry tomatoes, lettuce (a long shot), and a few mammoth sunflowers. That was round one. I got a few good tomato plants going and 3 nice sunflower sprouts. How exciting to see them pop up!

Since then, rats (or slugs) ate my sunflower sprouts. I was so disappointed. My tomato seedlings gained enough height and apparent strength that I transferred them to pots last Saturday. Then, we had a torrential down-pour of rain while I was at work and couldn't pull them under shelter. I came home to a few barely-hanging-on tomato plants. Again, very disappointed.

My herbs never came up so I sowed another set of seeds in new dirt and paid more attention to watering. After two weeks - again, nothing. So last Saturday I tried again. This time with dirt that's apparently more specific to starting seeds and I actually read the directions. I'm hoping something comes up this time! I really love the idea of walking outside to clip off some cilantro when I want make Mexican food. Or grab some fresh basil for Italian. I'll keep at it and see what happens. Another factor may be the rain and cloudiness lately. We're supposed to be at the beginning of the hot, dry season but it seems to be taking a little time to kick in. I'm thinking once it does, it will help my tomatoes thrive at least.

We've also been learning to compost. A's parents helped us get some compost started several weeks ago and for a while it was going great. Until... the rats got into it! They bit a hole right through the plastic basket it was in. Now we are in the process of reinforcing the plastic bin with thick, metal wire. We'll see how that goes. I really like this composting thing. The possibilities. The sudden value of used coffee grounds and garlic peels. The idea of all that nutrition being used for something and not going to waste.

In the last week or so I've been out in the yard every morning and every evening checking on my seedlings (that was when there was still some hope for my tomatoes). I mentioned to Andrey how I need to try to not get so invested in these plants so that when they fail I'm not so disappointed about it, but after noticing my level of daily concern I realized that that's not easy to do. I am really invested in these plants thriving. I really want them to succeed!

At church last Sunday there was a word from the Lord spoken that went something like this: "What I have planted I will watch over and nurture and protect. What I have planted I will cause to grow to completion. Like a gardener that tends to his crops..." This word impacted me because for the first time, I felt I could really relate to what a gardener or farmer must feel, tending to his/her crops.

I recalled how invested I felt in seeing my plants grow and how mindful I was each day to check on them. As I journaled about that I could so clearly sense the Lord's gentle and kind, loving care over me. I became aware of the many areas in which I tend to strive to please and perform - to please the expectations I set for myself and the perceived expectations from others and from God.

I was reminded that it is God who will bring His work in me to completion. Not me. Sure, there are things he's prepared for me to do but there is no need for striving, for trying hard to sprout up and grow out of my own strength. It was a merciful reminder to rest in God and to make room in my heart and life for Him to tend to me to way He sees fit. It's time (again) to not allow that ugly voice of the enemy in my mind to speak the old tune of, "you'll never measure up." I hate that voice. God has already made me aware of that voice and for years I've learned to stand against it. Every so often however, it creeps up and I don't realize I'm letting it in until I really start to feel its effects. Once again I am reminded to call out that lying voice when I first hear it, to call it out as false, and combat it with God's truth.

It is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Philippians 2:13

Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant - not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 2 Corinthians 3:4-6

And my FAVORITE verse:

Come to me, all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30

My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. Psalm 62:1-2

How important it is to walk out that which the Lord has already done in us. He's brought healing and freedom yet I must continue to be alert and not allow the enemy's accusations drag me down. We must walk out the freedom the Lord gives us. We must stand firm. I'm reminded of another great verse...

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1

How many times do we let ourselves be burdened by that yoke of slavery that no longer belongs to us? It seems these things I learn and then I forget and then I have to learn them again. And then I forget again. How quickly I can begin to feel like I'm not doing enough. I'm not good enough. Letting expectations and the associated guilt that are not from God rule over me. Graciously, Jesus, in His mercy gently reminds me of his grace - over and over again. I am so grateful for that. I am amazed at his goodness, his patience, his mercy and grace.

Valentine's Day Dinner

We decided to stay home this year. With so many guests around the past 1-2 months we've done quite a lot of eating out. Dinner at home sounded great. It's also a great opportunity to make foods we don't normally make - either due to cost or health or convenience.

This Valentine's dinner accomplished just that. It was slightly expensive (although still much less than we'd pay if we went out) and wasn't low-fat by any stretch of the imagination and definitely was not what you call local. In fact, I'd call it the anti-100-mile meal as nearly everything was made from imported, energy-inefficient ingredients.

Such as beef, for example. Corn-fed American beef. That was the first item on our menu: grilled rib-eye steaks. Oh yes, they were delicious! I have this stove-top cast iron grill. It's the best invention! I just put it atop the gas flame on the stove and let it sizzle our meat to perfection. I highly recommend one of these if you have a gas stove top. There are non-stick versions out there that are too expensive in my opinion. Plus with non-stick you don't get as good grill marks. I was stoked when I found my cast iron one for less than $10!

My mother taught us how to make the perfect steak. The key is to let it come to room temperature before you cook it. And while it's sitting out on the counter becoming room temperature (which happens in just a few minutes in this weather), you rub it down with course salt. Just before cooking the steaks, pat them dry with a paper towel. This, with the salt, draws some of the moisture out (especially important in previously frozen steak). This prevents the moisture left in the steak from cooking the inside too fast. The whole thing cooks more evenly and you get nice charring on the outside. And always let your steak rest for 10 minutes after it cooks and before you cut into it. Otherwise, the juice will run right out of it and it will be dry. I'm telling you, it really results in a tastier steak.

The second item on our menu was wild mushroom risotto with peas and freshly grated romano cheese. Hello! In Asia, we pretty much live without mushrooms. Good, regular button mushrooms. You can't get them here because they aren't grown here. We miss them. Sure, we can get shiitake mushrooms but those don't go very nicely in Italian dishes. So we pretty much live without fresh mushrooms (sigh). So, for Valentine's day we splurged on some very expensive, imported button and portabello mushrooms. I've never made risotto before. It was delightful! So full of yummy mushroom flavor.

The third element to our meal was arugula salad with roasted bell peppers and shaved romano cheese with a simple olive oil/lemon juice/balsamic dressing. It was the first time I ever roasted bell peppers. Just cover a cookie sheet with foil and place the whole peppers under the broiler, turning often (about 20 minutes) until the skin is bubbling and burnt. Place in zip-top baggy until they are at room temperature. Remove the skin and seeds. Slice and serve. Or add a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper and let marinate for at least 5 hours. I didn't do this as I roasted the peppers while I was prepping the rest of the meal but they were still super tasty. I think I'll roast peppers more often. We both loved this simple salad.

So that was our entree: grilled steak, wild mushroom risotto, and arugula and roasted peppers salad. (All three of those recipes came from Giada DeLourentiis' book called "Everyday Italian," which I got for Christmas.) We enjoyed the salad with a glass of champagne, then opened a bottle of red wine to accompany the steak and risotto.

As for dessert. I really did something I wouldn't normally do. That's the fun of it. I made molten chocolate cakes with raspberry coulis and fresh whipped cream. Remember when I said this meal wasn't at all local? The chocolate was Hershey's semi-sweet from the US, the frozen raspberries also from the US (and expensive! no wonder we never buy those) and the whipping cream from France. The cakes turned out great. The raspberry sauce was a hit with Andrey as its one of the foods he misses the most. And the whipped cream... well, if any of you really know me, you know that I have a love affair with whipped cream. I'd almost trade Andrey for it. That part was for me.

We savored the meal. And the time alone together. We realize it is a luxury that few of our married friends with kids get to enjoy - 1. To have the time to cook such a meal and 2. To enjoy it at home, just the two of us. So we choose to be thankful and to live in the moment and enjoy it for what it is, knowing that times like this are fleeting. Once kids enter the picture it will be a whole new deal. Am I right, friends?

Happy Valentine's Day

Psycho Taxi Driver

I've never had a scarier taxi ride. My taxi driver on my way home from work this morning was without a doubt on some kind of drug. Probably the ubiquitous methamphetamine used around here called shabu. First of all it was one of the most beat up taxis I'd ever been in. It looked like it might fall apart. When I got in I immediately realized the driver was high on something. He couldn't sit still and I could see via the rear view mirror that his eyes were bloodshot and glossy. The words of a reporter on the radio were unintelligible because the station wasn't quite tuned into the right frequency. It only gave off high-pitched sounds of jumbled words. The guy didn't seem to notice or care. And his driving genuinely scared me. I thought he might kill someone. He weaved into oncoming traffic numerous times to pass the line up of cars we were in. This isn't that unusual except that this guy didn't do it only when it was clear. He just honked for people to get out of his way while accelerating as fast as the car would go, just to quickly weave back into traffic. I prayed and tried to get the courage up to stop him and get out but I kept telling myself it wasn't that much further. I was just scared to speak to this guy. But the atmosphere of the taxi felt spiritually dark. It was awful. Even though I was more than half way home, I finally worked up enough courage to listen and act on what my instincts were telling me. Get out of this taxi! I seriously thought I might get into an accident at any moment or worse yet hit and kill a pedestrian. So I stopped the taxi, paid my fare and got out. Whew!

Fast Birth

I worked last night. My shift started at 7:45 pm. At 8 pm a 27-year-old mother arrived in labor with her 4th child. She was 8 centimeters dilated and having strong, frequent, regular contractions. She asked to pull down the curtains around one of our beds downstairs for privacy. Of course, no problem. At 8:55 she declared, "I need to push!" We all rushed upstairs and got her onto the delivery table. She said, "I really need to push!" We said, "Wait. Just breathe," while I quickly put on a gown and sterile gloves. "Ok. Go ahead," I said. She bore down and I could already see the head. The amniotic sac was still intact so I reached in to gently pinch it after her first push. Immediately she started pushing again and suddenly, the head was crowning, the head was out, the body was out - baby out! All in one push. The time was 8:57 pm. I guess she really did have to push! While her baby was being suctioned on her abdomen she said, "Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. Thank you" with a big smile on her face. Her husband was also there, smiling.

Adorable little baby girl named Sherly. 6 pounds 12 ounces. Healthy, pink, cute, round-faced, head full of gorgeous black hair, champion breastfeeder. Sherly.

What could be more fun than to take part in stuff like this!!?? What a privilege.

Tuesday's Two Deliveries

I worked the day shift on Tuesday. When I arrived there was a woman in labor. This was her second baby. She progressed well throughout the day and I was her main labor support person. She's a sweet, cheerful woman. It was great working with her as she labored throughout the day. At around 4pm she gave birth to a healthy 7 1/2 pound baby boy. Here she is on Thursday morning.
Around 6 pm, while we were just finishing up in the delivery room, my continuity patient arrived in labor. Let me first explain what a continuity patient is.

A continuity patient is someone that I am responsible for caring for throughout pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum. I am required to have 3 continuity patients in order to complete my midwifery training. I have had 4 continuity patients in the past that for various reasons all ended up delivering in the hospital. Of course it's mostly unfortunate for them because that means they had some sort of complication - either during their pregnancy or during their labor - that required us to transfer their care to the hospital. But it's also a bummer for me because even though I cared for them for many months, I can't use that experience toward my requirements.

I've been praying (selfishly) for both of my continuity patients (the other is due in April) to have a healthy pregnancy and birth because I really want the opportunity to deliver their babies and care for them afterward as well, and of course, satisfy some of my requirements in the process.

I am happy to say that my first continuity patient (in photo below) delivered a healthy baby girl on Tuesday. Yeah! She arrived at 6pm and gave birth at 9:30 pm. It was the kind of birth I always hope for. She had very strong, effective and appropriately frequent contractions. Her labor progressed normally - quickly even. I was surprised at how quickly things were progressing and how amazing my patient was at remaining calm and in control. She was impressive. Clearly she had done this before. This was her 4th baby. I asked her if her other labors were like this one and she told me yes. I knew her past labors were fast so I knew to be on my toes.

Things couldn't have gone better. She didn't bleed and she didn't tear. She spent all of Wednesday at the clinic then was discharged early Thursday morning. Here she is with her incredibly cute baby girl (Kianna Jee) and husband just before they were sent home.

I really enjoyed working with this woman. As you can see she's quite tiny but thanks to her compliant nature she took my advice on taking vitamins that helped increase her appetite and then ate a lot more than she would have otherwise (including lots of protein!!!). Her baby weighed 6 1/2 pounds. Perfect! She even successfully increased her hemoglobin throughout her pregnancy by consistently purchasing good quality iron supplements and taking them as advised - every day! It's a simple thing but you have no idea how hard it can be to get patients to comply with just this one important thing. She really was a joy to work with.

She expressed an interest in family planning advice (she's only 27) so I'm going to make sure she finds something that works for both her and her husband. If things go as she hopes, she won't be back to our clinic for a while.

Thank God for this new life! Did I mention how cute the baby is?? She has chubby cheeks and when she cries she has a pouty lower lip that sticks out! She feeds like a champ, too!