Day 33: Last Assist-Done!!!

Night Shift went great....guess what? I got my last assist in!!! ON MY BIRTHDAY!!!! Woohooo!!!

Here's the scope: I was dead tired from this past week's adventures....everything I could fit in, I did...including daily 8-12 hour long Shifts, shopping and cooking for our house with Jordan (our week to do it), spending time with Heidi before she goes on Furlough, trying to get our Outreach pictures edited and transferred to the 3 other girls and then uploaded to my Blog (50 pictures in 1 post once!! crazy I know) with our moderately slow/sporadic internet, skyping my family at all hours of the night (one night I stayed up until 3:30 skyping them, and it was SO 'Grabeeeh!!' (awesome in Visayan)), etc. 

I wouldn't trade anything that was done for anything, but as I said, it was crazy  busy....

Anyway, when we got on Night Shift, Mary's cont. was in labor, and there were 2 other ones who were in early labor....but besides the handlers, there was nothing for the rest of us to do, so we slept. 2 hours later, Mary's cont gave birth, and there was another one (Sylvette's) that they had decided to transport for 'ineffective pushing' (they tried all sorts of positions for over an hour, but it seemed that the baby's head was caught on the pelvic bone, and wasn't rotating).

Mary's Cont....the family

Mary's Cont's Baby

I watched Sylvette's labor for a while, and asked if she needed an assistant (which she didn't have), but because the gal was going to be transported, she didn't need one walapa (not yet). Mary asked me if I would want to finish cleaning up after her birth, which I did. I had literally just finished up with that, when Sylvette's gal started making progress.....fast!!!

While they put in the IV and filled out paperwork, they let her keep pushing and trying---giving her a 'last chance'. Anyway, I started putting on gloves while entering the cubicle, but the first one was NOT cooperating, and the head was crowning!!! (As the assistant, as SOON as the baby (sometimes head) is born, you need to start suctioning the fluids out from it's lungs.) The head was almost born by the time I got my 2nd glove half on, and so I contemplated just doing it that way (not smart), but had time enough to slip the rest on, grab the bulb syringe off the tray, & start suctioning the baby as it was born...

Phoebe

I felt MUCH more at ease this time with assisting, and it was really cool, because the assistant place was empty, even as the baby was being born, so I was able to step in and do it!!! Praise the Lord!! The baby was a girl, and so beautiful. After she was born, her mom started crying uncontrollably, and kept saying, "Thank you Jesus, Thank you Lord!!" They so badly wanted this baby born at MMC!!

Proud Parents

Birthing Team: Me, Claire, Sylvette, Ate eSteph, and the proud parents

Her husband was there supporting her the whole labor, and a few minutes, soon after birth, her pastor & his wife came with food, clothes, and took some pictures (which I was able to get!!!) They decided to name the baby Phoebe.  It was funny though, because they had originally wanted to name her 'Sarah', but were convinced by friends to name her Phoebe.....kinda neat!

As the assistant, I did the baby's bath, and conducted the Newborn Exam (my first as Primary!). They were so grateful to me (even though I wasn't the one in Primary Delivery!), & kept saying "We'll never forget you!!" all the way through the postpartum time I was with them..... Such a precious little family!!

Conducting the newborn exam

Footprints

Hungry, but peaceful baby

Proud mama!!

After shift, I went home, got ready for the day, and skyped my family. At mid-morning, I realized I had forgotten to do something on shift (take pictures of Mary's cont), & so I went back to clinic. Just yesterday, I was wondering to myself, "Will I ever see Jaycho's family again??" (Jaycho was a baby, who though I was not there for his birth, I was there for all of the postpartum procedures, and happened to be there for most of their postpartum checks too, and I almost cont him as a cont.)

Anyway, I headed into Clinic, & guess who's there??? Jaycho and his mom!!!! That was pretty exciting! Isn't God so good?? 

Midwife "McKay-Kay" :) with Jaycho and mom

Precious little bundle!!

Jaycho and me

It was really sweet....as I entered the Clinic, I found this little boy playing happily on the middle of the floor with his feet, while Felix (a guard) and his mother talked over him.

One of our amazing guards-Felix

Jordan doing a Postpartum on her Cont.

Kamerie and Sylvette

Day 32: Samal Island

Heidi leaves for her 1 month long furlough in the States on Saturday. We're going to miss her so much!! So, we decided to spend the day on Samal Island and relax: all 4 of us (Heidi, Aaron, Jordan, and I).

Just about to board the ferry

Samal Island (part of it) - over cast day)

Goats tethered to bushes

A cow....looks like one of Selah's milkers (Miss you Sis!!)

Once we got off the ferry, we rented 2 motorbikes (and their drivers) for the whole day for 2000 pesos (equivalent to approx. $40 total). Our first stop was the famous Monfort Bat Cave. This bat cave is the home to approximately 1.8 (2010) million Old World Fruit Bats, and in 2010, was deemed the world's largest gathering of it's particular species by Guinness Book of World Records.

Notice their piles of 'Guano' (poop) on the rocks

Here is a short clip on what it feels/looks like there at the caves:

Next place was the Hagimit Falls. The Falls were pretty, and there were a lot of Filipino style campsites or huts (with a roof, benches, and a table) for people to stay in. 

 We were planning on going swimming there, but the prices to put your stuff down was exorbitant for the hour we were planning to spend there, so we walked around a little bit, and then went to get lunch.

I guess I must have been really tired, because I fell asleep on our to lunch, while we on the motorcycle!! Since I was between Jordan and the driver, no major catastrophes happened, but Jordan thought it was pretty funny.....

 Next stop after lunch was the Canibad Beach, and wow!! It was  spectacular!! The sand was really smooth and white, the atmosphere very peaceful, and the water fresh. It is also on the other side of Samal, so you can't see Davao (which was nice). I would HIGHLY recommend it, and look forward to going back!!

 I spent most of my time there in the sand like a little kid (last day, you know!), looking for shells and watching the hermit crabs. I ended up bringing 10 hermit crabs, plus a white crab home with sand in my water bottle (disposable) :). 9 out of 10 crabs made the journey home (minus a few legs-oops!), and are now in my 'aquarium' on our porch.

That was kinda interesting, because though am spontaneous, I'm not usually the type to bring hermit crabs of all things back with me!! lol But, if I get tired of them, I can always go to the beach and let them go, or boil them for dinner???? (yuck!)

On our way back home, we decided to stop at the Durian Market and try it. Durian is known for it's 'unique odor'. Here is an excerpt from dear old Wiki on the subject:

"The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour, strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as fragrant; others find the aroma overpowering and offensive. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as almonds, rotten onions, turpentine, and gym socks. The odour has led to the  fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in southeast Asia....The 19th-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace famously described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds"."

The Durian being cut

Heidi LOVES durian, and always has a coke with it...

Aaron trying Durian

Not too bad!

The Durian we bought was less intense than most (so Heidi told us). It was very interesting....kind of like a custard with a mango, banana, garlicy taste....

We have Night tonight...more on that in the next post

Day 31: Clinic/Swing

We had Clinic this morning. Out of 80-85 patients, I conducted 5 prenatals myself - all of which went pretty well. I had one gal who had a UTI that had Pus Cells that were 'Too Numerous To Count' (way to high!!) We scheduled her for a Gramstein, to check for 'abnormalities'. Another gal was only 25 weeks and had a Fundal height of 31!! (It was 21, 1 month before) She was referred for an ultrasound.

I only need one more Assist before I can start handling deliveries.....unfortunately, this shift was dead. Nothing. Zip. Wala. Dili. Silencia.
So, what do you think happens when you have a bunch of midwifes with a bunch of time on their hands??? Well.....
One of the gals here got a piercing design on her side a few months ago, but her body rejected them (of course!). She had gotten all but 6 out (there were 30+), and so she asked Ate´ Suse to take the rest out via scalpel.

So, we all gathered around to give her encouragement, and it turned into a 'labor'!!!!

Here's the basic way it worked: When the injected numbing agent dripped, we called out "SROM!" - Spontaneous Rupture of Membranes, and when she started bleeding, we would call out "Moderate Staining!" When the piercing was almost out, we'd say "Head Out!" & then "Baby Born!" "1 down, 5 more to go!!"
We also kept telling her "Ginhawa la Lume!" x2 - which means "Breath deeply". Of course, she did her part as well, with grunting, pretending to yell out, and stop breathing....it was hilarious, and a lot of fun. It was also quite an interesting procedure!!!

We also prepared for our Outreach trip to the Bukid this next Monday (details later). We will probably be doing circumcision among many other things while there, so we had some time to 'study' up on it. They do it much differently here in the Philippines, and it is usually conducted on boys between the ages of 4-10. They must not make a face or cry out, because it is a sign of manhood, & though they 'have a choice', I'm not convinced they really do. (It's MUCH better to do it at 8 days instead of 4 years in my opinion!!!)

Day 30: Day Shift/Market

Tuesday was Day Shift. There wasn't really much activity, but I was able to do a PostPartum check on a gal with a 3 week old baby....isn't he so handsome??

After Shift ended, Jordan and I went to Victoria Mall to finish up shopping, and then headed to the Agdao Market to get the veggies and fruits.

Meat at Victoria Mall.....doesn't it look delicious??? :-)

On our way to Market, we were stopped in a traffic jam (never seen one before here!!) for about 10 minutes. There was a car in front of us with the following bumper sticker on it:

Probably just my eyes, but do you see the sword and cross in it??

After we got through the jam, we went through an alley where a bunch of teenagers were playing basketball. Jordan & I are used to many different greetings being said, but this was by far the strangest!!! They yelled out "Happy Birthday!!" Jordan & I just looked at each other and laughed "Is that ALL the English they know???" :)  Considering that my birthday is only 3 days, it was even funnier!!

These kids begged for a photo, which Jordan gladly took of them.

Guess what this is???? (Chickens!!!)

Day 29: Shopping/Grampaw

Monday morning, we took a nap, skyped our families, and worked on getting pictures organized from our Outreach, and the shopping list/menu made up.

Jordan & I are in charge of shopping and cooking this week for our dorm of 9 girls. First, we went to the McDo behind Victoria Mall, to give some stuff to Maria that she left on Sunday. Then, we went to Robinsons Bank to cash our food check in, before heading over to G-Mall.

Jordan & I had such a good time talking, sharing, and fellowshipping, that we didn't start grocery shopping for quite a few hours!!! Then, after we shopped, we ate dinner, & talked some more before coming home. It was such a blessing to get to have her to myself for a little while.....she's such a doll!!!!

It is my Grampaw's 80th birthday today..... tell you a little about my Grampaw:
Grampaw has spent his life for others. He has done much in the Music field, including conducting orchestras, teaching music and voice lessons of all sorts (including spending the last 4 years on teaching Rachel violin), starting music camps in AK, setting up a Music Scholarship program, and so much more.
He also spent many, many years as a Bush Pilot. He did much commuting for the Iditarod, and has built and fixed planes. He has built houses, hunted (evident by many mounts in their house), fished, done amazing sorts of carpentry, and is a world traveler. And that's only a glimpse of what he has done, and is still doing today!!!

Here are some of my favorite pictures of all of us:

Daniel & Grampaw

Our cozy little family in Alaska (with Hercules our St. Bernard)

Grampaw and Daniel (Grampaw is amazing at woodwork....) 

Our Family in 1996

Duck Hunting in Idaho with the Thurmans

Harvest Party 

Mexico

I love you Grampaw!!!!