Growing each day...sorry not as interesting as Tim's!

Greetings! As Tim shared last post, things are cooking up crazy in the water filtration world! Toti is having a gas and Tim had the opportunity to train more Filipinos this week. He also got to help out with an outreach with our church right here in Agdao…our neighborhood. He got to play the pharmacist again and thoroughly enjoyed it. He is learning so much!....like ALWAYS bring sunscreen wherever you go! (He’s rather a lobster right now!) But again, I am so proud of him.

As for me….Monday, I finished that gargantuan assignment on breastfeeding that I had missed during furlough. Four 9 ½ hour days of just me and 10 textbooks, handbooks, and guides….it is finished! And I got 99% on it! Whooooppeee! (Don't worry, I won't post my medical drawings for you this time! Although, they were VERY good, if I do say so....) Then I went to my birth room shift and had an incredible time of learning and growing in a painful way.

Dear Elsie came in towards the end of my shift and I was up to meet her….except she came in fully dilated and ready to get her baby out….while normally we LOVE that scenario, her baby was breech. When I examined her, the baby’s head was WAY up in her ribs and his feet were hanging low….I ran (LITERALLY) to my supervisor saying, “It’s breech, she’s pushing…TRANSPORT??” And Ate Elai grabbed a pair of gloves, ran into Elsie’s cubicle, and proceeded with an internal exam to see what was the presenting part….there was nothing….then something, but we couldn’t make out if it was a foot, a knee, or a hip….ACCKKK!

So explaining to Elsie what was happening, we prepared a stretcher and the transport papers to rush her to DMC to deliver her baby….in these cases, cesarean is usually indicated, but we were praying for a miracle. We instructed her, "Dili utong! Ginhawa!!" In other words..."DON'T PUSH, JUST BREATHE!" Yeah...tell THAT to the baby who was ready to come feet first!

So we prayed….and in the ambulance, we prayed, and when wheeling her on the stretcher to the OB counter at DMC, we prayed. And then they rushed her off to the operating room. It all happened so fast….her bana was running after her as they wheeled her through the tight, people, animal, and nurse-filled hallways of DMC….I really didn't get a chance to get to know her or even get her story.... I was saying goodbye to a stranger, but I felt soooo sad and concerned for her...like I had known her all my life...it was really painful...like the pain you get in the pit of your tummy...ya know?

Tuesday morning, I took the exams….breastfeeding and the semester exam….passed both. Whew. And then headed to DMC to check on Elsie…hoping she had delivered vaginally, safely and without too much fear….

Walking into DMC with my dear friend Serena, we carried bananas, toys, and oranges to Elsie’s bedside and beside her was her precious baby boy….delivered vaginally without complications and without a name. ☺ Yes, she had wanted a girl…but this boy was very special. And as I told her what a miracle he was and how much we had prayed for the two of them, her eyes lit up and she seemed more content with this baby boy, who certainly looked like a boy and NOT a girl. That's us above...

Then Serena and I headed to class, then to home group….busy day.

Wednesday was a prenatal day…..7 am to 12 pm….buntis fun! My awesome continuity, MJ (remember her?) texted me that morning saying she was in labor….and in so much pain, so I said, “Well, come in and see me!”

So she arrived looking very unhappy and carrying a BIG bag of special Milky Knots and crackers for me! I was blessed.

We talked for over an hour about what to expect from her labor, what are the signs that say she is progressing well and what she can expect from Mercy and me over the next while. I encouraged her to eat well, drink lots of water, ihi (pee) as much as possible, rest, go for walks….and to help progress her labor by having “contact” with her bana….use your imagination and figure out that one! She was MORTIFIED! I assured her that the baby would not get a hole in his head and that everything would be just fine….she needed convincing….and then after convincing her, she asked me to convince her bana…Mmmm. Didn’t work.

And then she thanked me for the items we had brought her from Canada…beef jerky, nail polish, some jewelry, books, CDs (thanks, Dad!) and some chocolate….the only trouble was that she and her bana had never seen beef jerky before….

MJ proceeded to tell me how confused they were that I would give them meat….first they boiled it....and after realizing that it wasn’t changing colors like most meat does, they tasted the broth…”Mmmm..Teriyaki!”….but they were still concerned about the meat, so they chopped the jerky up in small pieces, fried it with noodles and had dinner! I just about wet myself I was laughing so hard!!! She still didn’t understand why I was laughing….then I finally couldn’t help it and I explained that beef jerky was already cooked and ready to eat….no preparation required! She giggled and squirmed forgetting all about her contractions which were slowing down…..we had a wonderful giggle-fest and I told her I would bring her another bag of this mysterious meat product for her to try the REAL way. We also had a great prayer time of just asking Jesus to come and be a part of her labor and be her strength throughout. I am seeing more and more of Jesus in her every time I meet with her….Praise the Lord….He is doing good things!

Then I had class….I missed Tim sooo much…but we did get a meal together at Jenn and Joe’s and that was such a blessing…Busy days…everyday, but God has been so good.

We just passed the 3 month mark of pregnancy, too! Almost 13 weeks now…Praise the Lord. I am finding my energy is picking back up and while I cannot sleep as well at night, I am truly getting used to this whole pregnancy thing.

Speaking of which, we found out yesterday that my brother and sister-in-law who are expecting their third baby went in for an ultrasound and the doc found clusters of cysts on the baby’s brain. A sign of a chromosomal anomaly, it can lead to death quickly. We are asking all our family and friends to pray with us for Andy, RuthAnn and their baby boy, Levi. Please join us in prayer for this precious life as we know we serve a God of miracles….a God who loves to reveal His miraculous Hand…to Him be the glory. Amen.

Thank you!
Be blessed.