Thanks-Giving-Eating-Laughing

As a school and clinic we gathered everyone together (well ... everyone who wanted food that is!) and had ourselves a feast! There is a huge benefit to having so many women around! Gourmet cooks at that! But of course, thanksgiving here couldn't happen without RICE! I'm even starting to like rice... (this is big!) Don't get me wrong. I eat rice and I smile. But it has no flavor so i look at a lot like 'Filler'. Along with rice we had stuffing, chicken, home made rolls, steaming hot mashed potatoes and desserts galore! It was wonderful. Nothing at all like home! But it doesn't have to be! I'm not home!
These lovely ladies are students like us. And there is always laughter when they get together! : -)

Baby catch # 3

Everyone meet lovely Lyn-lyn and little JD Nathaniel!
This is her 3rd baby. So, she was very relaxed and controlled during her labor. It was amazing! Both she and her little one made it through with flying colors!
Afterwards, when i asked her and her husband what they would name their precious little boy.... they both just stared at me blankly than looked at one another and laughed. Apparently, they had run out of good boy names on their previous children. So we called him 'little one'. By her third check up, she finally told me they had decided on JD... but get this... their other boy is named DJ! That's just asking for trouble! :- )

Baby catch # 2

Everyone.... Meet Baby Princess Dhanna! : - )

She made her way in the world on November 13th with a quiet gentle birth. Her father is a nursing student and her mother is planning on studying midwifery! They were both amazing... they were interested in everything going on! They asked lots of questions! It was fun and refreshing!
There was only one complication to this birth. This young mother wouldn't stop bleeding after the birth, so we had to insert an IV and give her some oxytocin. But she decided her IV drip was going too slow so every time I left the room she would speed it up! :- ) I didn't know if I should laugh or lecture!

The neighborhood!

We live on a little circular street and it comes to life at all hours of the day! Mainly, it is a thorough fare for pregnant women and new mamas! They come and go at all hours of the day!

But it is also a playground for some very fun and enthusiastic kids! Basketball is high on the list of things to do. So is tag and tag-ball!

I went to play a bit of B-ball the other day and 3 1/2 foot 7 yr olds were kicking my butt! :-) It was humiliatingly fun! They ran me thin, then chased me as I became the 'monster' who would turn them into zombies if i tagged them!
Their laughter is a comfort and real reminder that life is to be lived to the fullest!
The other day, a few of the girls gave them watermelon.... they were all smiles!

My first "catch" could have used a mitt!

Okay... so the day of my first 'catch' had to come sooner or later. Last night/this morning was the day! But it was far from a 'catch'.

This lovely first time mom came in at 3cm at 10pm last night just as i was getting on shift. Normally she would have been sent home to labor there, but it was late and she lived somewhat far away from the clinic, so she was admitted.

She had mild contractions and paced the clinic early on and I checked on her every 30 mins to an hour, just to see her progress. At 2am her waters broke but still the contractions were only moderately strong. I check on her progress at 3am and again at 4am but the baby didn't appear to be coming any time soon. All looked like she need a few more hours.

I went to rest and came back to check on her at 5 am and she looked like she was pushing. I asked her if she was trying to push and she just grunted and said... 'It hurts really bad!" One of my supervisors heard us talking and came to check, we called for more help as the mother pushed. Blood and discharge came out. I tried to get her to lie down so I could see what was happening. She wasn't in the best position for birthing a baby. (She was half sitting on the bed with her legs tucked beneath her.) But before she could lie down, she pushed again and the baby came out!!!

I had no gloves on nor any protective sheets beneath her! The baby came out all on its own! After some controlled chaos and a lot of clean up, we got the mother to another bed where she finished birthing her placenta. (The bed she was on was covered in amniotic fluid and blood! As was I and her husband!)

The placenta was birthed with a lot of blood loss. Her uterus wasn't firming up like it should. We gave her oxitocin, massaged her fundus and inserted an IV. She ended up loosing over a liter of blood! (this is not common!) and she had a 3rd degree tear that needed suturing! Her bleeding didn't slow down so my supervisor did a manual exploration to see if there were any retained membranes. This is never comfortable but for her it was very necessary! Her bleeding slowed to a stop and my heart rate slowed with it!

Fortunately, we didn't have to transport her or her baby! The baby girl is named Jeanycah. And I'm happy to report that she is doing great despite her rushed entrance to this world!

Several hours later, as mother and baby rested and ate, I finished my paperwork and handed the postpartum care over to the next shift. This birth was not what I expected. I doubt my supervisor expected it either! But God saw us all through it! Jeanycah and Mom are doing great! and I am wiser for the wear!

Please pray for Mama (Je Je) and Baby Jeanycah!! For health and a quick recovery! And pray that I would learn from this, and know how better to help my future labors!

I MISS MY CAT!!!

So..... I've been thinking... wouldn't it be nice to have a kitty! One that would sit in my lap and shed on my clothes... one that would sleep on my face and hunt all the geckos. But, those in my life are just not as excited about me getting a cat as I would hope!

I got a CAT-igorical NO when I asked!
So, I thought... what about a bird! They are all self contained and I could pet a bird and pretend it's a cat.... I could train it to attack geckos... and who knows.... meow! But that was ex-nayed as well.

So what are my options? What causes absolutely NO PROBLEMS? What won't catch flea, shed or run away? What won't make a lot of racket, bite off your nose or smell funny? What won't cause any allergic reactions or keep you up at night? Yep... you guessed it FISH!

There is only one problem.... Fish suck! Unless of course you lightly bread, pan fry and garnish with a cilantro mango chutney! :- ) Yumm!

All I can say is.... I MISS MY CAT!!!!!

Lyn-Lyn's Eleven!

This little guy is a little miracle.... His mother was one of the women I did a few prenatals on. She was very nervous about her pregnancy. She is 35 years old and hadn't had a child for 11 years. She was afraid that perhaps she wouldn't remember how. :- )

I really liked her and when I saw her come into the clinic in active labor while I was on shift, we were both thrilled. Normally, I would have taken her as a continuity (which is when I am her only midwife) but I wasn't expected to be delivering babies any time soon. So when God put us together anyway, I was very excited.

There was only one problem. She came in at 6 cm but with VERY HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE. It was 140/100. If we couldn't get it to come down, we would have to send her to the hospital to give birth.

None of the women that come to our clinic want to go the hospital. When we transport them for complications, they are never happy to go. The hospital will not allow anyone to support them while they labor. They go through it without any loved ones. The staff there is over-worked and the rooms are stark and sad. Plus, it costs much, much more.

Lyn-Lyn was not excited when we told her she might be transported. I went to talk with her about it and we prayed. We prayed A LOT!!! Then we left it up to God. Long story really short... her BP came down little by little and little baby Joncel Kieven was born a few hours later.

The best part is she gave birth on her first son's birthday! How is that for timing? She has had two boy exactly 11 years apart!