introducing Jonna Mae ANGCON~ her bf Jerson Velila, and their NEW SON Chaff Hickory <3

SO, I've blogged about this continuity before, and told you i'd keep you up-to-date - well, today was a bit of a shOCker when Holly called me from the birthroom saying Mae was at the clinic in lABOUR (Mae hadn't texted mE at all!)...she texts me about everything eLSE to do w her pregnancy and YEt somehow forgot the fact that she was in labouR! Actually, she said, "it's too painful Jen, I couldn't teXt!" That, and the fact that I had told her in prenatals that March 27 was the date she would be 37 weeks' gestation, and therefore allowed to deliver at Mercy, anything before would be considered premature and transported to the regional hospital for delivery. Because it was only March 26, she was scared of the fact that she would be transported. THIS resulted in her coming to Mercy fULLY dilated and ready to push (a midwife's dREAm continuity..)
IT was her very first baby, and she pushed that baby boy out like she'd done it a million times (another AWEsome blessing for mE!). SHe cried when I put her first-born son on her belly only seconds after he'd slid out (which made mE tear!). He looked only about 37 weeks' gestation, covered in vernix and missing creases in his palms and soles that mark maturity. THe picture below shows this well..
The supervisor on shift, Ate Estef, kinda laughed when she saw his testes, saying that in the Phils they believe that when it's super dark the boy will be vERY bRAVE! Which is nuts, because Jerson (the father) had chosen the name "Chaff" (not chafe) which ALSO means "brave". To make a long and funny story short and sweet, dear Chaff is going to be one brave little fil! This pic was suPPOSed to show the absence of the creases on the soles, but also captures his...(sac) quite well.

mORE pics - the resort had a trampolinE! In this pic (from L to R) is me, Lois, Pastor Genesis, Tyron, and Joan...the boys had nEVER been on a trampoline before, and it was pretty funny watching 20-something year old men try to figure out a bum drop. hahaaa, this activity made me think of brianna <3

and a tuBE we got to play on in the pOOL! Lois and I are on the bottom, and Laura and Joan are on top!







thIS is a good view of the pOOL - the INFINITY pool that made you think (or at least look like on camera) that you're swimming in the ocean! It was such a nice pool, with a waterfall across the front of it splashing down into the lower level.




thIS is a pic under the beautiful gazebo, a wrap-around bar, and some of the bOYs that helped mAKe the party a party!





at ONe point during the day, I figured it was time for cake, candles, and a little sOng and dance (by the way EVERyone was all whispering and suggesting that I go play frisbee w some Others)...but thEN, they surrounded me, offering a "mango shake"


as it turns oUT the shake was ACTually raw scrambled eGGS. and they proceeded to throw cups of this at me, afterwards completing disaster w corn starch sachets.. sICk! I DO remember hearing about this old filipino tradition, but reeeeeally didn't expect it. Half way through the rumble I realized the eggs wEREN't a mango shake like Ty had said, and therefore licking it off was OUt of the question! blahhhh, my bathing suit stILL smells.

a whOle 24 on the 24th -

I didn't have time to think about being another year clOser to a 1/4 century (but thANks for that reminder, michellE!) as this past Easter/bIRThday wkd flew by in a whIRl of bEAChes, friENds, homemade gOOdness, exCItement, eGGs, cAKes/cUPcakes, swimming, sunburns, pACKages and a webcam hOMe, a massagE, karaoke sONg&dANce, and even mORe friends. Although nO champagne was had this time around, I did receive a few gOLden wishES! Lois' blog entry entitled 23 n 24~ has a bunch more pictures for your viewing pleasure. I haven't compiled all mine yet, but whEN i do, I'll be sure to post.

lOIS turns 23!...starting oFF the day wearing gOggles (thIS coming from the girl whO said birthdays aren't really special =D) with a shirt to match even!

We had an early morning coffEE @ Arturo's pool/cafe/grill/etc. and a swim! and thEN went back to the house for frESh, hOMEmADE bagels and cream chEEse (herb&garlic...about as close as we could get to a tim hortons speciality)

WE also were able to hang out w some of Lois' past patients...at People's Park and out for lunch at the infamous bbq chicken place - bANoks! (too bad the chicken was late (we had to rush back to school for a test!))

We went to the mALL!, this photo taken in the back of a tricycab.

Aaand did a little MALLingg =D - let me take this opportunity (and AWful pic) to say that toDAY was Lois' birthday, and THEREfore we all tried our bEST to smILE as Lois does every Other day of the year, hahaaa, she's got some pretty characteristic faces.

We THEN tried to surprise Lois by meeting up w the rESt of the students for dinner at a favourite Thai restaurant, but alas, she knew...all along. mer. By 8pm we were done and dOne, no energy left to even play gAMes - instead we opted for a mOviee. So, was it SPECIAL?!

the bRIDE-to-bE: Ate (Momi) RUTH

Here are a few shots from the bridal church shower we organized last night! It was an amazing time! We had "heavy snacks" which constitutes dinner in this country - chicken adobo, rice, pancit canton, deviled eggs, brownies, cookies, and cAKe. And, of course, coke. Ate Ruth is in this picture between Tiffany and I. Ruth was honoured with blessings, words of advice, and gifts (I can not post thOSE pics). The wedding will be April 20th on the island of Zamboanga, and i reeeeeally would love to attend. It's a dangerous region though, and am not yet sure if i'll have permission to go. alThOUGH, she IS marrying a missionary boy named Luke - so, there wILL be other foreigners around!

the lAtest&GREATest..

A pool/cafe/restaurant/bed&breakfast/WIFI place opened up just around the corner from us, in the quiet little subdivision we walk in...aaaaand, it's pretty much my entIRe houses' nEW FAV. spot...so perfect, in fact, that we plan on spending every day studying there! hahaaa. You can get a pool membership in groups of 5 for sUCh a good deal. And tHIS pool is the ONLY pool we've (or Laura, rather) found in Davao! It's a whole 8' deep! THe onlY thing missing is a couch and/or lounge chair - but i gUEss if one was doing hOMEwork, those things wouldn't be necessary ;p

I'm stILL hERE! Unfortunately, my camera is not working at the moment, and so I'm seriously lacking in pictures..I try, whenever possible, to steal some from the other girls though - acTUAlly, it works quite well! Here are just a couple of pictures from my last assist.. I was helping out Naomi as she handled this birth.
Depicted here are the soon-to-be parents (the mother in mid-push, and the husband - sO nervous, this was his fourth child, but he'd never seen a baby come out before! He almost broke down and cried when it did finally come - he thought it was dead! awe, hahaaa, poor guy!), our supervisor - Ate Susan, and Naomi at the labouring woman's feet. It was an exciting birth!

Aaand waiting, waiting...sometimes we're forced to have more patience than i've ever had to practice (but other times, they fly out!) It's always a good time in the birth room, either way!