May I direct your attention to the 2 letters behind my name... RM, registered midwife ;p SLight fabrication but, hapit na!!

SCUBA

WE went SCUBA DIVING this sunday/monday...such a good time, i haven't been in over a year and a half...which is WAY too long when it's so available here. Hopefully there'll be time to do it more often before Dec.
Alison, Tami, me, our scuba instructor (Edward), and BK with all our gear.
And, a little instruction for the new ones the night before...as you can see, pictured here, this is bk's first time to breath underwater!!
There was, of course, time to jump off the second floor of our bEACh house for sunday night!! WEEE. We took a private boat to this amazing house on stilts, a secluded little getaway, loaded with pool table, aircon, a terrace up high on the side of the hill (for watching the sunset!), among other amenities ;p

a couple of crazy days...

Yesterday i checked in a continuity from Agdao, sent her homE in early labour and then continued on my way (in scrubs) tO Agdao clinic. Upon returning I found out my continuity was bACK and in active labour. She admittedly told me she had a low pain tolerance (awesome!), but all turned out well and she delivered her baby at 2:03pm that afternoon. After finishing all the postpartum care and the suturing, I made it home just in time for dinner (thanks for that - JO).

Then toDAY, both Brianna and I had dayshift starting at 6am (bah). I wasn't tOO worried, because I was last up! Three labours later, I was put in charge of supervising bk's work with her labour plus my own (fully) labour - who delivered at 9:10am with an amazing assist by none other than Brie. Brianna's labour was not progressing as easily as I would've liked, so dear Carmen took over, although, between discharging patients, suturing, and baby checks, I was able to return the favour to Brianna, who caught her SECOND BABY (this week and in her whole liFE) at 11:35am. How GREAT is that?! SHe assists me, I assist her... it's pURE bLISS!!

I work again tomorrow swing shift...you could pray for that!

BK's FIRST HANDLE!!

LAST NIGHT was bk's first shift without me...and sHE was "first up" to catch a baby. I was there for the first part of shift, but left just before midnight with pleas of being texted if anything or anyone happened to come in! I awoke with a start around 6am this morn only to find my phone had fallen from my bed...there were TWO new messages!! THe first from brianna "i got a fully", the second from Krys, the supervisor on shift last night "bb out. brie was awesome." SHOOT! I missed it! I missed brianna's first birtH! ah well, there's always next time! This is what she has to add to the tale-

today. at 4:23 am... i caught a baby girl. she was only 36 weeks. but she came in fully so we kept her even though she was by definition premature. kathy princess marie was born at only 5lb 1oz and is very healthy... it was sweet.

[exhibit a] ~ OCtober ponderings...

~ i AM a midwife.

~ i am still becoming who i am as a person. knowing i need/want to change for the better and constantly (hopefuLLy) moving forward in that area...He is very gracious in this regard!

~ i have delivered 115 babies since Dec.7/06 and often times don't even remember this fact! I converse with obstetricians and gynecologists and doctors about certain cases, follow other cases after referring them out, and learn nEW things DAILy...but I have the knowledge anD the experience to deliver babies for the rest of my LiFE. I can not imagine how many that would add up to... it's kind of scary, but crazy cooL to think about! and, What does the future really hoLD?!

~ i should read more.

~ i will go back to being a "normaL" white girL living in Canada in less than 2 months...and will leave that statement at that, for the time being..

~ i am missing faLL!! My favourite season is once again slipping by, not without me thinking fondly of it (because i dO frequently), but without having the privilege of be submersed in wooly sweaters, and colourfuL, crunchY leaves. But i AM able to go to the pooL whenever i want, still have a descent tan, and wiLL make it home for SNOW this year =)

~ i am nOT able to be in 13 places at once...i am not even able to be in 2 places at once...although I'm constantly doing so in my head- davao city, BOhol, TabuK, Greenlane Rd., Rittenhouse, Tallman, Menno St., VINEland in general, NOTL Concession 7, MEXico (mom), South Korea (jamie dear), Australia (Krista and Evan), Japan (for no good reason at aLL), etc.

~ i just missed Nathan Matthew West's oh-so-natural arrivaL into the worLD - congratulations Matt and Becky =D

~ i wiLL miss darling Owen's 4TH birthday bash this coming nov.12...i can't wait to re-meet him and Alexis at the end of December <3

~ the girLsss in the OC continue to amaze me. Proof that there are incredible women aLL OVer the wORLD (and i would love to have the time to meet them aLL at some point in life) but 2 of my favs, SD and JL, are taking off to Tabuk in less than a week for almost a mONTh. Who will I watch pp and the new grey's with every weeK?! Who can I bounce off the moral implications of these shows with?! Who will I watch ANYthing w when I return to VinelanD?! mer.

~ december is ALmost upon us...and it is my personaL goaL to spread AS much Christmas cheer and joy starting dec.1 until I leave on dec.23- which reminds me, this is a LAST CALL for everyone and anyone who reads this, what can I bring you?! I currently have the philippines at my fingertips. If there is ssomething you crave from this great republic, speak now, as I won't have ANY time for Christmas shopping when I get back ;p

~ lastly, but probably the most important poinT is this conglomeration that iS my life, is that i am still an incredibly selfish human being ([exhibit a], posting an entire blog all about mE)...maybe BK should post the next one =)

On our way home from chURCh last Sunday...my favourite mode of public transportation are these pedicabs where our driver peddles his little tricycle (pls excuse the awfuL smiles, ahahaa)

And the view from inside the pedicab... mmm, i hope I never forget what this looks like...