Greetings Everyone!

Chantel and I have been keeping ourselves busy over here! Friday, I began the night shift and saw Teesha Nicholle arrive Saturday early morning. That same morning, a mother arrived and said her water had broken. She had had a urinary tract infection but had never gone to the doctor to get it treated. We are assuming that is why her water broke prematurely. She was not in labor at all, but after performing an IE, she was 1cm. Before transferring her, we admitted her to try to get her to go into labor. We walked with her for six hours and she had a few contractions. The whole time we knew her going into labor was going to be a miracle. After six hours we performed another IE and she was 2cm. After the second IE we could technically refer her to the hospital because we had shown we had tried and she would be admitted and treated. Kinshasa, a student midwife, and I sat down to tell the soon-to-be parents that they would have to be transported. Seeing their faces about broke my heart. The banna's (husband) face and whole body just sank. Being transported to the hospital means they have to pay a lot more than what they would pay at Mercy. We started an IV since everyone gets an IV at the hospital and it costs way more there. Kinshasa and I rode with them to the hospital, dropped them off, and wished them the best of luck. We promised we would come back to see them after the baby was born. It was so sad leaving them behind.

Teesha Nicholle

Friday morning is my day for prenatal checks. The day begins with some praise, worship, and prayer. One of the student midwives gives a health teaching lesson. Jenna gave a talk on the benefits of breast feeding, especially for these women. It is free and will provide the most nutrients for their babies. She taught them about colostrum, positions to hold the baby while breastfeeding, and how long the mothers should be breastfeeding. I learned a lot too! The moms got a kick out of the different ways to hold a baby while breastfeeding because she also showed them how not to hold a baby with a doll! It was so funny watching them laugh. Below is a mom looking at a little science project Jenna created at the house. It was supposed to represent a mother's milk. 88% of milk is water, so there is no reason for mothers to give their babies water, even when it is very hot out. The oil was the vitamins and fats in the milk. She used red pepper flakes to represent antibodies.

Saturday afternoon, Chantel and I headed to the mall! We stopped for a refreshing drink and upon looking at the menu, I ordered her a surprise... Can you guess from the picture what it is??

It is fried sharks' fin!!!! I thought it was absolutely delicious. I'm not too sure if Chantel liked it... It looked like ground up shrimp in the middle and was served with like a sweet and sour sauce. After our refreshing liquid treat, we got a foot treat. We enjoyed a nice little manicure at a price unbeatable in the US! We payed about $4.

As we were leaving the mall, our ears got a little pick-me-up as well when we heard a band playing. We looked over the railing and sure enough, a small ensemble was serenading the customers! They were advertising for a big sale! It was sooo funny!

We snapped these few photos on the way back from the mall. Chantel is displaying the beautiful Mercy building. The middle is a picture of the building and road across the street from the clinic.

We spent a lovely Sunday at Paradise beach. Although, we just have to say, neither of us were too impressed. No one here likes to lay out. They prize fair skin and it seems to be a way to distinguish the wealthy from the nonwealthy...or the materialistic. Since the sun doesn't seem to be their friend, there was nowhere to sit on the beach! It was long but cramped. There was a restaurant right on the beach. Since it was a holiday weekend, the beach was insanely full. Chantel and I had a hard time finding a place to sit. She, like a mature responsible adult, remembered a towel, while I on the other hand, forgot. I just drug a chair from the restaurant and parked it next to her towel on the beach. They probably thought we were nuts. The sun was pretty intense, so we only layed/sat there for about 45 min. Chantel got a blackforest parfait and I got broccoli and a sprite. It was the only thing I recognized. Then, like the tourists we are, we drug the chairs from the restaurant and plopped them in the water. It's was us and the kids out playing in the ocean. All the mom's were fully covered and big hats on (you were right mom). There was one lady tanning on the beach...later we found out she was white. ha! Chantel would like me to say how often I put sunscreen on...only like every 20 min. And guess who got fried! ME! She hardly put any on. Lucky duck. As soon as the tide came back in, we headed back to the restaurant for more drinks. Chantel got BBQ chicken and I had a sprite. It hit the spot. We then said goodbye to Paradise.

Chantel's first ever steps in the ocean!!! What an exciting day!

This is what the boat looked like that we took to and from the island,

where the beach was located.

Here is the restaurant.

She was the cutest little girl in the world! She liked playing by us and we

certainly did not mind! This picture is for you Beth!

The beach!

Our view from the restaurant



This was a little group that went around to random tables and sang to the people there! It was so funny, and they were so good! I hope you can hear them!

Today, when I worked, I got to help chart for the delivery of this little guy. He does not have a name yet, but hopefully I'll find out when I work tomorrow. It was a very normal birth with a normal healthy baby. He was born at 9:29 this morning. I also got to see two suturing jobs today. It looked pretty hard to me. It all looks like mush down there anyway. It was nothing like any sewing jobs I've ever done.

This is Jenna, again, she was the student midwife for the birth of this baby.

She did such a great job!