Happy New Year!

So it's the new year, and it's time for a new blog post. Yes, it has been a long time. Life has been a little out of sorts for me recently, meaning that I've been knocked out of my routine. I'm still trying to get back into the groove. So here's a brief rundown of what's happened in recent weeks.

We celebrated our birthdays in October because Christina had a busy schedule in November. We stayed at a resort on Samal Island for one night. The water was just okay, but the surroundings on land were nice. So then in November, we had two special Thanksgiving meals. The first was with the other girls at the clinic. Christina was in charge of games, so we did bobbing for apples. Some of the girls had never heard of it. Others, like myself, had not seen it done in years. I think I'd last done it when I was like 12 or something. But most of these girls are in their 20s. Honestly, I didn't think it would go over well. But I was wrong. I think only two people did not participate. It was a hit. So much so, that two days later, when we had a meal with the families, we did it again for the kids.

Newsletter now available!

The latest edition of our Filipino Martins newsletter is now available for your reading pleasure. You can find a link to the file here. There is also a link on the left sidebar with links to all of our previous newsletters.

Thanks for stopping by and God bless!

Char Lang!

I have a funny story to tell. It's about some stuff I said the other day, all in Visayan. I'll provide the translation in parentheses after the Visayan. So here goes...

Friday night I went to a youth fellowship gathering at a friend's house in Agdao. He works with YWAM and has helped out at the ministries I've been working with. He had asked me if I would share a word of encouragement to the kids. I agreed and went there this past Friday evening, for the first time. I don't think I had met many, if any, of these kids before.

Now that you know the setting, here's the story.

September and October 2011

So much to do...so little time. That is the flow of my days since coming back from break.

I have caught 10 babies in my time back here. I hear rumors that the month of October involves about 280 or so pregnant women who are due. :)

September and October have been stretching months for me, I have encountered tough experiences, but come face-to-face with life and death (that delicate balance), God and His sovereignty.

Some things I can check off my {100 interesting experiences before I die}

1. I experienced first-hand a bloody mess. And no I don't mean the British expression. I mean fully-soaked-front-of-my-scrubs with blood.
   {Visualize an exploding can of spaghetti sauce, close range paint gun shot...whatever helps you 'walk' in my shoes} :)
   Hence I learned CCT (controlled cord traction to help placenta out) + mom ALSO pushing = bloody mess

Happy Birthday!

Here's a photo dedicated to my mother, whose birthday is today.

(Taken yesterday at a beach-side party for the daughter of missionary friends)

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Typhoon and Flooding

So it's been a while since we have said anything on here. Well, not much is happening (at least that feels worthy of a blog entry). We are back into the daily grind. Christina is busy with the clinic. She had a few busy days with a catch in two or three consecutive days. But it is going really well.

And now begins "Year 2"

Our return trip to the Philippines began with a hurricane named Irene. What's the relation? Well, let me tell you.

It began with the simple fact that our initial flight was to depart from the Newark airport in New Jersey around noon on Sunday, August 28. A few days prior to the flight, someone told me that there might be a hurricane off the New Jersey coast mid-day Sunday. I'll admit my first thoughts were, "Oh that's nice. Now we'll get wet going in and out of the vehicle." But after three or four people said something about it, we decided to check into it.

Thursday night we heard that some airlines were waiving the fees associated with changing flights for anyone going through airports in the potentially affected area. So on Friday we looked at what other options we would have. Long story short, we decided that a 6:00 am flight on Sunday from Harrisburg, PA would be a better choice. That meant getting up by 2:00 and an 8-hour layover in Detroit, but it seemed to be the best option available.