Doula Mel

Next year we are going out for the party!

So the party is over and I have that normal post mortem over analysis of the evening.   Was it worth it, was it a waste of time and money, was it fun, were people bored, was it lame?
Mmmmh, I don't know but I suspect it was a tad boring as we didn't have enough people.   We had WAYYYYY too much food and drink, glasses and crockery to feed multitudes and just too much of everything really.
 The plus side.... it was good for everyone to get together and to see who                                   ties in where.  We had Oumie, our knitting 80 year old, we had our accountant, our card lady, representatives from all the days, the lady in charge of Macasser Hospital, our marketing girl and the rest of us chicks.   We also invited 2 doulas who will be assisting Kerrin and I in running the ante-natal classes.  They are  Christian as well and really believe in what we do and were pretty impressed with our whole set up.   So yeah, I guess it was good to mark the occasion, reflect and give Him all the glory for His faithfulness, provision and blessing He has poured out on this ministry.
OK, all good but next year we are going out to a gorg & divine restaurant and I will have no setting up stress or worrying or silly ego rejection issues that throwing a party seem to instill.   Blech, I am a real poop sometimes!

We are 3 years old!

BB, somewhere towards the end of this month is our birthday so today is as good a day as any to be our happy b'day!    Three years ago I naively went off to the hospital with 2 girlfriends and 15 packed bags that took forever to make, filled with baby clothes and blankets that took forever to collect.    I never knew it would invade my time, my finances, my family, my home and my heart.   In fact had I knew it would have grown to what it is now, I would have run a mile. 
I become overwhelmed with what we still need to do, especially with the classes that have not yet begun and the sewing project that remains a plan and not a reality at this point.  I seldom stop and take stock but today, I am taking a step back and looking at this ever growing project.  
We have PREMISES, a paid manager, we have built up a healthy stock of clothes for the winter, we have 4 sewing machines and 3 overlockers, we have a steady team of about 20 volunteers, we have a fundraiser taking place next month for a 100 ladies, we have our BB ball happening at the end of the year and tonight, we have a PARTY with lots of drinks! (Thanks Aiden from Chele Beverages and Wencke from Distell!)
Naturally it is 5 hours to go and I have loads of organizing still to do but none the less, a cocktail party will be taking place very shortly and we will dress up and drink and eat and laugh and be stoked that we get to do this together.   Bosom Buddies has blessed over 5000 mothers and babies and next birthday I hope to tell you how many have done ante-natal classes, how many have done sewing classes and other courses we will run.   I know it's not about numbers or stats, it is about reaching the one and loving individuals.   I wish many of you who support us & pray for us could share in the love one-on-one side of what we do.  Know that you indirectly do and you are the backbone of BB.   I will post some party pics later!

Still a boy only doula

Alexander was born at 5.02 this morning weighing 3.9 kg in his parents bed 5 days after his due date and 14 plus weeks after a threatened prem labour that had us all panicked.   I had told them on Sunday that I had only ever had boys so far but who knew how much that counted?  His Daddy is also a surfer and was quite happy to have a boy and is now extremely stoked with his big healthy son and very strong and beautiful wife.   She was brilliant as I knew she would be, focused, calm, strong.   Once again we are all clappers so having God so tangibly present, was so intense.   Birth is such a spiritual process, such a timeless primal miracle that gets me every time.  I have told you before how my own son's birth was a huge turning point in my spiritual journey.  For the 1st time I knew without doubt that there was something far bigger and more mysterious than I could ever imagine who had formed and grown my child into this exquisite perfection.   From a sperm and an egg this child is born with this placenta and pulsing cord to feed it and form it.   Amazing!

I understand how you can be Jewish, Muslim, Catholic, Methodist, Traditional African believer, Baptist, Clapper, even Wica... all recognize that life is simply too brilliantly amazing to not stem from some kind of creator.  But nothing, just all from 1 cell billions of years ago, now that takes incredible faith to believe that one.  We will need to disagree on this one and I personally hope that you will be like the many scientists out there who one day figure out creationism despite black and white logic, is true after all.  Evolving sure, but once upon a time, our world and you in it, was created by someone as huge and mind boggling, as the universe he/she created.  Please don't be all offended here and defensive, I respect your belief but having come fresh from a birth, I have this filled up WOW feeling of awe and I can't but help want to share it with you too.   Breathless! 

Our Fire.

Keep these guys in your prayers.   I think September 11th finally gave these amazing men and women the recognition and honour they deserve.  I am not comparing our fire to your horrific tragedy but I am putting our guys up there with the US guys and giving them glory for all they do.   The fire has spread and many people have been evacuated.  Our town stays smoky and covered in ash.   By midday it is hot as a furnace here with all the heat being trapped by the smoke.   Even my ocean smells like smoke and is sooty.  Our community has been pulled together the way tragedy or drama always does and people are bringing food and drinks for the firemen.  
PS, tell me more about evolution / creationism, you can comment in the previous post.    Do ANY of you believe the big bang theory, the one cell origin?   

In the beginning....

One place I find God daily is in creation.  I am fascinated how intricate, how amazing and complex each little creature is.  Millions of different birds and fish and plants and insects and animals.   Each one a complete system of parts that work together.   Chameleons with changing skin colour and fat worms that spin silk cocoons and become butterflies.  How absolutely incredible.
The fact that people do not believe in a creator, really boggles my mind.    How can you possibly believe everything comes from 1 single cell?    A human baby, a lion, a thorn tree, a mozzie, a coral reef and a pig.  Nope, I just don't see it no matter how many millions of years have passed.
Do I think things have evolved, obviously, we have fossils and all sorts of other matter to prove it.  Things had to evolve as climates and landscapes changed.   How old the earth is I do not know.  Many Christians believe it is 6000 years old but I am not one of them.   I believe our modern day time was not the same as then.   I know this is just my theory but I believe when God says one day, it could be thousands, millions even.  I am not sure exactly how or when and in what order He created all but I know He did.  As for us coming from monkeys, maybe you did but me, I came from the very 1st man and women ever created namely Adam and Eve.    So what do you believe in and why?

Evolution is "an unpredictable and natural process of temporal descent with genetic modification that is affected by natural selection, chance, historical contingencies and changing environments." Note that evolution is limited to plant and animal species. Its starting point is at the first life form -- a single celled animal.

Half way down my list amidst the smoke

This is my organized year remember... everything is written in my diary, the extra murals activities are typed on a daily roster and displayed on my kitchen cupboard and even the lunchbox menu is on show and occasionally even used.  It does feel better, I drop less balls, I feel more in control.   So far my birthday remembering has been pretty good (except darling Lily-Rosie) and I have even bought my prezzies on time.  
Today I had to leave my brilliant and thought provoking post (ok not really but I would have thought of one) as I had my very long to-do list I wrote up last night.
I am half way done although clearly the really shitty boring chores get transferred to the next list.  At least I sorted out Nolene's mobile phone (over an hour at Vodacom with 2 bored moaning girls!) and I picked up my bank card that has taken me almost 2 years to get.  I also worked on my website info, did a few thank you letters, booked the venue for Tertia's baby shower and made a hair appointment for my girls.
The town where I live looks like the end of the world, or a town after a volcanic eruption.   We have been battling fires for weeks and the past few days have been the worse.   Everything is covered in ash and our beloved mountain (remember where Daniel and I had our walk on our 1st date) is being devoured by hot and greedy flames.  My girls are so sad about the tortoises and other little animals.  Swimming was canceled today because of the pool being full of soot and then later riding.  The horses are going crazy and some had to be evacuated.   Its just awful although nothing like that terrible fire in Australia that killed so many people.   I was praying about the fire and I felt like it is something we need to do as a town, get everyone in the basin praying and taking this seriously.   I got our church praying corporately and they got a few others too.  Why we need corporate prayer and having just one person asking is not always enough, is something I don't know.    I guess strength in numbers perhaps... when 2 or more are gathered.   Anyway, often one voice is enough, this time I feel like we all need to do the big ask.

Corny poem for BF Jen

Happy Birthday darling Jen
Thought I'd type this instead of using my pen
Corny I know but it is all too true,
how much I really do love you.

Six cool years of being your friend,
Many left as this won't end.
Old grannies we will one day be,
going on that cruise ship, you and me

You 'my person,' you are the one,
The one I would call when I feel done
Undemanding yet always there,
I hope that is a friendship quality I too share

I hear my readers all a groaning,
this is too much they are now moaning.
Sorry ladies but I need her to really know,
she is the chick I dig so!  

I won't subject you to any more of these but I do so love my darling friend who is 36 today.  I don't see her enough but love her much.   This week is my 'stalkee's' bday on Tuesday, happy birthday darling Debbie, I know I've been terrible with my stalking activities but will up my game next week.  Also happy 38th birthday on Tuesday to one of my few male friends (few guys friends, major girly-girl) Anton who works on a cruise ship.  Claire from my church has a birthday on Wednesday and BB, we turn 3 on Friday so lots of parties this week.  

Loads of babies and very little cluckiness

Today I went to a baby shower for Phoebe Holly who is arriving in 6 weeks time and is the 4th babe to a good friend of mine.  I have the honour of being her doula!   Then I have baby X whose birth I am also assisting in and who is making us wait.   His/her mom went into labour at 26 weeks and they managed to stop everything and her due date was yesterday with not even a twinge.   Last night... Nadine's little son Caleb was born 19 years after his biggest sister.   I had my usual sweet newborns on my Thursday hospital visit including 2 darling twin girls.   On Friday baby Max (my nephew in utero) finally kicked for his darling Auntie Mellie and I am looking SO forward to his arrival.
Babies, babies EVERYWHERE and yet I remain unbroody.   Remember early last year and the end of the previous year I went through that broody phase and we even chatted about having Gary's vasectomy reversed.   Then we went onto speaking about adoption (still haven't given up on this one 100%) but shelved that thought for now.   Lately I have NO broody feelings and feel rather relieved it is not me about to be having a newborn.   I love babies and I will always have wanted 4 kids but I don't want another baby.  Mmmmh, could I finally feel done?   I hope so, actually typing that 'done thing' makes me slightly panicky so perhaps never 100% done but at least not broody anymore.  An improvement, I am getting better, yay for this contentment!

Poor Stinky Minkie

We have this local celeb in SA called Minkie.  She is super hot with really gorg boobs and is photographed and filmed every day.  After just a day and half I am feeling a little sorry for ol' Minks.  The film crew is here as we speak and I have been stalked followed for the entire time with a big camera in my face.   The hospital was fine although my fellow volunteers all did a duck and were way too camera shy.  Tracey you are let off the hook as pneumonia is pretty valid reason for not coming.

I took Tuli with me which was great fun as she was so excited and nervous.  Having someone with me who speaks Xhosa makes all the difference and I plan on taking her with me every Thursday.  The really blind bit was having them come to film the collection of the kids.  All the other mothers were checking me out and I felt really self-conscious.  We were hoping for one of those shots where Sofia runs into my waiting arms and smothers me with kisses.  Naturally she hardly gave me a second glance when I arrived as they had baked gingerbread men and were far more interested in those.  (Her BF Dani came with.)

Next it was Rebeka's school and 'fortunately' she had hurt her toe and was no longer sitting next to her BF Laura so I had the lovely hug we were hoping for.  Today was the inevitable surfing shot which felt like trying to make a wee in a public loo with the door open... pressure!    I had 2 poopie waves and had to wet my R840 hair-do.  (It was a colour, trim and blow dry but I am still glad you agree it was a rip!)

And now... I have the camera dude hanging over my shoulder actually filming me doing this post.  If I look dodgy now its because I didn't fix my make up after the little surf.  The very last bit of filming will be at my mom's house.  I thought she would mind being filmed but you know gutsy Mimi, she is not afraid of anything so turban and all, the mother will be making an appearance.  Gotta dash again, more details to follow.

Camera, lights, action...again!

So today and tomorrow I am being filmed by a TV show called Spirit Sister.   They found me via the surf article in the mag, weird huh!    My blog address was on it so they must have read about BB and then they called my surf instructor whose number appeared in the article.   Doing the TV thing is stressful and time consuming but clearly good marketing.   I think the show is very granola, 'shoowow,' so I will need to throw in plenty Jesus references and clearly show why we do what we do.  The last time we were on TV was on Let's Fix it about 18 months ago which gave us brilliant support.  This time is less fun as we were giving a shedload full of things then plus I had my girlfriends with me getting all hysterical with excitement.   Because the emphasis of the show was surprising me, I didn't know until I arrived at the hospital and my very frizzy hair that day still haunts my vain and shallow soul.  (note to self, even though your nose is way smaller than Tertia's, profile shots are NOT kind!)

Today (am typing this at 6.00am) I have dark and glossy blowdried hair and as soon as I wake up, will be doing my face and getting gorg.   I finaly went to the hairdresser yesterday, she is also a Clapper and such a cool girl but she has moved salons and is sharing with a very queenlike chap with floppy hands that stereotypically, personifies all hairdressers everywhere.   I love my hair but last time I went I paid around R400 and suddenly it has gone up to R840.   I did say something and she was rather sheepish and told me she didn't even charge me for the blow because she is embarrassed at what she needs to charge her clients.  Harumph, so she should be!
Anyhoo, that is why I didn't post yesterday as it took ages and I had tons to do and had the the Believing God course last night.  Still wanting to tell you all the BB stuff but will have to do next week.   Ta ta darlings, I am off to transform myself and pop enough rescue to appear chilled in front of the cameras.