We had wanted to go back to Cambodia with an organisation but that didn't work out with everything else going on (we would have had to stay in Aust longer to go through the application process which involved health checks), and it was scary when I found out they required us to have health insurance but I couldn't be covered for maternity as I was already pregnant. We felt like we needed to get settled back in Cambodia asap as we weren't coping with life in Aust, and really needed to feel better before having a baby. But there would only be a few months for us to be in Cambodia before the baby came, so it wasn't ideal to go back anyway, as we would probably need to leave in a few months if we were to give birth outside Cambodia.
For most of my pregnancy I was travelling , first within Aust to visit church/supporters/family etc, then to Cambodia and finally to Thailand. And most of it we were trying to work out which country to give birth in. (Phnom Penh? Bangkok? KL?if in aust, which state/town? there is no one natural/obvious place)
Thankfully we were together for the birth and had good experience of labour- painful of course, but happy we could be together for it and it went smoothly. The combo of the expat Birth Team here (who helped us prepare for birth ,and have been helping with breastfeeding etc) and the Christian guesthouse (designed for Christian workers in the region to come for a rest/ medical care etc) have made it a fantastic place for us to be. Along with the good medical care here in Chiang Mai , Thailand it feels like the perfect place for us to be spending these months as we transition from two to three.
Three other families have also had babies here this month, the others had their 3rd and 4th kids. We've got to know lots of different guests from all over the world in our time here, mostly they only stay for a week or so. The other 3 families have also been here for about the same time as us, so it will be weird when it comes time to say goodbye!
The guesthouse does food and laundry for us, and has lots of nice people and trees, so its the perfect place to be when you are sore/ sleepy/ stressed. Also the rest of life is on hold and we can both just focus on getting to know the baby.
Once we go home we'll be busy with the rest of life, work, housework (its been great not having to go to the market and tryng to plan meals we both like) and obligations to people.
Although its only the 2 of us in the house we rent we end up having various relatives and fake relatives staying for meals and nights, sometimes planned, sometimes spontaneous. Recently some friends stayed in our house cos their roof blew off in a storm, other times they have got locked out, or its been too stormy to go home (lightening + motorbike!!)
Its great we can be part of community and help people out, but I find this aspect of life stressful, esp as I've only been back in Cambodia a few months, so I'm still getting used to things.
I think I'm going to find it hard going back, I'm sure there will be plenty of people who will want to help, which can have its pros and cons in our situation.
We've applied for the first bit of paper work, when that comes through we can do the second stage, then we'll be able to leave Thailand.
The photo album from Kronicle Extra blog is here, if you go right to the end you'ss see the baby photos- the most recent ones are last, and this photo album has all the photos from our overflow blog.
On our other blog Kronicle Extra see Getting the Baby out
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| first four photos of the 3 of us |
