We’ve hit a bump on the road. But… it’s the best kind of bump in the world.
A baby bump!
That’s right. We’re having baby number two!!! And we’re having it pretty soon. With only four months to go, his or her due date is on 25 March. We’ve known since early August but wanted to keep the news to ourselves until we knew exactly how and where we were going to manage adding a new baby to our family.
It’s thrown us off our travel plans a little but we think we’ve worked our way around it. Pre-bump we were going to head to Canada for the ski season but obviously that idea went right out of the window. It wouldn’t be much fun on the slopes being eight months preggo plus would cost us $30,000+ to have a baby in Canada.
Getting an Ultrasound at Samitivej Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand
So we came to Thailand to investigate having the baby in Bangkok. Lots of expats have their babies in Bangkok and there are plenty of informative blog posts on the topic. We met with a doctor at Samitivej Hospital in Bangkok which came highly recommended. We had an ultrasound and found out that I was a bit further along in the pregnancy than I’d initially thought due to bad calculations on my part. The doctor was nice, spoke good English and the hospital was super swanky but I just couldn’t get my head around being nine months pregnant and bouncing around Bangkok in the back of a cab. Or having to make visa runs with a teeny baby. Next idea please.
After working it through, we realised we wanted to have our baby in an English speaking country that we were comfortable in and had full access to healthcare. That narrowed it down to either New Zealand, Australia or the UK. We worked through the options and decided that the UK would be the best place for us to go. We could have the baby there through the NHS as Lee is from the UK. He would be able to work there too as his Dad’s business, currently his biggest client, is based in the UK. We were happy with this decision. It still felt like we were moving forward with our travel plans and we’d be able to head to Europe to explore once we’d gotten through the tough newborn months. We were *this* close to booking flights.
Then I ended up in hospital in Koh Samui for a week. It was a scary, lonely time for me and a stressful, busy time for Lee having to visit me and manage Reuben 24 hours a day. We decided we couldn’t go through the birth of a new child without family support and that we needed to go home to New Zealand. I had an emergency c-section with Reuben and was in hospital for three nights. It’s likely I’ll have a scheduled c-section with our #2 so being without family support for Reuben really isn’t an option. The last thing I want is to be alone in hospital on the other side of the world again.
So we made the call to go home. Our travel insurance with Travel Insurance Direct only covers pregnant travels up until 26 weeks which gives us until mid-December to make our way back to New Zealand. In early December we’re flying from Singapore to Brisbane for another week in Mooloolaba and an early Christmas with Lee’s parents. Then we’ll fly to Christchurch. Our house is rented out on a short term contract until just before Christmas so it actually times in quite well. I am not looking forward to unpacking all those boxes I spend weeks packing before our departure but luckily we kept all Reuben’s baby gear in storage.
Nomadism will have to take a back seat for a bit. While I was initially quite disappointed at the thought of taking a few steps backwards my maternal instincts are kicking in and I have the overwhelming urge to nest for now. Actually I’m craving a bit of home. I want to bake bread, wash baby clothes and set-up a nursery. I’m sure that won’t last too long though and once we’re comfortable with our new baby we’ll be heading out on the road again.
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YAY! That’s all I can say 🙂
SO exciting! Having #2 is such a wonderful experience. I also had an emergency C-section with the first and then a planned with #2, and honestly the second surgery was harder. You should use all the family support you can get. They will love helping. 🙂
Boy, can I relate! It was the announcement of our pregnancy (in Thailand last winter) that made us start thinking about where we really, honestly wanted to have a baby (we had always assumed any new babies would be born abroad). Surprise, surprise! We decided to head back to the US and establish a “home”!! After having our baby around family support 2 months ago, we’ve bought a house to use as our “home base” for future travels. Now that I am remembering how much work it is to feed a baby during the night, and every 3 hours or so during the day…I am so glad that I am not in a sweltering hot foreign country, bouncing around on a motorbike, etc. We are happy with the decision! I’m sure you will be, too!
Oh, and CONGRATS! SOOOO exciting for you!!!
CONGRATULATIONS!!! Such wonderful news! I wish you all the best for the road ahead and will know who to come to for nomad pregnancy advice if and when I’m in your shoes!!
Congratulations! How wonderful to bring a new life into the world.
So excited for you and very happy that you and the baby are safe after that scare. I know this was a VERY hard decision to make, but having planned some family support after my second was born I can tell you it was the best decision of all. You will be so much more rested, you all will bond a but more and with a c-section you will need all the rest and help you can get. this way Reuben gets some one on one time without feeling ignored by you all too.
I know this isn’t what you imagined, but just think of all the fun we can have in Europe next fall when you are up and moving and ready to explore again 😉
Congratulations!!
P.s we’ve just extended our stay here in NZ and will be flying back into Christchurch in Jan!! Watch out we’re coming to visit!!
Huge congrats guys! So happy for you! Guess we will see you soon! 🙂
Aww congratulations! As you say, this is the best kind of bump to have on your travels 🙂
That’s great news, congratulations.
Oh congratulations to you and Lee and Reuben! Very exciting news and there really is no place like home when it comes to something like this.
Congrats Bethany, that’s great news! Hope the rest of the pregnancy goes well and hope to bump into you while you are back in chch. We are moving up to Mt pleasant so wont be too far from you.
xx Kim
Yay! So happy for you. It’s a great bump in the road to be sure. My second ceaser was much better then my first and I milked the hospital time for sure – 5 nights. You will be so glad Reuben will have help and everything will be familiar. Plus we’ll be neighbours for awhile again 😀
A huge congratulations!
Congratulations on your Baby Bump 🙂 Happy news!
Congratulations! Yes, sometimes plans do have to change! The Thai/UK versions sounded good, but this one is nice as well. It’s pretty special when all your options are inviting and you get to pick the best of a *good* bunch!
This is amazing news, Bethaney! Congratulations! When you’re a nomad, deciding where to actually have the baby is an added decision that doesn’t always have a clear answer, especially at first with so many options. After spending so much time weighing up the options, you must feel glad to have made the decision that is right for you and can now concentrate on all the other stuff. Happy nesting and all the best with this awesome bump in the road!
Congrats! What huge exciting news!! Everything certainly has a way of working itself out, hey! We’ll be back in NZ in Feb – might have to find a way down to Chch for some tiny baby cuddles! The new addition will love exploring the land of the long white cloud… and let’s face it, there are way worse places to be than NZ 😉
Wow! That is big news! We are so happy for you! Congratulations from all the Totaros.
Paige
Congratulations!
Congratulations, Bethany! Wonderful news. 🙂
That’s such great news! Cheers to the new baby and definitely a great idea to be close to home for family support. We travel and don’t live near family so I feel the pain in going about making this decision. It’s tough but glad you were able to figure out what was best for you guys! Congratulations!
Congrats! Sounds like a great plan and I hope you continue to blog while back in NZ ! Jealous you are a few months ahead of me though;) Take care and all the best, Jen
The more the merrier, and you’ll be travelling again in no time. Wonderful news!
Congratulations.
The surprise babies are just the best, (my son was a surprise), we always say he was a gift from God. And whilst during the early stages I wondered how I was going to shift my life – I learnt it all works for the best and new beginnings start to form.
best of luck for your entire flashpacking family
so exciting!! the best reason to return home early, we say 😉 congrats!! xoxo
Congratulations!! so happy for you!
Brilliant news. Congratulations!
I’m sure the recent hospital stay wasn’t any easier worrying about the bub. At least you’ll be able to really enjoy the last few weeks of your travels 🙂
OMG! Congratulations … beautiful news. Your nomadic spirit will always be there and think how much fun it will be when you have two little ones on the journey with you.
Hugs x
Congrats! Fabulous news!
Congrats to you both (or you 3… or you 4!)
I was so surprised when I saw from your comments on my site that you are pregnant again! I had no idea at Problogger!! Congrats!! I think being at home will be the easiest way for you, and once you get settled in and recovered (I know it took me AGES after my c section to be able to move around properly), then you can travel again. Since you have family and living rights in the UK, you can always go there later. 🙂
WOW, congratulations! You guys sure have a busy year ahead of you in that case 🙂