Kuku & Siukulu

So since the cat seems to be getting out of the bag faster than I can spread the word… Let me try to reach a few of you before you find out on facebook or something!

Alright can you stand it??? The big news…..

You can start calling my mom and dad by “grandma & grandpa” in April! Or “kuku & siukulu” in Lozi if you prefer.

I know this puts many immediate questions in your minds… like where will we have the baby? What is it like to have a baby in Africa? Am I really this crazy? Let me see if I can answer a few of those…

As you can imagine, medical care here is less than stellar. I’ve already had the flu, a horrible head cold and a huge abscess the size of a golf ball on my leg from some sort of bite. Not to mention intense morning sickness. And this has only been the first trimester. Let’s hope things improve. At this point, we are really praying about where to have the baby. One thing I know for sure: Katima Mulilo Hospital is not an option. If we remain in Namibia we’d have to go to a more modern city around the time of delivery. There are so many factors in this decision!

So you want an insight in into what it’s like to have a baby here? Very early in our dating relationship, I got quite the lesson in African childbirth. I got a call to go to Elton’s village to bring his cousin’s wife to the local hospital. It took them quite awhile to get a hold of me on the phone, so we raced to the hospital. We got her all checked in and then I settled down on the bench to wait. All of a sudden I noticed that everyone else was headed back to the car… Basically it is common practice here to bring one’s beloved to the hospital then drop them off and come back in the morning to see what happened. As you can imagine I was shocked! A long discussion about American practices ensued and I made it quite clear to Elton what my expectations were if we ever had a child together. Incidentally it turned out that she delivered a healthy girl 15 minutes after we arrived. Good thing I wasn’t any later getting there.

Though this is a huge praise and something we are so excited about, we are also in need of your prayers! There are always risks in childbirth, but here I am exposed to so many things I wouldn’t be at home. I know God has us here for this season and we’re in His hands but it doesn’t stop my worry-wart nature from popping up all too frequently. At this point we need prayers for wisdom and guidance to make the final decisions.

Life is such an adventure: Parenthood here we come!