Pregnancy and a big decision

Here we are with our missionary family (or part of it) enjoying some tacos in honour of one of our group who just celebrated her birthday.
It was my first day to wear proper maternity clothes and I can't believe it but I think I'm starting to look pregnant (I am for those who didn't know yet!). We've lost count of the weeks now but we think we're around 18. We tried phoning for a doctor this week but when we finally got the secretary (after 2 days) we found the doctor was fully booked for next week. The positive side of that is that she must be good! So we've still only had one appointment, no blood tests and no due date (although it's some time in February). Certainly we're a lot more relaxed second time around! We're hoping we can get an appointment soon but we really need you to pray with us about where we have the baby.

Our decision is between time and expense. Our medical insurance only covers us for emergencies. Normal delivery is not considered an emergency therefore it is not covered. We could return home and the delivery wouldn't cost us anything but it will cost us to deliver here. Flight costs aren't really the issue as our choice is to fly home in 3 months time or in 7 months time but in any case we will be flying home at some point...but of course the longer it takes to make a decision, the more expensive the flights are likely to be.

If we go home for the delivery we would have to fly in December (so as not to risk an emergency delivery at 30,000 feet (but I wonder would our insurance cover that?)) and that would mean a lot less time for our families with new baby before we have to return to Mexico again. If we have baby here we would wait for the papers to be sorted out and fly home when baby is about 2 months old.

So what should we do? It's a difficult decision for us and we feel totally up in the air at the moment over which way to go. Please pray that God will guide us to know what to do and for my continued health and that of the baby. I'm finding I still get nauseous if I push myself too hard (which of course I have the tendency to do) and I also had a fall yesterday at club (which was very surreal - when do you ever fall?!) but thankfully it was my arm that took the impact (but unfortunately for my poor arm!).

We understand that it's a nice dilemma to be in but we will be happy when we have decided and the flights are booked etc.

Tabitha is doing really well. She's a constant 'chatterer' and at the moment she loves to go over the names of all the people we know. She already connects people by family groups or who live or work together etc. Today on our way to church she was going over the names of all the people she knows there. She often stops on the street or in shops to wave at complete strangers and the old man across the street who usually sits outside his gate reading his newspaper always gets a wave as we leave or go into our house. Yesterday I laughed to see her with a little girl (about 3 years old). Tabitha had a crayon and as she scribbled on a piece of paper she was saying, "Asi!" (or "like that!") to the little girl. Do we have a teacher in the making? Last Monday she climbed onto our bed and as she bounced up and down she was saying, "Brinca! Brinca! Brinca!" or "Bounce! Bounce! Bounce!" My guess is that's something she's picked up at crèche on Sundays! With her blond hair and blue eyes she gets lots of attention and opens doors for many conversations. We're just loving this stage with her (though the screaming when she doesn't get her way is something we've had to be working on!) and are so blessed. Thank you for your prayers for her. She seems to be keeping good health (despite the fact that the only way we can get her to eat fruit and vegetables is to liquidise them so they seem more like juice!), sleeps incredibly well and is generally pretty flexible about her timetable. She adores music and performing (where could she have got that from?) and is picking up words and actions to songs in English and Spanish. Please continue to pray for her health and safety and above all that we as parents would be faithful to our responsibilities as parents and that her love for God would develop as she continues to grow.