We get this question from both our friends here in Indonesia and our friends in the U.S.: “You just got back to Indonesia, after such a long wait, why are you returning to the U.S. so soon?”
The simple answer is: to have a baby.
We delivered Caroline in Indonesia in 2019, after only 3 months of living there and let’s just say… it was difficult. There were medical complications due to her being my 3rd C-section and the standard of care here is less than ideal. After delivering Caroline my Indonesia OBGYN told me that I shouldn’t have any more children because delivering them was too difficult. Upon returning to the States in 2020, I visited my St. Louis OBGYN who after a thorough check-up said it was just fine to have more children and he wouldn’t be worried delivering them.
And so, when we found out we were expecting another blessing, the choice had to be made: try and find a new OBGYN in Indonesia who doesn’t mind performing a 4th C-section or come back to the U.S. where we know we have a trusted doctor. The choice seemed easy for us.
Yes, we could have just stayed in St. Louis until the baby was born and received his/her passport and visa instead of returning to Indonesia for only 2 months. Had we done that, we would have been stateside for a total of 23 months. I don’t think Matt’s or my mental health could have handled that. We dearly wanted to get back to our home and life in Indonesia. These last 2 months in Indonesia have been so uplifting for Matt and I. We have reconnected with friends, co-workers and the people we have come to serve. Matt has accomplished so many things in this short period of time. It’s been a blessing to be here, and it will help us get through the next 4.5 months of being Stateside.
Please continue to pray for us as we say goodbye to our Indonesian home on Thursday, June 2nd and arrive to our temporary St. Louis home on Saturday, June 4th. Pray for safe flights, lots of rest and low stress. Continue to keep baby and me in your prayers as I embark on my 3rd trimester and we await baby’s arrival in early August.
If you’d like to know more about what some of those complications that were involved with Caroline’s birth, you can read about them in my follow-up blog post: www.theseaside.asia/blog/2022/5/27/leaving-so-soon-part-2-carolines-birth