We ended up coming to Phnom Penh to wait for #7’s birth 2.5 weeks earlier than planned, because of some unusual contractions I had one night. Due to how fast I go from having mild contractions to giving birth, Josh decided he’d rather not wait until I had more bad nights to come, so we arrived in PP June 22nd. Thankfully there was space in the guesthouse for us to stay the extra time, and we only had to move once.

The first thing we did after arriving was to visit a lady from our church who was at a hospital in PP for intestine complications that resulted from 2 surgeries. The doctors were sending her home with no hope for recovery and said once she left, she would probably live about 5 days. Her daughter is one of my Jarai ladies Bible teachers at our church. I was so glad we were able to visit with them and say goodbye. She left for home a few days later, and amazingly it’s 3 weeks later and she’s still living and started eating and drinking again.

We had several things we were hoping to get done before the baby comes, like going to the dentist (his picture is at the top of the blog). One of the most important was renewing most of the kids’ passports at the American Embassy. We had our appointment last week and were only in the Embassy about an hour – very thankful. Afterwards we went to a place that had an outdoor playground for lunch to celebrate.

I brought some school for the kids to do while we are here – so that really helps give us some routine in our day and keeps people from going stir-crazy. The younger girls have science and spelling, the older two have history, science, and spelling/grammar. We’ve also had time to do some extra things. The first week we were here Clara made an apple pie. We visited a craft store and the boys bought plaster of paris magnet kits to make and paint. The boys also bought astronaut helmets to design, though Micah reused the stickers to decorate faces!

I think we’ve finished most of our errands, appointments, and repairs (jewelry, computer, camera). Josh and I had a nice anniversary date. The last thing I wanted to do was get my pre-birth hair cut. I haven’t had a good haircut since right before Micah was born – it was quite long.

We’ve settled into a good routine. Josh has been able to work with his translators over the internet and is getting more work done than he expected. The kids are working on rehearsing a musical with their friends the Nhoemvans twice a week. They plan to have a performance before we leave. We’ve enjoyed going to English speaking church and getting together with friends that we have down here. One evening we had a Christmas carol sing with some friends.

Anna and Clara were invited to a princess birthday party last week – first time to ever be invited to an all-girls party. They were so excited to go. The two younger boys love going to my doctor appointments, since the pediatric floor has a playground. Micah can’t wait to go to the “doctor place.”

So now we wait. While we’d rather be home, we’re very thankful for the place God has provided us to wait in and for the things we’ve been able to do. I’m very thankful for air-conditioning at night and during naps. I’ll be very happy to be holding our new baby and have all the uncertainties of birthing (hoping for another VBAC) in Cambodia behind me. This is a good time to practice trusting in God’s timing and planning, when things are out of my hands. Thankful!

Written July 15 – who knows, maybe by the time this is published we’ll have a baby here!