I’ve noticed is this weird trend where my favorite bloggers seem to disappear and then reappear with a cute little sonogram photo to show for their absence. Our story is kind like that, but… since we currently have no photo we thought we’d write a poem instead.
The Family Planning Poem
We have these two cute and crazy kids, a beautiful girl and boy,
they drive us kind of bonkers, but fill our hearts with joy.
We thought ‘hey, two is enough since these ones bring us so much glee’,
and so with over population, urban crowding, limited resources ect. we decided to get a vasectomy.
When we got to Nepal we found just the guy,
he came well recommended and his fees weren’t that high.
The doctor was an ex-pat surgeon. He’d done this thing before, so we certainly weren’t the first.
It would all be legit, in an operating room, and even a surgical nurse.
So the job was complete, and also our family.
Nepal even paid for most of the thing, not a bad deal for $3.50.
Our surgeon was confident he did the job right, no need for a follow-up test.
Who were we to argue with the doctor, we didn’t want to be a pest.
This ‘no follow-up’ gave Dave a weird vibe, but he trusted the Dr. to know best.
Months later we did follow up…. with a positive pregnancy test.
You’d think we’d have a handle on birth control after 8 years, 2 kids, and a medical degree.
But it also probably should have been a red flag that there was only a $3.50 fee.
It wasn’t all that funny at first but now it is starting to be,
and about six months from now we will be welcoming #3!
So soon our family will be five, January 19th or so is the call.
We know this one will be special. He/she has gone through some incredible odds to be born here in Nepal!
Pretty psyched about a family of five. January 2014.
Trips Take People 
Congrats!
Great poem:-)
Cogratulations! I had noticed the silence but didn’t attribute it to this ;) Our #3 came earlier than we planned at an “unconvenient” time in our lives (though we were planning to have her at some point) but I sure couldn’t imagine life without her. I’m sure God has great plans for this little one. Love and prayers for all of you!
Ahh!! I definitely just squealed when I saw this and freaked Keith out in the shower ;). SO, SO excited for you guys!! :)
There’s a saying: we plan, G-d decides. Or, people plan, G-d laughs. Congrats & Hugs.
Congrats Hannah! I’ll be sharing the poem with John as he prepares for a similar *ahem* procedure. We’ll be sure to pay more than $3.50 :)
Yay, baby! :)
Congratulations! Love Ellis’s new hair-do! How’s life in Tansen?
Ha! Thanks Abbie. Funny story about Ellis’ hair, we came home for lunch one day and our Didi said, “She looked hot, so I cut it.” ? Oh well, hair grows back.
Wow! God has other plans and this baby will be a wonderful gift to the whole family. God’s surprises are always the best. We had 3 surprises!
nancy
Loved the picture and the poem! What terrific news, and a special event for a very special time in your lives. Best of luck, and I hope the pregnancy is an easy one!
The poem and photo brought a BIG smile to my face! Congratulations!!
Congrats! My husband says all our (6) children were planned…when I got pregnant, we planned to have them!
Blessings,
David & Clara Swartzentruber (Greg’s parents)
Yay for Babies! Yay for poetry! You must have some well-behaved kids to get a photo where you’re all doing the same thing.
Since I’m pretty sure one can’t ‘sue’ in Nepal, maybe the doc will at least give you your $3.50 back! Congrats to you all (beautiful picture and great poem too!)
Congratulations you guys!!! Great creativity as well. :)
I love following your family blog.
Having read your blog, I, kind of, feel uneasy (Coz I am a Nepali) but I couldn’t help myself from laughing for a minute or two. It is so hilarious. Of course, not all vasectomies fail but some do utterly). I still do remember a similar incident back in my village (a rural village of Parbat district). That guy didn’t pay for vasectomy (unlike unluckily lucky you). You don’t have to if you undergo one in a governmental facility (he,instead, got some money back as a reward for his voluntary choice to undergo that magical population-control therapy!) but not long after that he went on to bear 3 more children (after vasectomy saga, yes!). So, total number of children reached the milestone of 6. Enough was enough. Villagers in Nepal care about each other and they were worried that this fella would turn out to be a beggar if he went on bearing at least a child every year (that had been the trend-three years down the vasectomy, three lovely children out of tummy). And the villagers were not ready to even imagine that they would have to serve alms to their fellow villager. That wouldn’t be fair for the god’s sake. So, they took him for the next round of vasectomy organized at an hour walk distance. That seems to have worked. But whenever I go back to my village, I involuntarily glance at the guy’s lady to check if she is pregnant again (and haven’t yet got caught doing so ;) )
Haha! You know, we have heard more similar stories from our Nepali friends and neighbors as we have we have shared about our story. It is kind of nice actually, to know we aren’t the only ones. Thanks for sharing.
Congrats! Great poem, We definitely smiled and loved the poem. So happy for you guys! We love following your posts:)
Whoa! and WOW. What an adventure. I admire your ability to find so much joy. It had to be quite a shock. Love and blessings on baby 3. What a gift.