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I always kind of regretted that my husband and I never took an official babymoon. Personally, the thought of paying for diapers and college was enough to deter me from some exotic locale, but good for those who are able and do so. Well, good for most people who take them. For Brett and Sonja Broom, however, their babymoon quickly turned into one big regret.
Having never had a honeymoon since they married, they went big -- to the United States from their home in Australia. While on board a cruise February 12, Sonja, who was just 24 1/2 weeks pregnant at the time, went into labor. As they were nearing Cape Canaveral, she was able to make it ashore before giving birth to a baby girl, Gracee, who weighed just 1 pound, 11 ounces.
Fortunately Gracee survived, and she's growing and getting stronger, but she and her mother are still stuck in Florida in the middle of a huge bureaucratic nightmare that may financially ruin the family. Brett is back in Australia working and taking care of their two young sons, who have yet to meet their sister.
According to Fox News, AAMI, the company, with whom they took out travel insurance, refuses to pay for Sonja's medical bills because her pregnancy was a "preexisting condition." They won't pay for Gracee's care because she "didn't exist" when they left the country. The total is expected to reach $1 million. Making matters worse, she can't travel back to Australia until she's reached her full gestational weight and has a visa, which could take months. Talk about a rough start in life.
Sonja told Fox:
It's been really hard. I feel so lonely because there is no one here to turn to. But the good news is she [Gracee] is doing really well. She's a fighter.
I can only imagine. My son was also born prematurely, weighing just a few ounces more than Gracee at birth. Fortunately, we had insurance that paid for every penny of his care, but the bills I saw for his three months of care and my two weeks of care were staggering. I often wondered what a family would do if they actually were stuck with paying those bills, and now here's one that must. My heart goes out to them.
Were they reckless to travel overseas so late in the pregnancy? Should they have read their travel insurance policy more carefully? Perhaps, but they can't go back and undo the events now; they have to move forward as best they can. The Brooms have set up a Facebook page to raise awareness and funds for their medical costs. Hopefully they'll get the help they need and be reunited soon.
Did you take a babymoon? What's the most unexpected thing that happened during your pregnancies?
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