debby516:
Hello house,

Thanks alot for the numerous nd unquantifiable experiences shared on this platform.

I stayed at Richmond nd my apatyment was nt far to Oakbend. I took a tour of both methodist nd oakbend b4 i setrled for oakbend. Used dr. Z, by the way Oakbend staff are soo lovely nd Dr. Z is a wonderful doc, even though he didnt take my delivery, i enjoyed all my doc visits wit other mamas nd d weekly visits to d kroger store closeby.

So to the bills:

Oakbend 2500
NICS 416. Stayed in d hosp for 2 nights nd 3 days. NICS counted 3 days.
I got to d hosp on sat 11pm nd had baby at 2am sunday morning. Left d hosp on tues 7pm
Brown&associates (lab) mother nd baby 126.25, was discounted to $75.75
Birth cert - $23. Picked it up at d countu office after 4days
Blue passport - i got 2 money orders of $160.66 and $27. Passport office at d courthouse in Richmond. Got d passport in d mail box in 6 working days.
Naija passport in atlanta thru an agent $205. Got it 2 days after
Baby's ticket on emirate $91
No hearing test

Hosp, NICS and brown nd associates were paid over d fone with my american bank debit card.

I advise u open an acc wen u re there, made life easier for me.

I had excess luggage - paid $50 on one ghana must go bag dat weighed up to 32kg.

Enjoyed emirates flight nd d hotel accomodation

No questions/checking from Naija immigration nd customs.

So my missionary journey is officially over till 2018 by God's grace.

Gracias!

Janet101:
Thank you,I have access account maybe I can try that but the money I want to send is like 257$

chloe7:



257 usd won't go, only if you ask them to pay in batches, a part this month another next month, explain to them the limit on you cards, or if you have a gtbank card use both to pay

debby516:
Hello house,

Thanks alot for the numerous nd unquantifiable experiences shared on this platform.

I stayed at Richmond nd my apatyment was nt far to Oakbend. I took a tour of both methodist nd oakbend b4 i setrled for oakbend. Used dr. Z, by the way Oakbend staff are soo lovely nd Dr. Z is a wonderful doc, even though he didnt take my delivery, i enjoyed all my doc visits wit other mamas nd d weekly visits to d kroger store closeby.

So to the bills:

Oakbend 2500
NICS 416. Stayed in d hosp for 2 nights nd 3 days. NICS counted 3 days.
I got to d hosp on sat 11pm nd had baby at 2am sunday morning. Left d hosp on tues 7pm
Brown&associates (lab) mother nd baby 126.25, was discounted to $75.75
Birth cert - $23. Picked it up at d countu office after 4days
Blue passport - i got 2 money orders of $160.66 and $27. Passport office at d courthouse in Richmond. Got d passport in d mail box in 6 working days.
Naija passport in atlanta thru an agent $205. Got it 2 days after
Baby's ticket on emirate $91
No hearing test

Hosp, NICS and brown nd associates were paid over d fone with my american bank debit card.

I advise u open an acc wen u re there, made life easier for me.

I had excess luggage - paid $50 on one ghana must go bag dat weighed up to 32kg.

Enjoyed emirates flight nd d hotel accomodation

No questions/checking from Naija immigration nd customs.

So my missionary journey is officially over till 2018 by God's grace.

Gracias!

Bashfab:



Pls u only stated the cost of the hospital,what about the doctor or is it inclusive in d 2k5.

nefertitiram:
This thread is dulling o! Where is everyone? Izzit Holidays, MMM or Recession?!!

Janet101:



OK, so I can use two cards tomake the payment or can I use my husband's access card too?

chloe7:


You should call them to confirm this if you can by explaining the restrictions on your card and see if they'll agree

boluwagin:
Goodevening House,

Please anyone with an idea of how much is the Xchange rate of Bureau de Change at the airport?

debby516:
Hello house,

Thanks alot for the numerous nd unquantifiable experiences shared on this platform.

I stayed at Richmond nd my apatyment was nt far to Oakbend. I took a tour of both methodist nd oakbend b4 i setrled for oakbend. Used dr. Z, by the way Oakbend staff are soo lovely nd Dr. Z is a wonderful doc, even though he didnt take my delivery, i enjoyed all my doc visits wit other mamas nd d weekly visits to d kroger store closeby.

So to the bills:

Oakbend 2500
NICS 416. Stayed in d hosp for 2 nights nd 3 days. NICS counted 3 days.
I got to d hosp on sat 11pm nd had baby at 2am sunday morning. Left d hosp on tues 7pm
Brown&associates (lab) mother nd baby 126.25, was discounted to $75.75
Birth cert - $23. Picked it up at d countu office after 4days
Blue passport - i got 2 money orders of $160.66 and $27. Passport office at d courthouse in Richmond. Got d passport in d mail box in 6 working days.
Naija passport in atlanta thru an agent $205. Got it 2 days after
Baby's ticket on emirate $91
No hearing test

Hosp, NICS and brown nd associates were paid over d fone with my american bank debit card.

I advise u open an acc wen u re there, made life easier for me.

I had excess luggage - paid $50 on one ghana must go bag dat weighed up to 32kg.

Enjoyed emirates flight nd d hotel accomodation

No questions/checking from Naija immigration nd customs.

So my missionary journey is officially over till 2018 by God's grace.

Gracias!

nefertitiram:

Whose concept?

debby516:
Hello house,

Thanks alot for the numerous nd unquantifiable experiences shared on this platform.

I stayed at Richmond nd my apatyment was nt far to Oakbend. I took a tour of both methodist nd oakbend b4 i setrled for oakbend. Used dr. Z, by the way Oakbend staff are soo lovely nd Dr. Z is a wonderful doc, even though he didnt take my delivery, i enjoyed all my doc visits wit other mamas nd d weekly visits to d kroger store closeby.

So to the bills:

Oakbend 2500
NICS 416. Stayed in d hosp for 2 nights nd 3 days. NICS counted 3 days.
I got to d hosp on sat 11pm nd had baby at 2am sunday morning. Left d hosp on tues 7pm
Brown&associates (lab) mother nd baby 126.25, was discounted to $75.75
Birth cert - $23. Picked it up at d countu office after 4days
Blue passport - i got 2 money orders of $160.66 and $27. Passport office at d courthouse in Richmond. Got d passport in d mail box in 6 working days.
Naija passport in atlanta thru an agent $205. Got it 2 days after
Baby's ticket on emirate $91
No hearing test

Hosp, NICS and brown nd associates were paid over d fone with my american bank debit card.

I advise u open an acc wen u re there, made life easier for me.

I had excess luggage - paid $50 on one ghana must go bag dat weighed up to 32kg.

Enjoyed emirates flight nd d hotel accomodation

No questions/checking from Naija immigration nd customs.

So my missionary journey is officially over till 2018 by God's grace.

Gracias!

LYDIAMOND:
happy new years mamas and daddys
i will be traveling third week from Lagos to Houston.
really confused on food stuffs to travel along with
please i need your help.
will appreciate if i can get a list of food stuff allowed n those not allowed
momas pls help me out on this one as you've always done.

Posh404:
Hustle for PTA is real. that's is after combing Ikeja , he ended up on the island.

Missionary Journey Concluded... Finally!

I have shared visa and POE experience(s) here on nairaland.

Birth story

Hospital: St.Francis LA
Doctor: Dr Mbagwu

Induced at 40weeks. Got to the hospital at about 1am with zero dilation and delivered at 6pm (17 straight hours)...God bless the person(s) that invented epidural!

Dr M was really great. I know a lot of us here feel that it doesn't make sense to go all the way to the US to still use a Nigerian doctor...it has been debated on this thread but I'm really glad I chose Dr M. We were already prepped for a csection (I was open to it, of course, but even in my pain I was thinking of the extra costs...lol) but baby eventually came.

Documentation

Birth Certificate

I gave birth on a Wednesday and birth certificate was ready by the time I called vital records office the next Thursday. For those in LA, the number to call is on the website. http://www.ph.lacounty.gov/DCA/

A birth records clerk will collect your baby's data at the hospital... when I asked how long it will take to get the bc, she told me 1.5 months but if I paid $15 it will be expedited. I DID NOT pay the $15.

Note: when I called vital records office to ask if bc was ready, the lady initially told me no when I told her my baby's birth date... she then asked if I paid for "rush" and told her I did . Next thing she told me it was ready for pick up.

Passport

I booked appointment with LA Passport office immediately baby was born. Criteria for expedited passport is travel date within two weeks or 4weeks if you need a visa. We fixed passport appointment the same day we collected the birth certificate.

For the passport you need to submit baby's bc, your travel itinerary and the notarized DS 3053 form for those whose spouses are not around. You can either fill the application form online and print out or just fill it at the passport office. Depending on how early you go, you can get your passport the same day.

Overall costs

Dr's Fees: $1262- all my lab tests from Nigeria were accepted
Hospital:$3000 for Vaginal Delivery (this money includes epidural, paediatrician at the hospital, labs etc)
Circumcision: $250 (it was beautifully done!!!!)
Paediatrician visit: $55
Birth Certificate :$28
Passport:$165
We did Visa on Arrival. Desoul helped get approval from comptroller General. It's this letter you show the airline and the immigration in Nigeria.

Visa on Arrival is $200. You can pay cash or with a "foreign" card they won't accept Nigerian banks dollar cards according to them.

We had a great time in LA. The transport system is not bad at all. I took the bus a lot and most times sef was just waved in by the driver without paying. I am glad we were able to do this... it wasn't easy but God provided somehow.

Accommodation was really great. I personally got great value for money. I don't regret my decision to go to LA at all.

Wish everyone here the best

LYDIAMOND:
happy new years mamas and daddys
i will be traveling third week from Lagos to Houston.
really confused on food stuffs to travel along with
please i need your help.
will appreciate if i can get a list of food stuff allowed n those not allowed
momas pls help me out on this one as you've always done.

chloe7:



Credit card? Call your bank
Not all naija cards are working abroad now, only gtbank, access, Fcmb and UBA are the ones i've heard that can be used online abroad but there's a limit of $100/ month for GTB and $200 for access, so I think it's the limit that's the issue here but regardless still call our bank they'll definitely have a better answer

TripleKMama:
Access bank cards are really cool. Apart from $200 monthly limit, u can use dem in Kmart, Walmart, Burlington.
U can also do cash back.
In fact, u could buy sometin work $190 u don't need. Walk bak to customer service to return it & request cash if d card is VISA. If mastercard, dey will pay back to d card so pls be sure U know everythin before u waste ur monthly limit.
Dis worked for me yday at rate of N325. Kmart, Walmart & Burlington exchange rate is N325.

chloe7:


My plan is to do cash back when I even arrive alongside the black market or travelex I can buy, I do cash back in UK in Iceland and some tesco stores even without purchasing anything, in Iceland they'll even be the one to ask if you don't need cash . I'm sure i'll be able to locate stores like that when I get to Houston

debby516:
Hello house,

Thanks alot for the numerous nd unquantifiable experiences shared on this platform.

I stayed at Richmond nd my apatyment was nt far to Oakbend. I took a tour of both methodist nd oakbend b4 i setrled for oakbend. Used dr. Z, by the way Oakbend staff are soo lovely nd Dr. Z is a wonderful doc, even though he didnt take my delivery, i enjoyed all my doc visits wit other mamas nd d weekly visits to d kroger store closeby.

So to the bills:

Oakbend 2500
NICS 416. Stayed in d hosp for 2 nights nd 3 days. NICS counted 3 days.
I got to d hosp on sat 11pm nd had baby at 2am sunday morning. Left d hosp on tues 7pm
Brown&associates (lab) mother nd baby 126.25, was discounted to $75.75
Birth cert - $23. Picked it up at d countu office after 4days
Blue passport - i got 2 money orders of $160.66 and $27. Passport office at d courthouse in Richmond. Got d passport in d mail box in 6 working days.
Naija passport in atlanta thru an agent $205. Got it 2 days after
Baby's ticket on emirate $91
No hearing test

Hosp, NICS and brown nd associates were paid over d fone with my american bank debit card.

I advise u open an acc wen u re there, made life easier for me.

I had excess luggage - paid $50 on one ghana must go bag dat weighed up to 32kg.

Enjoyed emirates flight nd d hotel accomodation

No questions/checking from Naija immigration nd customs.

So my missionary journey is officially over till 2018 by God's grace.

Gracias!

nefertitiram:


We even do cash back here in Delta State

chloe7:
Bbaby84 Buy dollar, fund dollar account and use the card to pay, I suspect you're paying for above 6 months