₦airaland Forum

Hi all, i know I read somewhere that it's cheaper to book baby's ticket from naij. How do I go about this? I sent someone to British airways office in Lagos and it's like N60k plus. Which comes to about the same thing when I call them over the phone from here. Please help a mama who has not slept more than 2 hrs at a stretch in over a week

To God be the glory! My prince arrived on the 14th of October, baby and I are doing great! It was a normal delivery and I must say that it was favour all the way!

kendybabe88:
PLEASE MAMAS IN THE HOUSE, STILL ON MY VISA APPLICATION MATTER.PLEASE I NEED ADVICE SHOULD I APPLY ALONE OR WITH MY MUM AS MY DH WILL BE BUSY AND CAN'T GO WITH ME. BIKO HELP

I dont think there is anything wrong as long as you can show your ability to sponsor her

uptown17:
congrats on successful poe mum2be. this your poe was a breeze oo
could u kindly share your rented apartment details with us. how where you able to secure one for just 2months


[ ton her and was also stamped in till March 10. On our way out we were directed to Agriculture where they carried only my sons indomie! I nearly cried but i was kinda expecting it sha!

Just chilling at home now legs crossed and my cousin just made one kain spaghetti stir fry! Waiting for my first appointment on Tuesday!



One Love....

You can inbox me for details.

Hello mamas and papas....... In the spirit of giving back to this wonderful forum where i have learnt so much! I dont comment much except when i can add value but i love to read, cos the amount of information here is crazy!

My story goes thus...

We (Hubby, Son, Cousin and I) departed Lagos on Thursday 10 September with BA... that MM1 is a nightmare!

Hubby refused that i request for wheel chair, so after checking in we just strolled to the fast track! I no even look anybody face, was waiting for someone to ask me if i had a bizness class ticket, i for swear for the person cos at this point i was already tired. Finally boarded and the flighht was full! sha squeezed my belle into my seat and endured the flight for 6 hours of restlessness. Arrived London and chilled 3 hours for our flight to Houston! Luckily the flight was empty as we had expected! So i just stretched my round body on the full length of one of the middle seats and SLEPT! It was fantastic! No noise, nothing!

Fast forward toPOE in Houston, there was only one other preggy lady and infact we travelled together from naija. The queue was quite long cos i think about 2 planes arrived at the same time. Anyways we were ushered to one white man and the conversation went as follows:

CBP Officer: Are you all a family (we filled to separate forms one for us and one for my cousin)
CBP Officer: You have to separate for Legal reasons
CBP Officer: Why are you here?
Hubby: For vacation and childbirth
CBP Officer: How long are you here for?
Us: 2 months
CBP Officer: You are gonna pay ur bills right?
Us: Definitely
CBP Officer: How much have you paid?
Me: We have paid all that was quoted by the hospital and doctor.
CBP: Accommodation?
Us: We are staying in a rented apartment
CBP Officer: How much do you have on you
Us: $8,000 between us.
CBP: Any food stuff? Egusi, ogbona, Melon?
Me: Yes to all with a smile.

Na so he fingerprint us and stamps us in till March 10. No secondary inspection. My cousin was just asked why she was here and how much she had on her and was also stamped in till March 10. On our way out we were directed to Agriculture where they carried only my sons indomie! I nearly cried but i was kinda expecting it sha!

Just chilling at home now legs crossed and my cousin just made one kain spaghetti stir fry! Waiting for my first appointment on Tuesday!

It was all favour from GOD! Wishing everyone a successful entry!

One Love....

ozycy:
After dancing kirikata, kindly come back and give us your POE gist. Which accommodation did you finally settle with? Soulcr or SOJ? Ehe pls who have bought PTA of recent?

I bought 2 weeks ago at GTB. $8k for hubby and I.

MiddyO:
You gave us a clue when you commented on the Dr that gave her POE story recently. Something about a Dr's response to giving birth in America.

Yeah i remember that! I knew you were a doctor!.......LOL

Thumbs up by the way! e nor easy!

Please I have a question to all the mamas/papas who have used british airways and have needed to make changes to their tickets. Please what were the charges like? Someone has said that it can be quite high because they also add the difference in fare between your old date and the new one? (The way my stomach turned when I heard this ehn....Strong shit hooked me....LOL)Any one with this experience please shed more light biko.

I have bought my tickets already (Bought when it was really cheap) and now I may have to change my return date and im so worried cos id be changing tickets for 3 people!

Please help a sister out!

Nogen:
Oh Boy! Finally out of El Paso with my trio. Gave birth to a set of triplets about 5 weeks ago. The doctor and her team were amazing.

Congratulations dearie! God bless them!!

ozycy:
@ firsttymum, I hail you too.
It's like am the only October mum still in Naija, every oda person don port hmm. I must not carry last ooo

u are not ooooo. i still dey here too!....lol

[quote author=MaduxRox post=37047422][/quote]Hi MaduxRox based on what she told me the convo went something like this;

VO: Purpose of travel
Cousin: Vacation
VO: What do u do?
Cousin: I work with so and so construction company as an admin asst
VO: What roles do you perform
Cousin: So and So
VO: How much do you earn
Cousin: So and So, these are my pay slips
VO: I don't need to see any document
VO: Where and where have you travelled to
Cousin: Ghana and China
VO: When you visited China what places of interest did you visit
Cousin: So and So
VO: What and what do you plan to do in the US
Cousin: Sightseeing and also would be helping my cousin who is to have her baby there
VO: Oh so who is sponsoring the trip
Cousin: My cousin is because she is the one who wants me to come, ordinarily I wouldn't be visiting the US now
VO: When is your cousin due to give birth
Cousin: So and So
VO: I can see you applied for last month and u were denied, why have you reapplied so soon
Cousin: Because I felt I wasn't given a chance to explain in detail my reasons for travel adequately to the officer and the time is fast approaching for my cousin to leave and she would need me pending when her husband comes to join her in the states as he cant be away from work for too long
VO: Are you in a relationship? (only God knows why she asked this question, I think she was just looking for a reason to give the poor girl... and the Holy Spirit at work obviously)
Cousin: Yes im currently engaged
VO: Congratulations, when is the wedding
Cousin: We are looking at February but nothing is cast in stone for now
VO: Ok your visa has been approved, pick up on Thursday
Cousin: Thank you so much! Thank you... oh Thank you!

LOL....

The End.

Tiababy:
Hello house, i have got good news.
Had my baby 2 Thursdays ago. I and baby are doing very fine. I wish all expectant mothers safe delivery too. xoxo
(been quite busy, e no easy to do omugwo alone)



Please, any idea if I can get Nigeria passport with hospital birth record in place of birth certificate? Any possibility?

Congrats dear! God bless you and your little bundle of Joy!

So, in the spirit of 'sort of' giving back'. Some of you might remember that my cousin was denied her visa application and I had asked questions on her chances of getting it if she reapplied. Well I took the chance and I asked her to reapply! Her appointment was today and she was given.....wohooooo! (dancing shokiii). I have been having nightmares on how I would cope without help! But now that burden has been lifted!!

So I guess the lesson to be learnt is never give up! Even when it seems bleak! I trusted in God and had faith and because I knew my intentions were honest and clean I gave it a go! All the best to everyone who is believing and trusting God for a visa! All our prayers shall be answered......Amen!

Tiwalope:
To the Glory of God and in Spirit of giving back to this awesome forum,we were given visa today at the Lagos embassy, our interview was scheduled for 7am.

I had followed this thread since last year August and have noted every details,i read the thread @ least four times a week to keep up with new post.

VO: Good morning

USme,2year old Daughter and husby) Good morning sir,with a cranky smile after baby had stressed me out,she wasn't allowing her father carry her @ all

VO: Ma'am,are you pregnant and are you going to America for child birth?

me: Yes,i am

 VO: Can I have your correspondence to that effect?

me:  handing him over email correspondence from WHMC,DR La,letter of appointment from Dr La,payment receipt of 1500 to dr la,letter from WHMC and receipt of 2100 paid already to WHMC.

VO: he looks at it critically and asked how I came about the choice of my doctor and what my doctor's name is. In between he asked where I gave birth to my daughter and I told him, Nigeria

Me: I told him He came in highly recommended by my friend,he asked for my friend's name and he confirmed the name from his system and asked if her middle name was Motunrayo

VO: Do u have family and friends in the US?Yes we do 

VO: And where do you work?told him,he asked Husby too,he told him

in between: my daughter was still cranky all along  and I was really really tensed and the VO kept wondering why my surname is different from my husband and daughter .He asked when we got married and we said 2012,he pointed out that m passport was renewed in 2015,so why didn't I change to my husby's surname,I told him It was stressful for me going to Abj.He said it's ok,he just wanted to understand why.

VO: Alright, im gonna issue u a Visa,but make sure u pay all ur bills for ease of renewal and make sure you do not access any public funds. and he smiled brightly and told us congratulations.

US: thank you and husband packed all documents displayed.

Thank God for everything,and thank you all

Congrats dear! Shows the importance of being honest. If you had lied about your friend and they didn't have her name in the system it would have been another story....

teeboy95:
@firsttymum abeg which date you see this kind price because for aug or sept travel I Don search everywer na 400k and above dey ground oo..how you take manage see dat price

Even BA is 322k

roberta26:
my sister hospital for this maryland no they smile at all,its just like the other maryland mums said.
i came here coz this is the only place i v family members..but i was with the hope that il get somtn good one way or another.
i practically visited all the hospitals in baltimore..called tons in other counties..they all gave high price quote with maximum of 2% discount..and their price quote does not include doctors,pediatricians or epidural fee.

sinai gave me a quote of $12,750, although Dr Parsons..the obgyn that gave me the letter..(charges $2k for normal delivery) sais some of his selfpay patients pay aroud 6 to 7k to d hospital after delivery..i dont know how true that is.

St. agnes gave hospital charges of $8k no discount..for both mother and baby.

mercy medical centre gave $12500 with 1% discount for 2days stay for mother and baby

greater baltimore medical centre gave a quote of $7700
same as medstar franklin square hospital.
holy cross hospital $5k-5k5 for mum and about 1k5 to 2k for baby...and about 1percnt discount.
Anne arundel medical centre..$5780 for mum and $2000 fr baby..2percnt discount.
all this fees does not include doctors, peadiatrician, epidural fees..just hospital stay

i dint bother calling prince george hospital after reading some1s experience with them here.

in short maryland is not a place to come to when you are working on a tite budget..they more or less charge the same amount they charge patients with insurance.

eventually thanks to @aye88..shes bn very helpful.. i finally settled for the hospital she used..although its 1hour 12min drive frm where i stay in baltimore..(which is about the same distance as some hospital in maryland)

its inova alexandria hospital in virginia.. they charge $4621 for mum and baby 2 days hospital stay..which myt be lessee than that depending on how long u stay...got a pediatrician that charges 200dollae..and obgyn DR anser charges 2500..accepted my naija results,and only requested for a few i dint do before

I know a lot of people have complained that Maryland can be quite expensive and to be honest I think it is too. I had my baby at Shady Grove Hospital in January 2013 and I stayed one night there and got a bill of about $4k plus and the doctor collected $5k, the baby was about $350 but bear in mind that this was all for one night oh! (although I took two shots of epidural cos I was in labour for 12 hours) and the pead fees was less than $300. The doctor I used then is indian and she understood I was trying to save costs so she allowed me to leave after a night stay in the hospital.

This time around I am not even nearing Maryland although she tried convincing me that she has moved practices and that the rates are much cheaper and that the hospital the new practice is affiliated too is also much more affordable and all, but abeg I cant shout! That time I was JJC now my eye has opened! I would be paying for accommodation too so the cost would be too much! Maybe if I had family in Maryland it would make mores sense! But all in all sha, like you said Maryland is not smiling.

Amother4life:
@ Tiababy; I can mail you anti malaria from Houston to be delivered by weekend if you are still in need. pm the delivery location.

Has anyone used gtbank naira card recently? Please, what was the pos rate. Thanks

God will bless you oh!

Tiababy:
Hi everyone, urgent please.
can anyone help me with the contact of a pediatrician that can help me here in the US. I am still preggy and waiting to give birth in Sept but my 3 year old is been ill for 5 days now.
I have been giving him paracetamol for a while now thinking it was change of environment thingy. But the whole thing got worse, need to get malaria drug for him according to his doctor from Nigeria. But I have discovered I can't get a malaria drug without prescription. Can anyone help me.

Hi Tiababy, what city are you in? maybe someone around there or coming there can help you out!

Note to mothers travelling with toddlers and bigger kids always remember to take drugs for your kids especially those that are not readily available in the US and by that I mean 'over the counter'. You would need prescription for Antimalaria, Antibiotics, even ordinary cough and cold drugs sef they sometimes don't sell.

Even on vacation I carry drugs with me! We never pray that our kids get sick but its good to hold just in case!

anonymousmum:
Hello Mr Ralph Lauren,

Thanks for the update on the taxes, I was only faintly aware about it. Information is power.

General comment - I would like to sound a note of caution to those that post specific details of their flights on here - date, airline, connecting flights, etc

It's a fairly new trend that I just noticed, and inasmuch as this is a public and anonymous forum, just be careful about this. I don't have a specific case or reason why, I just think its too personal..you don't know who is who.

I think someone had noted this earlier, just thought to bring it up again.

One love. *goes back to lurk mode*

I soooo agree with you on that ..... people get so consumed and forget its a public forum where most people use aliases, you don't know who be who!

Even all the lets hook up, lets hook up.... people should be careful! We live in a crazy world!

back2dmatter:
Yippee.... I got PTA at N199.50 yesterday

Thats very nice... can you share details eg. bank, location etc thanks

LagosNIV:
As we often mention here on Nairaland, your application will be reviewed with fresh eyes each time that you re-apply. We don't recommend that anyone apply within 90 days of a previous application, but many applicants who have been previously refused are able to eventually build sufficient ties to meet the requirements for the visa under U.S. immigration law.

Circumstances that may influence a decision at the time of your application include, but are not limited to, your job, your house, your family, your stated intent for going to the United States, your previous travel history, or your financial situation. Be honest with the VO about your current reasons for travelling, your previous refusals, and what has changed.

Hello VO, my cousin just got denied today and no reasons were given. She is due to be on her annual leave in September and I have invited her to accompany me and my family while we are on vacation in the US and because I would also be having my baby while I am there. Because I am asking her to join me I would also be her sponsor for the trip. During her interview she was asked if the purpose of the trip (which she told them holiday and to assist me with my son) and where she had travelled to prior (China and Ghana). I am not sure that we have done anything wrong so I would like for her to reapply as soon as possible so she can explain the situation. She took with her all my doctors correspondences and the receipts (I have even paid the hospital and Physicians fees as well as accommodation and flight tickets for my family and i) but nothing was asked for or checked. I know its normally recommended that you reapply 90 days after refusal (bearing in mind nothing has changed in our application) but by then I wouldn't need her and she would be back at work. What are your thoughts on this please?

LadyGuinivere:
Like I said. If her only reason for travel is to follow u for birthing e no go work. If na spose or mama, e go make sense to them, but cousin na longgggg thing

Yeah I understand. Thanks

LadyGuinivere:
Reason it like this...a person who's willimg to drop everything to escort her cousin to birth obviously has no serz tie in Naija. You are sponsoring her. Why won't she follow the nextbperson in the US that will offer her a job? That's why her interview was short.
So unless she has another reason to travel plus evidence of ties, there's no point in binning your kudi

Yeah I understand what you are saying but she is going to be scheduling her annual leave for that period, besides she would only be with me for a month pending when my hubby and mum come to join me. She had her annual leave letter from her office and all but nothing was asked/ckecked

Hi everyone my cousin just applied for a B1/B2 visa and she was denied. I was hoping she would come with me when I have my baby in the next few months. She really doesn't need to travel but i'm the one asking her to so she can help with my 2.5year old so I am basically her sponsor. She works for an architectural firm and she makes her own money, obviously not as much as me so that's why I decided to sponsor her which im actually doing cos I am paying for her ticket and all. She wasn't asked any questions just what her purpose was (vacation and to help me with my toddler) and where she had travelled to (Ghana and China)

Im thinking maybe she should reapply! Any thoughts on this my people?

LagosNIV:
The only requirements to interview for the U.S. business/tourist visa (B1/B2) is a DS-160 confirmation form that you will get from filling out the online application, and your passport. Each application is reviewed individually based on the particular circumstances of the case. The best advice anyone can give you is to honestly answer the questions that the VO asks you.

Hi everyone ive been a silent reader of the forum. my cousin just applied for a B1/B2 visa and she was denied. I was hoping she would come with me when I have my baby in the next few months. She really doesn't need to travel but i'm the one asking her to so she can help with my 2.5year old so I am her sponsor. She wasn't asked any questions just what her purpose was and where she had travelled to (Ghana and China)

Im thinking maybe she should reapply! Any thoughts on this?

princezino:
Hi All,
We arrived Dallas last week Friday on BA from LOS-LHR-DFW. POE was a breeze. With wifey and 2 kids. In reply to customary first question, replied that we were here for vacation and to have our baby. Asked if we had made prior medical arrangements, replied that we had contacted Docs, hospitals etc and that we had funds available to pay. Asked where I work.. Replied. End of story. Stamped in for 6 months. Wifey didn't even whisper a word... God is really awesome! In all the trip was exhausting but exhilarating. We declared food but bags weren't checked... those folks seemed quite bored that morning. We shuffled out and used the free shuttle to the Rental Centre to pick up our Rental. Within one hour we were on our way to Mesquite. (National will accept your Nigerian drivers license and Nigerian bank debit card. Just make sure you have your travel tickets printout available to show your outward travel date. Without a data plan, your smartphones Google maps will be useless for navigation. I had to rent a GPS device for $9/day.)

We had gotten a serviced aparthotel (2 BR with 2full bath + kitchenette). Free High speed internet, Cable, Telephone (local/US trunk) All bills inclusive, includes daily cleaning service with breakfast and 5-day dinner service. Laundry is coin-operated. All for $70/day longstay.. The place is a dream. Uber works very well in Dallas and nearby cities so movement wouldn't be hard for wifey.

Wifey's network directed us to a fantastic African/Nigerian shop in Garland. Well stocked with our peculiar delicacies.. even goat meat. enough palm oil, maggi, knorr and even Nigerian Peak powder.

Visited ObyGyn for first scheduled appointment. By the grace of God all is still okay. Now the wait begins for her. MIL arrives in a week.. then I can finally pass the baton and go back to rejoin the Lagos rat race till baby's grand entrance week. #SigningOut folks

Thank God for safe entry! Please whats the name of this 'aparthotel' It makes a lot of sense sha!

DeeandGLady:
Hello My people, Please I need answers to a few questions anyone can help or advice.

1) Does any one know the requirements needed to open a Bank of America bank account?

2) Does anyone know any online store that sell baby stuffs and accepts a Nigerian Debit card online, billing address compatibility has been an issue for me. Most stores I have tried only accepts billing address from US or some selected country as a result shopping online has been a major challenge for me. Please I don't like going to malls to shop, coupled with my sprained feet now I can't walk for so long, I would prefer to shop online. Please anyone who has successfully checkout with a Nigerian card on an online store help or advice. Biko baby go soon arrive and I never buy things.

3)Am presently in Houston, I need an affordable Cab service or private cab service who can I call to take me places for an[b] affordable price[/b]. Has anyone used a cab person or service before in houston, Please help.

Please am waiting for response, thanks my people.

Amazon, Gymboree and Crazy 8 accepts my gtbnaira card. I have been ordering from naija sef.

Whites:
It's not a question of winning, but rather of eligibility. Whether you are eligible to vie is a question that is addressed at the very beginning, not when you win.

Also, like Tvegas mentioned, if you're not sure about something, then I'm not sure why you feel so compelled to come on here and want to sound like an authority. It's especially annoying when you make it seem like you know everything and that your position is always the correct one, based on what you recently stated to be "based on your experience"- This, coming from someone who has been in the US for less than a year, and on an F1 visa to boot.

Ghen Ghen! Let me sit back and watch!

* Grabs popcorn*

abcv657:
Good day all...it's been a while since I posted here before the tsunami... Had my baby in naijja over seven months ago (story for another day) one thing I ovserved thou is they try n keep u long enough before cs is the option I was d one that ended up shouting for it after 10hrs at 2cm....

Anyways re baby cot n car seat my infant has been sleeping in her own cot since day one even when the grandparents came I made sure they let her sleep on her cot so it works for me too...

I actually got a really good wooden cot in naijja n the price was extremely reasonsable so I guess u find wat u look for ...,

Hi, Pls how and where did you get this cot. Im interested.

Hook a sister up.

Newmum15:
Pls guys,has anyone bought and shipped anything to Nigeria from Amazon?Pls help me o

Not directly to naija. I usually use a shipper who is in stafford, texas.

Remen:
So I had my interview today in Lag embassy.
Thanks to this forum, I used all the info from here.
Anyway this is how it went....
Went with hubby n Mum.

VO - What is d rship btw u all
Hubby- Wife, MIL
VO - Why do u wanna go to US
Hubby - To have our baby while mum in law takes care of my wife and baby and we also hv doctor and hospital Letter
VO - Can I see it
Hubby - Gives her all d documents with the budget sheet in front
VO - What hospital and doctor
Hubby - He told her
VO - Wat do u do and how much do u earn ?
Me(Wife) - xxxxxxxxxxxx
VO - What do u do for the company
Me- xxxxxxxx
VO- What do u do and how much do u earn?
Hubby - xxxxxxxx
VO - Asked hubby for account statement and payslip
VO- Asked mum wat she does and how many kids and if they are all in naija
VO - Ask mum if she has travelled before
Mum - Ghana(lol)
Hubby - Excuse me VO, u didnt ask where I have travelled to
VO - Laughs and said she has seen it but u can still mention the plces
Hubby - XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
VO - Pick ur passport next week
Mum - Did we get it? (lol)


Well it was a nice interview. I think u should have all d necessary documents and be sharp when answering questions.
Thanks to u all who got me prepared.

I have a quick question, between BA, Delta and United which is the most comfortable to travel with while pregnant and what is the maximum number of preggy weeks we can trvl

Congratulations, ive only flown BA and their max is 36 weeks.