Teen #3 (And A Future Farmer- I Hope!)

13 years ago, on a warm sultry early morning in Meridian, Idaho, I was awakened from a good sleep at 5:30am with a pop-pop sensation/sound.  Did I dream it?  I'd better check.  Off to the bathroom I scuffled and sure enough my water had broken.  I hurried back to the bed to tell my husband and before he had fully woken my contractions had started in full.  I called the hospital, went outside to the travel trailer my parents were staying in to let them know what was going on and off we went to the hospital in downtown Boise.  It took about thirty minutes from our house to the birthing floor.

During the drive I remember telling my husband that everything was okay.  He didn't need to speed because my contractions weren't very bad. (Our first child came in 2 hrs, the second was induced for various reasons.)  We parked and I waddled up to the birth floor and was just about to check in when this tremendous contraction hit.  I remember looking up at the clock.  It was 6:10am.

I was escorted to triage and the nurse proceeded to ask me to change and of course, pee in a cup. I went in and changed but was unable to oblige the nurse with the other.  I was in a lot of pain, there was a lot of blood and it just wasn't gonna happen.  When I returned and told her I couldn't go she got me up on the table to check my progress.  The next words I heard were, "I see a head!"  Then she turned to the other nurse behind her and said, "Get me the resident on duty, STAT! We are having a baby right here."

The resident got there pretty darn quick but that nurse almost delivered without him, all the time apologizing that I wasn't in a private birthing suite. (Uhmmm... I was not caring where I was.  I just wanted to finish the task at hand.) My son was born around 6:30am.  My own doctor hadn't even made it despite my persistent warnings to him that I birth fast.  "Don't worry," he said. "I live ten minutes from the hospital." Ha!  I got to tell him, "I told you so."

It is only fitting that we had chosen the name Remington for him because he shot out like a bullet! One hour- start to finish.

Today, thirteen years in the future, a wonderful young man stands before me and I am blessed.  He is a crazy silly kid but I see a godly man starting to form.  God is good!  Happy Birthday Remington Carlisle Lewis!!!

Resources For Homesteading and Country Life

We've made some programming changes with our cable subscription to save some $$. We have dropped the movie channels (Showtime, HBO etc.) because we just don't watch them all that much. Instead we added a different tier with the DIY network on it. Imagine my surprise to find out there is a cable channel for rural living- and we have it now! I love it. My favorite show thus far is Living The Country Life. If you go to the show's website you can subscribe to a free year of their magazine. Check it out at http://www.livingthecountrylife.com/ .

Another source in the past I have turned to and loved is Mother Earth News. I have ignored the title in favor of the good info the magazine provides. I have picked up issues here and there for the past few years and have never subcribed. Well, I won't be subscribing or picking up any more issues. In the News From Mother Column of the December '08/January '09 issue (Front of the magazine, Pg. 6) the article titled Three Mountains We Must Climb gave me a shock. They support population control and suggest that each adult only be allowed one child. (That would be two per couple- one for the man and one for the woman.) Oh, my goodness! Now if a couple chooses to have 0, 1 or 2 children that is their choice and that's fine as well as the choice to have more. But please don't tell me that the government needs to make that choice for me. I like the freedom the U.S. constitution gives me and I plan to fight tooth and nail to keep it. Mother needs to talk to the people of China- the people not the government- and find out how they like population control laws. I will not be a supporter of this publication until they change their stance on this issue.

Taylor Hazel Lewis has arrived!

Getting ready to go home from the hospital... she is tiny!

The Lewis Brood!

Reagan is officially a big sister!

Taylor Hazel Lewis

Born: 10/24/08

6 lbs 7 oz

Vacation Blogging Break

Sorry to be gone for a few days. My DH is on vacation and even though we haven't gone anywhere, we've been quite busy. Here is a little catch up for the Grandma's... Andi has glasses now, Seven has bangs, my due date for the new baby is November 7th (Much to the kid's dissappointment, there was only one heart beat at the Doc's.), and it has been beautiful weather for the past week (sunny and 70). We have spent most of our time outdoors.

I've been trying to load pictures, but technology is conspiring against me this morning. Check back later today.

I have surrendered!

Yesterday I finally sent the DH to the store for saltine crackers. I couldn't stand the constant "sick" feeling any longer. I think today I should buy stock in Nabisco. The crackers have helped a lot. I also find that if I'm craving something and eat it, it doesn't make me sick. However, if I'm not craving something and eat it- sick. Fair enough... I should eat what I crave. Unfortunately that has been seafood. Salmon, crab, lobster, shrimp etc. Not exactly frugal items. My husband treated me to Red Lobster last night but that can't happen too often.

The DH is fishing today but it is a catch and release only river. Sigh... I would love fresh pan-fried trout for dinner. Why can't I be craving pickles? So much easier and cheaper! I know several of my readers out in blog land are pregnant too. Do/did you all have cravings? What are/were they?

Also, I have read that cravings usually mean your body is deficient in something. If I'm craving fish and seafood what do you all think my body is needing?

Sooo... slow.... sooo... tired

I'm finding that the first trimester tireds have hit. It's 3:30 pm and I'm just spent. I wanted to make pizza dough in the bread machine- didn't happen. I was going to bake a pound cake for strawberry shortcake... no energy to do that. Even posting this blog post is zapping my strength. This was going to be dinner: Homemade pizza, salad, strawberry shortcake. Dinner now may be sandwiches, grapes and chocolate chip cookies. ( I made the cookies yesterday.) Somehow I have to muster strength to make it to church tonight. Okay... I'm going to take a nap.

We have a girl name!

After proposing at least 100 different options for girl names, the DH has okayed one: Taylor Hazel! Hazel was one of my DH's grandmothers. Taylor is a girl I know at my children's Bible club.

So now we wait 3 or 4 more months, until ultrasound time, to find out if we need the boy or girl name. Unless the baby decides not to let us know.

Don't ask me what I want because I'm not sure. I'll be good either way. We do have a lot more girl handme downs, but my son and DH need some more male blood in the house.

The Lewis Household is expecting another kid...

I haven't confirmed it with my doctor yet but I have taken two tests.

The first test I took last week when I was pretty sure I was late. The result was inconclusive. My oldest daughter and I agreed I was pregnant. There was a very faint line in the section that was supposed to show the result. My husband (maybe it was denial) said that didn't count because it was barely showing and he felt the line should be bright blue like the control line.

Well, I waited a week. (Good thing the double test kit was cheaper then the single.) Today, it didn't even take a minute. Two very bright lines showed up on the test.

Here's a poll of the family: Dad thinks we need another boy and son thinks we need another boy. The three year old says she wants to be a big sister. The older girls think a girl is in order and I think a boy would be good for the men in the family but I think it will be a girl.

Before I was even dating my husband, we were hanging out in a group of friends, talking about the future and one girl said, "John's going to end up with five girls." John promptly replied, "And I'll love every one of them." Now, he doesn't recall saying that, but let me tell you, I remember. It was one of the first things that inclined my attention toward him- how many 21 year old guys say things like that? Well, we have three girls and we lost another little girl at 8 months into a pregnancy, so if this baby was a girl, that would be girl #5. Yes, I think crazy like that.

I also have to confess to thinking girls are a lot easier, for me, then boys to raise. I can deal with all the emotional hoopla. It's the physical antics of my boy that tire me out. My mom (who had four boys and myself) once sent me a cartoon. A mom was asking her daughter what she planned to do that day. The girl answered that she was going to finish reading a book and then draw some pictures. Next the mom asked her son his plans. The little boy had two plungers and some rope in his hand and said, "I'm going to see if I can walk on the ceiling." That just sums up the difference in boys and girls to me.

We have a boy name- have had it for a long time. Winchester Alan Lewis.

We need to have a girl name. I like Eliza Jane but the husband wasn't too thrilled with it. I'll have to research more family names. We generally go with a more unique first name and a traditional middle name: Seven Louise, Andi Rose, Remington Carlyle, Reagan Catherine. (Louise, Carlyle, Catherine and also Alan are all names-first or middle- of grandparents.)

If you have suggestions let us know! It would appear that the baby will arrive sometime in November, God willing. If you are inclined, please pray for the health of the baby and myself as I am the dreaded "38" years old which put both of us in the "risky" pregnancy category.

I also will share that the DH and I don't plan pregnancies or use birth control. I was ready to have kids about a year before the DH but when he finally was ready (about three years into the marriage) he said that we should give our planning to the Lord. So ever since, God has been in control. This is to reassure people who are contemplating family planning that giving God control of your family doesn't have to mean 16 children- though it may. God knows exactly what everyone can handle and won't give you more than that.

I also want to give a shout out to my sister-in-law (DH's little sister). Angela and Grant Dilger are expecting their 7th baby. They got married about six years after us, so that just shows that God does different things in each family.