KG's arrival

Our sweet little girl

James and I got to the hospital Thursday at 6 am and walked right into a labor room to get ready for my C-section. The doctors and nurses were super nice and we had a nice, slow C-section prep while my parents watched the boys at home (actually I think they slept until around when we went into the OR.)

Here's James in his jumpsuit scrubs- he thought he was ready for a chemical attack

I Once we got in the OR everything happened real quick. At 8:12 am, I could hear her good set of lungs. Here's KG's first picture- she was pretty blue when she was born. James cut her umbilical cord and then they brought her over so I could see her. Then James and KG went to another room for her bath and measuring while I was sewn up. 7 lbs 3 oz 19.6 inches

Before 9, I was back together and in the room with James and KG and she nursed like she'd been doing it her life a little while later. Here she is with bright eyes while we recovered together.

I was pretty groggy after my surgery but was happy to see my parents and the boys early afternoon. They were super excited to meet their new baby sister. I'm not sure T understood but he copied his big brothers in a 19 month old way. KG and I were super sleepy so they didn't stay long but everyone got to meet each other. Friday my parents and the boys came back to visit. We had a sparkling cider toast to welcome KG and shared some cookies that the boys helped bake. The boys all got to wear their Big Brother T-shirts and try out the Daddy bed- K had been talking about that bed for weeks.

Grandma got to come visit Saturday morning!

Here's KG in her carseat ready to go home Saturday afternoon-We had a celebration dinner that night- hamburgers, hotdogs, baked beans, and 2 pink cakes- we sang happy birthday but KG didn't get any cake! So many blessings!!

She's Here!

and we're home! We had a wonderful experience in the hospital- beautiful, healthy baby girl, I'm doing well, James was here, Nana & Papa were here to help with the boys, Grandma got to come visit today.  Here are a couple pictures- we'll add more later:

Our New Child

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No, KG did not arrive early but T looks like a different child and has turned into a little boy with his first haircut today- can you tell he got a LOT cut?

Here's before:

And after:

All 3 Lewis boys (and 1 Mommy) got haircuts today- although mine was not in the backyard. The boys were very excited all day about Daddy- they wanted him to get home from work, cut their hair, read them a book, follow him around the yard, ...

James is home!!!

Yeah!! we're so excited that James is home! You're probably wondering why I'm on the computer now- well, I did not do a great job of starting the truck so James is out working on that now but that does give me the chance to tell about our great day!

This morning was a normal Monday morning for us (speech) except K was very sad that I told him Daddy was coming after naps. So he was ecstatic around 2:30 today when we got the phone call that James would be in at 3:30 and we needed to leave then. We got to Green Ramp and the boys were very excited about all the cool red, white, and blue stuff- hats, flags, pinwheels, paratroopers, toy airplanes, stickers. Most of my pics of the boys with all the fun stuff turned out blurry bc they were waving them so wildly- but here's K in the hat he kept on until bedtime.We just had a short wait before we went out by the flightline where we saw James' airplane taxi in. The boys' excitement was growing (well T wasn't quite sure what was going on but he did know he wanted to go under the white tape and head out on the flightline.) When they opened the door to the airplane, two boys were jumping up and down and then they could see James walking in the formation towards us- so excited! After a short ceremony, we got to spend about 20 min with James and then he went to turn in his weapon (the boys did wonder why he couldn't take it home.) We picked James up and went to Joe's Crab Shack for dinner. I think T ate half my crab. K & C ate their popcorn shrimp but I think were saving room for dessert- how fun to paint a rice krispie crab with chocolate and strawberry sauce. James was amazed at how much the boys have changed- the conversations between K & C in the car, T acting like a little boy instead of a baby, C losing his toddler belly, ...

It's so much easier to eat out with two parents!! We were all excited for James to read the boys night-night story. We're so thankful he's home- and right in time for Kayleigh's birth!

Almost Home!

So I planned for Fun Fridays to meet at Pope Park Friday so we could watch James' plane land and then go meet him. It didn't quite work out like that but we did get to hang out with friends and watch planes land. This pic of the boys having lunch gave me flashbacks to when K was T's size and sitting at the table with friends- they all seemed so big then! How time flies! t was pretty neat this day to be with lots of new friends & with Page from my West Point tennis team & her daughter. Now we think James and her husband are on the same flight back home. So we may be hanging out together Monday waiting for their flight to get in.

I had been looking forward to James going to soccer with us Saturday morning and we missed him but we did make it through another game and pictures too. K's been telling me all the things he's been learning about soccer- pretty neat. Saturday night I was really glad to be able to go to the HomeFires dinner since James wasn't home. In February I told everyone thank you and that I wouldn't be back since I would be at dinner with James. That didn't work out so it was really nice to go have dinner with lots of wonderful women. What a great ministry!

Sunday we went to church where I heard about Evangelism for Dummies- what a great message. I'll have to listen to the podcast at www.mannachurch.org since I'm sure I'll miss next week. We did put our welcome home sign up today- I don't think James will see this blog before he gets home since I'm praying he's on a flight right now and will be here tomorrow afternoon.

The body at work

Wow! Today was pretty busy, tiring, and amazing in lots of ways. Pretty awesome to see how God works. I went this morning to see my doctor but when I got there she had to do an emergency C-section and told me to come back in an hour. So we headed to the library/ park on post. A good friend of mine was picking up her mom at the airport today then headed out of town and we weren't going to get to see them for several weeks. But who should "happen" to walk up at the park but my friend. Her flight was delayed and my doctor tied up in surgery so we got to enjoy the nice weather and lunch together.

Then home for quick napping before our Fun Fridays Clothing Swap. I got there and was absolutely amazed by how giving everyone was. We had way more things brought in than I would have ever imagined. We definitely needed more tables and more time to set things up. It was wonderful- everyone helped together- watching kids, sorting clothes, ... Then after everyone got the items they needed everyone helped pack up and move the remaining items to the storage building to be donated to people in Campbell Terrace (a neighborhood our church helps.)
We even had two husbands there packing and loading- a huge help at the end!

So a good day but I was worn out. I was so glad that my boys were super excited about having leftover oatmeal for dinner- you would have thought I'd said pizza for dinner. And then I just got a phone call from James. He's in Kuwait now waiting to fly back home- yeah one step closer!

Waiting

I wasn't ready to get the message from James Saturday that instead of arriving home this coming Friday, James is now scheduled to get home Monday. We had plans for a night out, soccer game together, church together, ... (Here's a pic from the soccer game game Saturday in the cold which I'd hoped would be our last one without James. Despite the rainy cold, it was great to see how the kids have gotten so much better at soccer.)Now I realize a few more days isn't the end of the world- no, I wouldn't choose to wait longer but I need to trust God that it will be okay. James will see his boys, me, his mom, and his little girl (I am really praying for him to get home before she's born.)

so 15 kids & 4 moms here Saturday night for our group babysitting night was fun and a great distraction. The kids all did great- of course, what's not to love about friends, coloring, pizza, cookies, popcorn, and movies!

Well, Sunday we were glad to be back in church and got to hear one of the pastors speak. He talked about when God tells David that he is not to build the temple, but his son Solomon is. It was great to hear him talk about God's plan for our children to go farther in God than we are.

I did suggest to Janelle turning off the computer. God apparently knew I needed more than advice so we had several power outages Friday night that finally convinced me to turn it off. Now, if I'd just keep doing that although I still keep it on some in hopes of hearing from James. But we did use it today to learn about Ireland and some good St. Patrick's Day songs. The boys colored and decorated green papers with shamrocks. We also made good use of green food coloring for St. Patrick's Day food- for bkfast we had green milk & green oatmeal. For dinner, green pasta, broccoli, green milk, and pistachio pudding. For family time, we sang "I'm a little shamrock" and here's T singing his favorite song "Awesome God." Thankfully we had another good bedtime- I think it might have been bc C didn't nap this afternoon- too excited about having friends come over to visit. Now, I should get up and go get something done around the house but sitting feels much better! Not many bedtimes left until James is home!

Getting ready

So we had a really good weekend then a normal Monday but with gorgeous weather so we got to be outside a lot! Tuesday we didn't go to PWOC- I wanted to make sure we didn't have any more surprise or lingering illness and I had a dr appt Tuesday afternoon. Pops Leon came to watch the boys. K was way too excited to take a nap- everyone noise had him jumping out of bed. I made it in plenty of time- even got a nice quiet drive where I could listen to the words on the radio. I heard a song that talked about waiting on the Lord and while I'm waiting I worship You. I didn't know that song was meant for me to get ready for the wait at the dr office- an hour! I went back and forth between enjoying the quiet, using the time for quiet time with God, and being impatient! Thankfully when I met the doctor who will deliver our little girl (unless God has other plans), she was wonderful! I did wish James could have been there to hear her. She definitely went over all the risks of another C-section but sounded very knowledgeable and competent- not overly or underly concerned and she was super nice. Even gave me a hug on the way out and scheduled another appointment with her instead of through the front desk. I'm really glad that our little girl should stay with me after the birth instead of us both being carted off to different recovery spots.

After a good dr appointment, I made a last (maybe) commissary trip before her arrival and then headed home. I was greeted with "can we go? we were good. can we go?" by two boys- I'm sure little T would have joined in if he could say all those words. The boys had a great time playing with Pops Leon and were very excited about the Golden Corral. so we loaded up and the boys ate way more than their age prices- free for C & T. They were very excited to pick out some of their food especially dessert- ice cream on top of a cookie with strawberries and M&Ms on top. After good bye hugs, we headed home. We got to talk to Grandma and are praying about her biopsy coming up in 2 weeks. She has lots of prayers going up right now- James from Iraq, the boys and I from here. We're also praying for Leon's upcoming surgery next week.

This morning we slept in- since the time change the boys have slept past 8 am each day- I don't know if that's ever happened before. I did decide to skip naps today- partly to enjoy the great weather and partly for a better bedtime- at least one of those turned out well- guess which!
We went to the park by the library on post, had a picnic, and got to see some Fun Friday friends- which K got a kick out of since it's Wednesday. Then headed over to Melissa's house- it was great to see her and her kids. I told her I wouldn't say it again but it sure would have been nice if they'd moved in our neighborhood. The kids had a great time playing together and we had a good visit even if T thought he needed to stay in my lap half the time. After a yummy taco salad dinner (with most of the right ingredients), time for baths, a little playtime, and then a rough bedtime. Aaagh!!!!! I decided that the rough bedtime did help me with cleaning up a little before my big belly made me ready to sit down and rest. Another exciting thing today was getting a blog comment from Steven- my long lost brother :) maybe we've found a way to keep in touch- although his blog date said last year so I don't know if that's very up to date. Maybe he'll join Facebook! Anyway, God gave us a gorgeous day outside and so many blessings- including 8 days until James is home!!

Good weekend!

After a few rough days of sickness, we had such a good weekend. Friday night we were blessed by a vegetarian friend bringing us a very yummy dinner of soy chicken, rice, and salad. The boys and I loved the little drumlets and were more excited than if we'd had our normal Friday night pizza night. And I didn't have to cook or clean up- a great start to the weekend.

Saturday morning Grandma came to visit and spend time with the boys so I could get a break.

The boys were super excited to see her- T learned a new word "Spider" as he played with the spidermen Grandma brought. I went to lunch with a friend which was great and then headed to the spa to enjoy the wonderful present James' mom gave me for Christmas- a gift certificate for a facial, manicure, and pedicure. It was wonderful to sit there and be pampered for a couple hours- what a great gift! And she brought lunch and there was enough for our dinner too- so another night of no cooking! what a blessing! And we had great weather outside so the boys were able to play outside a lot- I think that's where God meant for little boys to be!

Sunday was another gorgeous day and we went to the zoo with friends. K did ask me in the car why we weren't going to church. I told him they still had a few germs left so I didn't want to take them to the indoor nursery and sunday school rooms. so of course then he asked why we could go to the zoo- they're really past the contagious time but I just wanted to be sure.

We tried to ride with our friends but couldn't quite get the 5 carseats into a vehicle. We had a great time at the zoo. Here's a pic of the boys watching the polar bear- you can see T, me, and my big belly in the reflection. The boys loved watching the puffins again- brought back lots of memories from two other zoo trips- when K was 18 months old on Sunday before C was born on Wednesday and last fall the day before James deployed.

here's us right after our yummy lunch stopT hung in there but was really ready for a napcan you tell C was excited about the tram ride? the end of a fun trip to the zoo.


surprisingly (after missed naps yesterday, a late bedtime, and springing forward an hour), K & C stayed awake the whole drive home. we had a quick dinner and then spent some more time outside- them playing and me sitting- today was great but wore me out! I sat outside thanking God for the beautiful day and our wonderful yard. Then early to bed for all. Only 12 days until James is home!!

now Thursday I'm trying to remember my Glass is Half Full

flowers a friend brought over today!

K was better at putting together the houses than me.

can you tell we're enjoying having our vita-mix back- that's a Funky Monkey moustache

here's our new to us double stroller

I know I need to choose to focus on all our many blessings, thank God for them, and look for the things He is teaching me and doing in my life. (But it is harder between the chicken pox, the disappointment of missing a fun day with friends, the cabin fever, and all the clean-ups- yes, I do know those are small things. I am very thankful for my little ones- in sickness and in health, when they are so sweet and when they drive me crazy, even when they try to eat a grapefruit whole and throw up because it was too much, when they have an accident in the bathtub after I just cleaned it from the last accident, when we get chicken pox despite being vaccinated...)

We were so excited about the fun day we had planned today- going to the Durham museum with friends- all that changed when I took T's PJs off to change his shirt and saw spots. The boys were very disappointed but thankfully K took it like a champ (after a minute) and C followed him. I also greatly appreciated the wooden blocks (like lincoln logs) I got at the consignment sale for $3 to put away for when needed- today was the day! God knew we'd need some blocks today!I think God is teaching me to depend on Him instead of needing to spend time with others so much- and to get other people to help me. I'm so thankful that women from my Fun Friday group are helping in so many ways with our group. Sometimes God gives you chicken pox to make sure you ask for help :)

So I was having a little pity party for myself last night- thinking I'm the world's worst mom- when K asked me if I had something I needed to tell him. I thought lots of things but asked what he meant. He said "don't you want to tell me you're sorry for acting sad." That's not really what I was thinking at the time, but he really was right- we have so many blessings I really shouldn't let cancelled plans, a few chicken pox, and grumpy sick boys get me down.

Some of our many blessings-

James will be home in 2 weeks!

I got lots of nice emails from people praying for us

a wonderful friend brought over some groceries and flowers

another friend is bringing dinner tomorrow night

Grandma is coming on Saturday and I'm going to the spa

we have a wonderful family, a great home, terrific neighborhood, church, & friends, and an awesome God who loves us more than we can imagine (K was telling me today how it was a miracle that God knew who he was even before God put him in my tummy- pretty awesome!)

I started this Tuesday night

So many blessings! This afternoon we found a doublestroller at the consignment sale.

The boys went to childcare on post and had dinner and a good time there. I got to have dinner with Jenean- no kids there! it's like a whole different experience eating with only adults!

Good Day

So I had my last weekly ultrasound today and KG looks great. She's almost 6 pounds already. I finally asked my doctor about when I would be with KG and able to nurse after my C-section. She said really soon after I get all stitched up. She laughed at me a little (in a nice way) but I'd been dreading asking bc back when K was born I had to wait for 4+ hours just bc of hospital policy. But I learned yesterday that this year Womack changed so that moms recover from C-sections in the mother-baby unit instead of in the main hospital recovery room so the baby can be with you right away! Yeah!!

Our next door neighbor's teenage daughter watched the boys while I went to my appt and they all had a good time. Both times she's watched them I've come home to 3 boys happily drawing at the table- she said T said "draw" and "star" while they were coloring. When I got home, the first thing they asked was if they could go to the birthday party. K was so excited that it didn't snow much so that we could go. The boys had a great time! I'm not sure if it was my big belly or the 3 boys all over the place but I was worn out. Here's T whacking a mole
the happy kids eating pizza and watching Chuck E. Cheese- C hugged him lots of times- even chased him down to give him a high 5.
Here's C & one of the boys' new friends
K & C driving a car- gave me flashbacks to our last time at Chuck E. Cheese (when K turned 1) although that was a lot easier- James was here & we had a toddler & a baby in a stroller instead of 3 boys all over the place!
here's the birthday girl,her mommy & Chuck E. Cheese. am I good friend or what? I didn't add the pic of Mary Kay finishing off the whole birthday cake or her showing off her dancing skills! :)
Our boys were so excited to be a part of their friend's special day!