Mar

31

i finally have an ally!

Filed Under emily, family, hannah, life, medicine, my little man, saba, thoughts | 2 Comments

There was actually a time a little over a year ago I jokingly threatened Emily to take her blog off the internet because she wasn’t using it very often. I’m totally pathetic. I’ve obviously been less than consistent with mine, but seriously . . . I’m going to do better. Just the other day, Emily flicked my little statement back in my face . . . “Do you want me to take down your blog? You don’t seem to be using it very much.” I guess I deserved that.

We visited St. Maarten this past weekend. The primary reason for our visit was to visit the doctor to get an ultrasound on Emily’s pregnant belly. Emily had been looking forward to this little “get away” for quite sometime. I could tell she was excited by the way she kept describing how cute Hannah would be swimming in the ocean on a beach that didn’t have an 80 foot, rock-dropping, cliff overshadowing your every move like the Saba beach. Granted, the sand was quite a bit softer than the sand found on Saba, but I love our little here-it-is now-it’s-not beach. I think the coastline of Saba is one of the reasons it can truthfully be called the “Unspoiled Queen” of the Caribbean. Who plans a vacation to an island that may or may not have a beach? Not many!

We visited the doctor and he asked what we thought we were having. When Emily was pregnant with Hannah, she started calling her a girl well before we found out. I told her I didn’t want our little kid to get a complex if it turned out to be a boy, so I called it a boy. I was wrong. Once again, Emily demonstrated how connected she is with our child and started calling this kid a boy well before we found out . . . and once again, I wanted to add a little balance to our relationship. I called it a girl. I was wrong. Maybe I’ll listen to her next time . . . then again . . .

As Dr. Tjon moved the ultrasound probe to the other side of Emily’s belly he said, “Let’s see which one of you is right.” It was the most clear ultrasound picture I think I have ever seen. We could have grabbed the guy that was stumbling in front of the hospital to read the ultrasound . . . it was unmistakable!

Just like with Hannah, I’m excited to meet this kid, and just like Emily, I don’t think I know what to do with a little boy. You see, I’ve been swimming in a sea of estrogen my entire life. Let me explain. In my family growing up, there were two boys, three girls, then me at the end. My closest brother was 12 years older than me, so you can see there was a lot of estrogen surrounding me. Then, I got married and there was balance between the hormones. The balance was short lived as we added a dog to our family . . . a female dog. A short while later we added another female dog. I was losing this battle, and quickly. We then moved to Texas to open a wedding gown store. Um, can anyone say estrogen? Loads and loads of estrogen!!! If that wasn’t enough, Emily’s sister moved in with us. Then, her friend also moved in. Let’s pause and recap. On Team Testosterone . . . me. On Team Estrogen . . . Emily, Kyaha the dog, Paris the dog, Charmain the sister-in-law, Stephanie the sister-in-law’s friend, and ALL THOSE BRIDES (oh, and their mothers, grandmothers, bridesmaids, and other girlfriends). Yeah, I was truly losing the battle. Well, Stephanie moved out, then Charmain, then we got out of our wedding gown shop. The tide was starting to shift in my favor. Of course, that couldn’t last too long. After nine years of marriage we finally got a bun in the oven . . . it turned out to be a girl! I was certainly not disappointed in the least. Hannah has been and is the greatest blessing in my life next to my sweet, darling, sassy wife. I’m amazed at how much she has added to my life. However, in terms of my lifelong battle to even out the hormones in my life, it was just another nail in the coffin.

By the way, if you’ve ever wondered what specialty I’m going to pursue in medicine . . . it will NOT (can I make that any bigger?) be OB/GYN!

I finally have some help on the way to balance the hormones in the Lesher house!

Mar

13

mmm . . . i’m gonna miss the view

Filed Under family, happiness, life, saba, school, thoughts | 1 Comment

As my time on Saba draws to a close, people keep telling me to enjoy the time I have left. I understand what they’re saying. Many, if not most, students who come to this island to study medicine view Saba like a prison . . . something akin to Alcatraz. Now, if I were in San Francisco Bay, on Alcatraz island, locked in a cell . . . I’d be counting my days to get off. I do admit, I am counting the days a bit, but it’s not with excitement to get off this “rock”. I am excited for a few things back in the States, but for the most part I’m going to miss everything about this island . . . well not everything.

Emily wrote a post about things she’s going to miss and things she’s not going to miss. Here’s my list.

Things I won’t miss:

  • The so called “fast” internet they have on Saba
  • Not being able to buy fruit & vegetables every day I go to the store (only once a week – if you make it to the store before everyone else)
  • Sitting in a classroom all day long, with the storm shudders closed, freezing cold air conditioning blasting, sitting in a seat built for a high school student
  • Not being able to see my family with a greater frequency

Things I will miss:

  • The view
  • The warm weather
  • The view
  • Sitting on my patio watching the sky (and it’s reflection in the ocean) change a million different colors as the sun goes down
  • The view
  • Sitting on my patio at night under a cloudless star-filled sky – truly it’s AMAZING
  • The view
  • The quietness of this island
  • The view
  • The calmness of this island
  • The view
  • The fact that it takes 20 minutes to drive from one end of the island to the other
  • The view
  • The fact that there is no traffic whatsoever (unless you count getting stuck in Windwardside for 30 seconds while everybody figures out who gets to go first at the corner by Big Rock)
  • The view
  • Watching the sun rise over the ocean and then being able to go to Wells Bay later that day and see it set on the ocean
  • The view
  • Really, there are just too many things to list – I could go on and on
  • I hate to be cliché, but did I mention, the view is INCREDIBLE?!

So, I love this island and feel, as my time grows to a close, I’ve really taken advantage of pretty much every day I’ve been here. I don’t think one day has passed that I haven’t paused for a moment to appreciate THE VIEW!!! I do have to say, though, that what I treasure most about this island is the perspective it has taught me about life and family. This will have to be another post by itself, but Saba has taught me what is most important in life and how to appreciate it.

The View

That’s St. Barths on the horizon . . . yeah, I’m gonna miss that view!

Mar

8

the inside of my head

Filed Under emily, family, life, thoughts | Leave a Comment

There’s only been one time in my life I’ve been consistent at keeping a journal. Right now, that doesn’t seem like a big deal, but the other day Emily was explaining to me how she envisions her blog in the future. A record for our kids to read about the early part of their life. It will also provide a window into our lives for them to see us as something other than parents.

This conversation really got me thinking about the direction of my own blog. Although I’m currently just writing to the empty space of the internet, I’d like for it to hold some actual value and purpose . . . something other than taking up space in the nebulous world of cyberspace. That purpose, as I see it (and inspired by Emily) is a record for my children.  My life as I see it.

I remember reading a few journal entries my mom wrote around the time I was born. It was really fun to peek into her mind at a time she didn’t know me. It really meant a lot to me. So, hopefully someday in the distant future, Hannah and her siblings (number to be determined) will be reading these posts and will be able to appreciate who I am as seen from a different perspective – one that’s a little closer to the inside of my head.