A Winter Update

All is going awesome around the Winter household lately! We are all adjusting to having a new person living with us. So far, I have to say this has been the easiest adjustment of the three births (knock on wood!).

Esther turned 5 on Tuesday and is assuming a new role as a "big girl". She has been working harder at gymnastics and is eagerly awaiting to find out if she is going to be moving up to Level 3 at the beginning of the summer. She has another meet in Tampa on Saturday morning and I am excited to see how she does as she has really been improving lately.

Hannah is potty training again and we are finally having success! She goes pee-pee really well when we're at home (forget it when we're out!). The new trick to get her to go...peanut-butter M&M's. She loves them and will go about three times an hour if it means she'll get a few more treats. She has a pretty bad cold, but we are trying to get rid of it without having to go to the doctor.

Lydia is the definition of a perfect baby. She nurses well, has put herself on a 3 hour schedule, and sleeps like a teenager. She only gets up one time eat in the middle of the night and goes right back to sleep after. She is growing like a weed. She hasn't been tested again for her jaundice since we last got the word that she had gone down a little. I assume it's much better though because she doesn't look so orange anymore. I was calling her my "fake-bake".

On Tuesday, Josiah's JV basketball team lost in the quarter finals to Ocala Christian by only two points. I would be excited that the season is finally over, but it doesn't really matter because now it baseball time! No time for breaks around here! I can't believe that the school year is going to be over in just a few short months.

Our van is at the "doctor" (that's what we tell the girls) again. The internal computer is having to be replaced for the 5th time now. It is a bit frustrating but we are really thankful that Grandma Deb is out of town and can use her car til we get ours back. We have decided that it's about time to start looking for a new van as ours is falling apart. I am really excited at the possibly getting rid of my "happy-mobile" and moving on to something that doesn't bounce up and down the street.

I re-joined the gym last night and did my first Body Step class with my friends Sarah and Jill. I'm still not allowed to do the sit-ups and other Ab stuff yet, but it felt great to get back to class.

We are extremely blessed!!!

More Prayers Needed for Lydia

I am seeking prayer, yet again, for Baby Lydia. She has been having trouble with jaundice for the past few days and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. She has been stuck unsuccessfully in the heels several times over the past few days, as they have been trying to get enough blood to be able to test the bilirubin levels. Today she had to have two more heel sticks and two "needle" blood draws, one in each hand.

The ARNP said today that if her levels were at 16 or higher, she would have to be admitted to the hospital for "phototherapy". We scrapped by today with levels at 15.3, and have to get her blood drawn again on Saturday for a recheck.

Please join us in praying that her levels will have decreased and we won't have to go into the hospital. Thanks All!

Lydia's Birth Story

You may be wondering why I would post all the details of Lydia's birth...because it's a crazy story! Here's how it went:

Saturday morning I woke up not really having the best nights' sleep. My contractions seemed a little stronger than normal but after a few hours they hadn't gotten any closer together or stronger. One of the midwives had told me that I would know the difference between the "practice" contractions that I had been having since I was about 20 weeks and the real ones. Since I wasn't feeling that different, I didn't really think that I was in early labor.

We called our midwife around 10am to inform her that the contractions were all over the place ranging from 7-10 minutes apart, but not intentsifying. She had me take some herbs and go lie down to rest to see if they would go away. About an hour and a half later, the contractions we still the same so the midwife wanted me to get up and moving again to see if they would get stronger. Well...instantly I had 3 really intense contractions about 5 minutes apart and called Josiah and the midwife to have them get here quickly. Josiah made it home about 5 minutes later when the contractions were about 2 minutes apart and I was feeling like I needed to push. Only another 4 or 5 contractions and Baby Lydia Grace was here...not waiting for the midwife or her assistant. The entire labor and delivery was documented as lasting approximately 53 minutes.

The Lord was good and the birth happened completely natural with no complications! She was delivered by her mommy, her daddy who was on the phone getting step-by-step instructions, her Grandma Sheila who wrapped her in a blanket, and her Grandma Deb who was scurrying around to hand us everything we were calling for. She is a blessing and a wonderful baby who currently (knock on wood) loves to sleep.

Thank you all for your prayers!

Lydia'

Lydia'