Emily’s Musings

Dear Hannah,

You are now 22 months old. Our family has had some big changes in the past two months, so this letter will have many pictures to show your development, and the major life changes you have endured like a champ.

First, your daddy graduated from the basic science program at Saba University School of Medicine. What does this mean? He is half way through med school which makes him half a doctor, or as we like to to call him, a “tor.” He will earn the “Doc” part when he graduates in 2010 when he becomes a REAL DOCTOR. We all can’t wait for that day.

With all big accomplishments, come big changes. That meant we had to leave our beautiful home on Saba, in the Caribbean. Saba was your first home. You have grown up as a Caribbean baby, playing with rocks, geckos, iguanas, and swimming in the ocean. As much as we loved it there, the only reason we could live in the Dutch West Indies for an extended period of time is if your dad was in school. Since he finished the program (thank goodness for that! I I would DIE if he became an eternal or professional student) we have moved back to the states where he will do clinical rotations.

(This is what a Caribbean baby tan looks like compared to a Utah baby tan.)

The whole family (including the whining dogs) arrived in Texas at the end of April. You traveled so well. It took 19 hours to get from our doorstep on Saba, to Daniel and Lydia’s doorstep in Texas. Not once did you have a meltdown, or cry, or bother the other passengers traveling on our plane. I owe you BIG TIME for that. Someday you are going to read this, and I’m sure you will remind me of how you were such a calm and easy baby, and then your are going to ask for something BIG. I know it.

We went sailing with a friend of ours in Texas. (Who is a dentist and tried relentlessly to convince your dad to go to dental school instead of medical school. He now refers to your daddy as a “real doctor” because apparently, dentist’s aren’t real doctors.) You LOVE boats, and the ocean, so we thought you would be very excited about this sailing excursion.

However, about five minutes into the sail, you said, “All done?” SEVERAL TIMES. Then you would point out other boats on the water and say, “SEE EM!” with all the energy you could find in your little body. I don’t think you realized you WERE ON A BOAT. When I pointed out the water, and told you we were on the ocean, you shook your head and said, “No?” I know I was telling a little white lie, like moms do from time to time, (like when you demand more marshmallows, and I tell you they are all gone even though there is an entire bag waiting for you in the pantry). You are smart enough to know the Caribbean ocean is CLEAR, and turquoise, not dark blue, and murky. When your daddy took you to the front of the sail boat, you looked back at me and said, “FUN!” Good, I’m glad you finally figured out what were were doing was fun.

It has been very interesting to see the world change through your eyes. The first couple of days in Texas, you asked me to go swimming, and you kept looking out the back sliding door asking me about the ocean. You would say, “Ocean? Go?” Again, and again. It broke my heart to tell you the ocean was all gone. You no longer talk about geckos, iguanas, the ocean, or going swimming. It makes me sad to think of the life we left, but it also gives me comfort that you have adapted to your new life of BIKES, WALKS, and SWINGS. THIS IS ALL YOU TALK ABOUT. ALL DAY. EVERY DAY.

(I’d like to point out that your dad put your hair in pig tails on this day. He is multi-talented.)

You are still obsessed with “messes.” Part of having fun at the park is cleaning off EVERY WOOD CHIP, ON EVERY STAIR.

Texas is known for BIG TRUCKS. In fact, I think Texas alone supports the BIG TRUCK industry. Driving around town, you would yell, “TRUCK!” every time you saw a truck. Which was like every other vehicle.

While eating at Taco Bell, (I had to have it because your baby brother was TOTALLY craving it and I had been deprived of such fine cuisine for over two years) you noticed some balloons tied to the back of all the chairs. I am embarrassed to say this, but at almost two years old, YOU HAD NEVER SEEN A BALLOON. You looked very thoughtfully at them and then exclaimed, “CIRCLES!” Yes, they are indeed circles that float up in the air. You poor thing, I will have TONS of balloons at your birthday party in two months. That is if my pregnant brain can remember something that important. You affectionately call them “a banoon.” Yes, you put an article in front of “banoon” every time you talk about them.

You are an excellent sleeper. In fact, I think your grandparents might start asking you for advice on how to sleep 12 hours a night. There was one night of adjustment when we got to Texas, and you had a meltdown when we put you in a Pak N’ Play at Daniel and Lydia’s house. I would ask you, “Where is Hannah’s bed?” and you would point to the portable crib, and cry, “Hannah’s bed!” Then I would ask you where mommy’s bed was, and you would point to the bed and cry, “Mommy’s!” After establishing the bed assignments, you relented, and went to bed just fine.

You were an excellent traveler driving from Texas to Utah. You sat for 22 hours, and really, I don’t even have the patience for that. We are now staying at your Grandma and Grandpa Lesher’s house in Utah. You made yourself at home quite quickly, living by the “toddler rule” which is, “WHAT’S MINE IS MINE, AND WHAT’S YOURS IS MINE.” Several times throughout the day, you will say, “Hannah’s!” Just to make sure that I KNOW WHAT YOUR PROPERTY LOOKS LIKE. It is amazing how much stuff is yours anyway, like kitchen utensils, tweezers, and the T.V. remote control. Speaking of the T.V., you never showed any interest in watching it on Saba. However, since finding grandpa’s (who you call “Demnis”) “Chase Lounge Chair,” you LOVE to watch T.V.

You’ll watch anything really. You just love to relax on that piece of furniture and tell grandma “watch it!” Because obviously it is grandma’s responsibility to turn the T.V. on for you. You follow your Grandma Gloria around all the time and tell her what to do. We refer to you as her “shadow.” You usually convince her to go for a walk, or to the playground by saying, “COME ON!” No one, even your grandma who has a bad back and is recovering from knee surgery, can resist your enthusiasm and charm.

You used your special charm on your grandpa “Demnis” by talking about bikes, ALL DAY LONG. You would look at him and nod your head yes, and say “BIKE!” with such enthusiasm, that he could not resist your darling little face. It only took two days of taking about bikes, and Dennis drove you down to the store and let you pick out a bike. WE ARE ALL GRATEFUL TO HIM. WE COULD NOT LOOK AT YOUR INNOCENT FACE ASKING ABOUT A BIKE ANYMORE.

You love to give us updates on your whereabouts or physical wellbeing. You point out when you get a “bonk” and then say, “Okay?” Just so that we know you are indeed, OKAY. If the injury is in need of a kiss, you will walk up to the closest adult and say, “kiss it?” Most of the time, we don’t know you had a “bonk,” but we are always glad for the update.

You are very sweet to me, and point out where baby brother is ALL THE TIME. Probably because you can’t miss my belly, and that is indeed where he is. You kiss my tummy, and then point out that you also have a baby in your belly. Fortunately, you just have a belly with no baby.

You love to exercise on Grandma and Grandpa’s machines. You have named one machine “Daddy’s” and one machine “Mommy’s and Grandma’s.” Because obviously, those are the only machines we work out on.

Your hair was a mop. Well, more like a BIG MESS, and I know how you feel about messes. Your aunt Rachelle cut your hair the other day, giving it some shape. You had no idea what was going on, you just wanted to play with your tea set. You didn’t sit very still, but your hair turned out darling.

You attended nursery at church for the first time a few weeks ago. I knew you would like it, but I was totally wrong. BECAUSE YOU LOVED IT. What more could a kid want besides toys, other kids to play with, and snacks? When I went in to pick you up after your first time attending, you took one look at me and said, “GO AWAY!” That’s always a nice way to greet your mom. WHO ENDURED 30 HOURS OF LABOR, 40 PREGNANCY POUNDS, AND MAJOR MASTITIS FROM THE GET GO. Maybe you turned out to be such a good sleeper and traveler to even the score. I guess I don’t owe you big time anymore.

A few weeks ago, your dad and I had a Family Home Evening (commonly referred to as F.H.E. where we talk and learn about gospel principles) and I showed you a picture of Jesus being baptized by John the Baptist in the River Jordan. You took one look at the picture and said with exuberance, “JESUS! SWINGING!” which really means “swimming.” You are so innocent and darling, your dad and I couldn’t help but laugh. And yes, Jesus was indeed sort of swimming in the picture.

You are bursting with words every day, and copy everything we do. We love you so much, and we hope you will happily share us with your little brother when he arrives in a few weeks.

Here are some of your new words:

• I need it!
• See it?
• Get it?
• See ‘em?
• I did it!
• Watch it!
• Prayers
• Truck!
• Flag!
• Close it
• Church
• Focus
• Make it!
• Come on!
• Come ‘ere!
• All done?

We love you so much!

Love,

Mommy

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It FINALLY came. I’m going to be honest, I thought the cruise ship that sails dangerously close to Saba during the the months of January through March had forgotten about us. I mean, SOME OF US, and seriously, I’m not going to point my finger here, REALLY LOOK FORWARD to seeing this ship every Friday.

Friday afternoon. That is the magical day when and IF this cruise ships shows it’s face around here. Dave and I almost missed seeing this beauty on Friday when we decided to hike down to to the beach with our dogs and Hannah. This is a serious hike, WHEN YOU’RE NOT PREGNANT. I’m not sure where all this ambition came from. Because truthfully, I am not known for my overly-ambitious-personality in the Caribbean. As we huffed it back up the never ending, winding, sloping road to our house, we were greeted with this lovely view as we tried not to pass out on our patio.

I’m really going to miss this place. When am I ever going to live in a place again where I watch ocean traffic instead of road traffic?

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This may be hard to believe, but I do actually have a HUSBAND and two DOGS. Yeah, I know I don’t mention them much because Hannah Bear is SO DANG CUTE she kind of overshadows everyone else. Plus, David isn’t developing at an astronomical rate like Hannah, so there’s not much to document about his development. And the dogs? Well, they are LAZY OLD LADIES that sleep 22 hours a day. It is SERIOUSLY BIG WORK to be the Lesher family pets and they take their job very seriously. The camera loves Hannah (and she seems to love it) and this is why we have over 5,000 photos of her and like 10 photos of the dogs. Plus, if I took more photos of Kyaha and Paris, the pictures would be of various sleeping positions.

Every day, Hannah asks to go for a walk. She gets her “glasthes” (sunglasses) on and the whole family goes for walk. Kyaha and Paris must sleep with one ear open because they perk up when the buzzword “walk” is mentioned. Once the dogs are riled up and running in circles around the house (on the hope they will be going with us), it is impossible to say “not right now” to any of them.

David brought a tennis ball on our last walk (which is almost impossible to do since we have ONE ball and Hannah usually hides it in a very, very, safe place.) The dogs LOVE to run at full speed chasing anything that moves. I tried to capture them running, but without a NIKON D80 (which we both desperately want) it is virtually impossible to catch a 35 mile an hour dog on camera without it being a big smear. So I have one photo of Dave and Kyaha. She is our loving, obedient dog that always does what we ask. I asked her to pose for a photo, and well, here it is:

Notice how Paris is missing? That is because she becomes TOTALLY DEAF when she is off leash. She was too busy running around the field, sniffing EVERY CORNER, trying to find the RIGHT place to pee. Like it even matters. . .

Hannah discovered something very interesting in the field. DIRT. Yeah, she looked at it like, “What the heck is this stuff?” She was so busy making a “Zen Garden” that she didn’t realize the dirt was MESSY and she was making a MESS. If she had, this would have really troubled her. David took this photo as I looked away, trying to imagine that my child was not actually playing in (and enjoying) the dirt.

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I have entered the “Please, kill me now” phase of pregnancy. I have suffered three weeks of headaches, and not just any kind of headaches; the pregnancy kind. Yeah, it is YUCK. Needless to say, I have been more lazy than usual, if that is possible. Everyday Hannah is gaining more energy as I lose mine. This is not the best combination. Daily, and I mean every day, she asks to go for a “walk” in an English accent. David and I have no idea where she picked up this accent, since neither one of us ever speak in another accent. Maybe she is watching too much TV? She is so irresistibly cute that we both end up dropping whatever we are doing to grab her outstretched hands to go for a stroll.

The word “walk” has been a buzzword in our house for the last eight years. If you say this word, both our dogs flip out and start running circles around the kitchen table. I’m surprised we don’t have a permanent track on the kitchen floor. Now that Hannah uses this word so frequently and flippantly, we have been committed to taking the whole family on a walk every day. It is actually more like a hike up and down these hills in Hells Gate. We all get a good workout.

We took our camera along the other day on one of our walks. Check out what we saw:

These iguanas were hanging out in some trees at the bottom of our road. I think they must be dating or married because usually iguanas fight for territory and don’t hang out like this. We think the one on the right is a female because she is camouflaged and has shorter spikes than the other dude.

Hannah has to stop and pick up rocks and flick dirt every two feet ( just like her Grandpa Probst). This activity sort of prolongs the walk, but it is a better pregnancy pace for me. Plus, her little padded diaper bum is so cute when she bends!

No words for this photo . . .

Something has piqued her interest while down at the beach . . .

Um . . . seriously, something is pretty cool, just over there . . .

If you don’t look now, YOU ARE TOTALLY GOING TO MISS IT!!!

We have no idea what she was pointing at. She was too cute, we couldn’t look away to see what was so cool. I am aware that our time here in paradise is coming to a close in nine weeks. These walks are numbered, and all the beautiful scenery and weather will be a memory of the past in a few short months. I’m certainly going to miss 80 degree weather in February. And sadly, I know a stark reality check is lurking just around the corner. We will experience WINTER next year. YIKES!

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This island is beautiful. I feel really lame that I haven’t hiked every trail or throughly explored this entire island in the two years I have lived here. Since both David and I feel heavy laden with guilt for being such couch potatoes, we have decided to hike ALL the trails before we leave in April. This is probably an ambitious goal (since some of the trails require a guide), but we got right to it and hiked a trail taking us to Maskehorn Hill. The view was breathtaking! The view overlooks the village of Windwardside and several islands. It was such a beautiful clear day, it was very rewarding.

This is a view of Windwardside from Maskehorn Hill.

View of Booby Hill and The Level from Maskehorn Hill. The islands of Statia and St. Kitts are in the background.

It was such a clear day, you can actually see houses on Statia (foreground) and St. Kitts (background).

This is a close up of the island of Statia (one of the islands visible from my patio).

This is the village of Windwardside. If you look closely, you can see the teeny road that leads up the The Level.

It was such a clear day, (lucky for us!) you can even see the island of Nevis. It is the third island back with the clouds on top. It is only visible to us on Saba on a VERY clear day.

This is the beginning of the trail. We had just finished our hike and were quite sweaty and gross. Check out Hannah’s expression, she looks so enthusiastic about the hike she just finished!

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Dirt, humidity, plants. Yep, it smells like Texas. I have such fond memories of this place. I really feel like I am “home” here. I have been staying at Daniel and Lydia’s house, which is right next door to the house David and I sold before moving to Saba. Our old house still looks like our house, and I want to run in there move all my stuff back inside, but it’s not our house. It is a very weird feeling. Unfortunately, the people that bought our house, leased it out to some renters who did not take care of the house. The renters wreaked havoc on the house and I am sad to see the house now. It is vacant now (thank goodness), but it feels like someone vandalized my personal property! It probably doesn’t help that I see the house everyday (I am just next door), and reminisce about my previous life. My, how very different my life is on Saba. Part of me LOVES being in Texas, and I am ready to reclaim my previous life. But the other part of me, longs for my simple life on Saba.

I am still a big city girl. Driving over the crest of the freeway last night and seeing a sea of lights, I must admit, I still love it. There are museums, parks, and friendly people here! Not to mention shopping at Sam Moon . . . And truthfully, Super Walmart here is as good as Super Target. I couldn’t find what I needed at the Walmart in Utah, but I certainly found everything I needed here!

Lydia and I attended at Yoga class Thursday night at 24 Hour Fitness. When the class began, the instructor asked “Is this anyone’s first time doing Yoga?” Feeling like an idiot because I have never done yoga in my life, I declined to comment. The instructor then said “Phew, good! Lets get going!” I was saying “PHEW! GOOD!” to myself! It’s a good thing I didn’t admit to being a yoga idiot. The class started and things were going well. It’s like playing “following the leader”. I am pretty coordinated and somewhat flexible, so the beginning of the class was fine. Then we started “posing”. Um . . .I don’t usually hold an “eagle pose”, or an “open apple” pose that often (ahem . . . like never), and I was beginning to wonder if I was giving myself away as the “yoga idiot”. Good news for me, it looked like others in the class were in my same predicament. At one point, while were were sitting in an “Indian pose”, the instructor said, “Just relax and enjoy the sensation in your right hip.” Enjoy the sensation? Relax? Is that possible? I thought I would need a fire-hose to blow out the fire in my left hip! I looked at my watch and the class still had a half hour to go. Half an hour? Yikes. I had some serious hip, leg, and arm burning to endure. I am officially still sore. After attending this class, I noticed that Hannah does Yoga ALL DAY LONG. The “down dog” position is her favorite. I wonder if Yoga was designed after the lifestyle and movements of a toddler. They are in really good shape, have endless energy and can (and will) eat almost anything!

Last night I had dinner with Orrin and Caroline. They are such a great family. Orrin is a pilot and flies for some private charter company out of Alliance Airport. Caroline is pregnant and due in two weeks. She is having another boy. Their little boy, Redd, is a lot like Hannah. He is five months older, but just as calm as my little one. They are both very affectionate and basically hugged and made out the entire night. We couldn’t stop laughing! I have some of their kissing moments on camera. I will post the pics when I get back to Saba and have access to my computer. It was fun to catch up with them and see their growing family. I hope to see them again in April when we pass through Texas on our way to wherever.

I leave Texas tomorrow morning. Which means that my stay in the USA is over. I am happy and sad. But I am mostly excited to see David! At this point, I don’t care where I go, I just want to see him! We have been apart for five weeks. That is the longest we have ever been apart. It is too long. Poor David, he has been living on crackers and water for the past month.

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