(4) Fri Oct 08 2004 18:56 First Day Back: It is my first day back at work. I have been here for three hours and I already miss Lily. She's soooo CUTE!

(1) Tue Oct 12 2004 20:03: I was going for a walk with Lily in her cool stroller yesterday morning. I love this time of year when the leaves start changing colors and the mountain looks like it is on fire with all the golds, reds, and oranges. The weather is perfect, and the air is crisp and clean. Utah has great Falls. Something about this time of year also reminds me a lot of Harry Potter. I just I have fond memories reading the books and it was in the Fall when I first picked them up. I read the first 4 in under a month. Maybe is is because JK Rowling describes in great detail this time of year a lot in her books like the Halloween feast, etc.

News on the home front: Aaron went to 3 Texas dental school interviews. He said they went well. Now we wait until early Dec to find out which schools accept him. I guess we'll have to wait but I am not too stressed about it b/c I have a feeling we will get in at least one.

Yesterday when I got home from work Aaron was making dinner and holding Lily. I went to hold her and he said, "she's all yours." I get some satisfaction that Aaron is learning to appreciate what stay at home mom's days are like. Hopefully he will rememember when he is working lots, and he won't question what I do all day like some men do to their wives. I learned quickly that it is not easy caring for babies. So Aaron said that she was fussy the last 2 hours and I asked him when the last time she napped was. She was completely exhausted b/c when I held her and snuggled her, she fell asleep. I guess Aaron has to learn like I learned that babies that young can't really stay awake for more than 2 hours at a time. At least not Lily. They are maybe awake for 8 hours in a 24 hour time period. So hoepfully today goes better for him now that he knows he has to help her go down for naps after being awake for over an hour and a half. We'll see how it goes.

Aaron and I rented the edited version of "Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind." It was a pretty cool movie. Very bizarre at first- one of those artsy films. It left me with feelgood fuzzies though. A sweet movie I recommend.

(3) Fri Oct 15 2004 16:17 Feeling sorry for myself: Now that my hormones have stabilized it is mid-Oct, and I am looking back at where the time went. I am now 23, and a birthday has passed, but it doesn't feel like it b/c it was 3 days after Lily was born. It went over-looked it feels like, and I guess I better get used to it from now on b/c Lily's birthday will always be 3 days before mone. Is life trying to teach me what motherhood is about? Maybe my hormones haven't stabilized.

Fri Oct 15 2004 17:27 Atticus story: When I was in KS, Atticus said something funny. We were in the car and I said "Oh my gosh!" and Atticus said, "Kristen, you shouldn't say Jesus' name. He doesn't like it when you said his name." Sooo cute. You have a good little boy, Alyson.

(3) Tue Oct 19 2004 18:22: I am listening to Angela's Ashes on cd while walking with Lily. It is very interesting, and I really like listening to the author's voice and his impersonations and accent. I think this story is better listened to than read.

Wed Oct 20 2004 17:01: Lily was so cute yesterday. She is starting to interact with me, and yesterday I was talking to her and she was smiling at me and cooing. She was even looking in my eyes the whole time. It is so fun to see her be able to develop. It is kinda sad on the other hand that my baby is getting big...she no longer fits in her newborn sleeper. When we put it on yesterday her legs couldn't straighten all the way. They grow so fast. I am going to miss seeing her in her cute little flower sleeper that she is so snuggly in.

On a sad note, I was putting Lily in her swing yesterday and she was sitting on her blanket that was all bunched, so I lifted her to straighten it out and I accidentally lifted her too high b/c I bonked her head on the bar holding the chair. I felt so terrible, and she started bawling. Poor baby was so sad. That was the first time she has cried out in pain like that. Poor little Lily.

(10) Wed Oct 20 2004 19:31: My tail bone still hurts bad since I gave birth. Especially when I sit too long and always when I stand up. I wonder if this will ever end. I have seen the chiropractor three times already.

Fri Oct 22 2004 15:43: I was folding Lily's load of laundry this morning while she was taking a nap. All the clothes smelled like her, like baby, and they were such cute outfits that she looks adorable in. I started to miss her and was hoping she would wake up from her nap so I could hold her and kiss her. Then I thought, am I crazy? I need to get this load folded and put away before she wakes up from her nap.

(4) Fri Oct 22 2004 15:46: Aaron and I rented Ladykillers with Tom Hanks from Clean Flicks yesterday. It was a clever show with a dark side but pretty good. I recommend it for a nice change from romantic comedies or whatever.

(5) Mon Oct 25 2004 21:14 Vegas, baby, Vegas: Aaron and I just got back at 4am this morning from Vegas. We went b/c Aaron was doing service for the Bush Campaign. He had to have 20 hours service with the elections for his American Heritage class. We went with his brother Jake and fiance Erin. It was fun but I was definitely ready to leave. Erin and I did the strip and also the outlet malls while the boys worked hard. I got some cute clothes for Lily and an outfit for my friend Roxanne who is about to have a baby boy any day now. All four of us hit a couple buffets too. The strip I had seen before a couple times. The casinos are neat, but walking the strip there are sleazy things everywhere. Lily was good the whole way there and back. I am relieved b/c we are traveling to San Antonio for Thanksgiving and I wasn't sure how she would do. Hopefully she is an angel again as I am flying by myself, and Aaron is driving down with Joe and Louise.

My sister-in-law Hailey gave me a ton of outfits for Lily to borrow. Some of them are the cutest things. It has been fun dressing her up the past few days with new stuff. I will miss the outfits when I have to give them back to Hailey. It seems like I need a picture of Lily in every outfit she owns to remember how cute she is in it. I am such a weird new mom.

(5) Tue Oct 26 2004 19:09 Doctor Visit: I went to the doctor today for Lily's 2 month check up. She had to get 4 shots today, poor thing. She only cried until it was done and stopped right away. I was suprised, but then again she is a really good baby. The nurses said she had muscular thighs. That is from Aaron b/c he has large muscular thighs. Also, her height is in the 75th percentile and her weight is in the 25th percentile so she is tall and skinny- also like Aaron. At least she has my eyes and chin, maybe mouth. A lot of her body is Aaron though including her long arms and long fingers. I have such a cutie! I also got a flu shot b/c the nurse suggested I should. It didn't hurt at all.

Fri Oct 29 2004 19:22: Same thing happened to me as what happened to John. :(

(1) Fri Oct 29 2004 19:24 I love baby's breath!: Today I looked at Lily in our bed laying on top of a pillow top mattress and 320 thread-count sateen sheets with a down comforter covering her up, and I thought 'she is so spoiled, and I love it!' (Or are Aaron and I so spoiled?)

Anyway, she has been sleeping so great this past week. Yesterday she slept 6 hours, the day before 7 and the day before 5 hours. And when she gets up I feed her and she always goes back down for another 3 hours after that. I think I can handle waking up once a night. I have such a good girl, and she is sooo cute.