Adorable Moments and Stella's Famous!

I was just reading I'll Teach My Dog a Lot of Words to Stella and she was watching me read instead of watching the pages and she laughed out loud at me. It was so cute! I love her laugh, it's adorable. I just wish she'd do it for her Daddy.

We just got the latest issue of The Alcalde, the Texas Exes Magazine, and there's Stella! They printed the birth announcement we sent in. She of course puts all the other babies to shame, although I wish that I'd read that photo taking book before I did the one for the magazine, I'm sure it would look even better. I'll try to scan that and get it up so I can show her off to the world of non Texas-Exes.

Well, it's taken me hours to post this because Stella's teething hardcore (AGAIN!), so I've been spending a lot of time getting her to sleep, soothing her. I've also found out she LOVES old 80's Madonna. Especially "La Isla Bonita". I need to brush up on my Madonna, because, while I was a huge fan as a child, I haven't really listened to her in about 20 years. Stella was so-so on Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, but seemed to dig We Are the Champions and Another Bites the Dust. What I remembered of them, anyway.

Oh, and the picture above is of Stella being her cranky indy self and listening to cuts from her new album. In the next frame she throws a couch out the motel window and downs a fifth of Jack Daniels. She's such a rock star.

Sometimes you just have to put the book down

I'm reading Specimen Days by Michael Cunningham (the author of The Hours and A Home at the End of the World). It's very good, so good that I even hold my breast pump with my arm to read it, which causes the plastic circle to dig into my flesh and leave a mark. Yes, it's that good, and yes, the only time I get to read these days is when I am pumping. Anyway, I was reading it, and it's suddenly become kind of scary. Like, I feel sick at my stomach right now, even though I put it down a few minutes ago. They described a kid dying and I had to put it down. It wasn't graphic or anything, just made me sad. Those things really get to me these days. I thought kids dying equaled sad before I had Stella, but boy, oh, boy, now it can get me into hysterics. Even in a fiction book.

I really should go back to the book because it's good and I certainly don't get many opportunites to read lately (Stella's sleeping, thank God), but I'm apprehensive about reading it. Really! Isn't that sad? I guess it goes without saying that I get really into books. I read Inconsolable: How I Threw My Mental Health Out with the Diapers by Marrit Ingram in like 3 days. And I read it while ignoring my child at play, I was kind of dangling things above her while I read it with the other hand. It's that good. If you are a parent, you definitely should read it!

Stella no longer allows me to read while I am nursing, which sucks, but she also no longer takes an hour like she did when she was a newborn, so I guess there are trade-offs. LGT meeting tonight. We're discussing budget. Should be the exact opposite of fun. Me: "Can we do it with what we already have? Check out our garage for lots of set pieces and costumes." Everyone else: "No, we need all these fantastic things that will make the show awesome and cost one million dollars." I don't blame them, it's just that we need a show to make money soon or else.... I can't go there, but we really need a show to make money! Come on Zombie!

Dude, I do not know why I am so scatterbrained today. You may just want to ignore this post entirely.

Punky eases Stella's pain

So our cat Punky who, as those of you who know her know, hates everyone and everything, apparently adores Stella. I got Punky when I was a sophomore in college so Punky's over 10 years old now, and she just gets more ornery and fatter with each passing year. But she lets Stella pet her. And today, she just did the most amazing thing. Stella was crying while I was trying to feed her because she's teething so bad, and she was hungry, but it hurt too bad to eat. It was awful. Well, Punky came right up and sat on my lap, which made Stella stop crying, of course, because she is fascinated by all our animals, and then Punky let Stella pet her. And I mean 5-month old "petting". Pulling of fur, pulling of ears, nearly poking her in the eye. I was supervising of course, but Punky didn't seem to mind a bit. And Punky would "kiss" Stella and lick her. Stella was in heaven. Of course, she'll also probably be coughing up furballs now. She had fistfuls of Punky fur in her hands, and then she'd stick her fingers in her mouth. Eww. But until I finally decided that I needed to try and get Stella to eat some more, at least 5 minutes, maybe ten, Punky sat there patiently and let Stella pet her and pull her and poke her. It was adorable! I think Punky has a new friend.

Season of Change

For whatever reason, I decided I was tired of the way my living room and dining room looked today and that I was going to move stuff around. Of course, it didn't make much of a change because it's just small stuff, like moving a candlestick here or there, changing what's on the coffee table, etc. I would like to move furniture, but unfortunately, my couch is the size of a small country and will only fit into my living room one way: the way it is. I remember when the couch was delivered. I came home and thought instantly: "my God, what have we done, this thing is huge!" And so it is. But it's also pretty darn comfy and fits tons of people, which is convenient for movie night, LGT meetings, and having peole over. But it does mean that we are stuck with a certain configuration in there. I also came dowstairs this morning and suddenly hated my dining room curtains. I've always loved them in the past. But now, they are ugly and kitschy and overwhelming. I should sew some new ones, although what fabric I'll use I have no clue. They have been up there for nearly 5 years, I was bound to get tired of them eventually. Of course, all decorating decisions have to be run by Tim. He's one of those guys that actually cares about how their house is decorated, which is good and bad. Good because it's nice that he cares and bad because I can't just do everything the way I want it:) I'm also trying to further pare down knick knacks and clutter, as it does not go with the modern aesthetic I now love. Even though my house is anything but modern. I suppose it's contemporary, with some fifties nostalgia thrown in.
We have a bunch of stuff on display above our kitchen cabinets, and I can't decide whether to keep it or lose it. Probably I'll most likely just take some of it down. It's amazing how much you can think about these things when you're home all day!
Left: Dining room (okay, it's really a breakfast room), complete with curtains I now hate; Right: Living Room, complete with MONSTER COUCH!

Take better photos

(This was actually written yesterday afternoon)
12:57pm I'm writing this blog for later posting since our cable is currently down. You forget how dependent you are on the internet until you don't have it for a while. In this case, it's been a couple of days. Tim accidentally cut the cable while gardening Saturday (we're both perplexed as to why the cable was so close to the surface). The repair guy will be here at some point today. So of course I'm housebound. I thought I'd be super-responsible and get lots done since I don't have the internet (or tv, but I never watch tv during the day anyway because Stella will try and watch it too), but I forget that I still have books. And I can do stuff on my computer that doesn't require the internet. I did start trying to write, but only got about half a page in before losing interest.
I read a great book Saturday afternoon about how to photograph your baby. I bought it at the monster library book sale a few months back and intended to read it before Stella arrived. That didn't happen, but I decided to read it Saturday and I'm so glad I did! It only took me about half an hour to read and I have already had great results. I took pictures Sunday morning and afternoon and they turned out better than any others I'd taken in the entire time Stella's been around. I used to take pretty good pictures, but digital has kind of screwed me up. It just doesn't work as well as film. But anyway, this book basically recommended some really simple steps which have already had a tremendous impact on my photographs. 1) Get really close to your subject. He said that most baby photographs are really a document of your living room. Good point. He said get close to your baby and fill the frame with them. 2) Turn off the flash and use natural light. He recommends putting your baby parallel to a window and taking pictures that way. It will create really cool shadow on one side of their face and light on the other and lots of drama. 3) Take lots of pictures. He'd written the book in the time of film photography, so he tells you not to be afraid to waste film, but in the time of digital, this is easy as pie. I just kept snapping continuously and then afterwards you can delete what you don't want. 4) Never center your subject in the middle of the frame. It's boring. 5) pay attention to the background. You don't want the Washington Monument growing out of Junior's head. Although if you fill the frame with your baby, this won't be an issue. 6) clothes are distracting, take pictures of your baby naked or just in a diaper. I haven't followed this one yet because once I have the clothes on, they ain't coming off unless they have poop or pee on them. But I'm sure he's right about this one also.If anyone wants to borrow the book, let me know. I think the shots I've taken speak for themselves, although the one on the left is way too dark. Now I want to get a better camera:)
yay, the cable guy just called and he'll be here in 20 minutes. Although this will probably be smack-dab in the middle of when i feed stella, of course...

Babies Every Frickin' Where!

Oh, before I forget, Joni, yes, please link to me, I look forward to reading your blog, too! And if I ever figure out how to put links on my page I'll link to yours:)
Okay, so Stella has been teething HARDCORE and so I don't get much of her nap time to do stuff. Maybe 45 minutes twice a day. So my house is in a shambles and my blog is a week old. So of course, which one do I do first? Update my blog of course! Actually, I did stay up until midnight last night to straighten up. It'd gotten to red alert proportions, where it messes with my inner peace and must be cleaned. I can ignore the cat hair on the couch, the dog hair on the floor, etc, but I cannot stand a dirty kitchen or clutter. So now things are liveable and I am spending Stella's nap blogging. Actually, I spent the first half hour trying to get into blogger because I couldn't remember my login which is a bizarre login I made up because I didn't realize I'd already used my usual login to set up an account for the Stella Lily blog. Sigh, I digress.
So in addition to dealing with Super Fussy Baby, I have been dragging her all over God's creation this week. This is very good for Mommy's mental health. We met Miriam for lunch Wednesday and Stella probably scared the crap out of her (she's 5 months pregnant), and yesterday we went to a Austin Mama's play group. It was pandemonium. Hence the title, "babies every frickin' where!" But it was fun. Although we spent most of the time tending to our babies and not a whole lot of time talking, I did get to chat with some cool moms. There was an adorable little 4 year old there who was really sweet and when Stella was crying was like, "she wants her pacifier" and put it back in her mouth and held it. She spit it out but a couple of minutes later, I guess I'd put it back in and she was happy and he was like, "see, she wanted it." So cute! He was there with his 7 week old little sister. He's going to be a great big brother! I'm looking forward to when Stella is that age and we can have real conversations, honestly. I always thought I was a baby person. But while babies are cute, I can't wait to be able to talk to Stella and really show her stuff and teach her. That's going to rock!
So much has been going on I haven't blogged about. First and foremost, I am way behind on plugging Ashley's great slings: www.littlepepperpouches.com They are awesome and you should totally buy one if you want a sling. Trust me, once you start trying different slings, you'll discover they are not only the easiest to use, but the best looking and some of the cheapest. I thought slings were for hippies until Ashley let us borrow one when Stella was first born. If we had not had that, neither Tim nor I would have eaten until she was at least a month old! And now it's the best way to cart her around.
Also, this article was fascinating and frightening. There is so much the media is not telling us about the downsides of formula: http://www.austinmama.com/Formulafordisaster.htm I think every woman should be armed with this information so they can make informed decisions about what is best for them and their child.
And I have decided that after my Yoga card from pre-Stella is done next week, I'm going to continue to budget for weekly Yoga sessions. Even on the weeks when I spend 2/3rd of the class soothing Stella, I still get interaction with other Mommies and a little exercise. I'm not getting much since it's 100+ these days!
Okay, Stella is stirring again, my popping the binky in didn't work, so that's it for now. Hopefully I'll be back in less than a week!

99 cents!

I got a hankering for a cherry limeade after I had lunch with my chicas and I decided to order the large, I figured I deserve a large cherry limeade every once in a while, I'll splurge. Then the guy gave me a total of $1.07. Turns out they are only 99 cents right now! Sweet! This could turn into a regular indulgence. Maybe I'll even branch out and try other nifty drinks. Yes, this is what passes for exciting in my life right now. I am disappointed because it was mostly ice, but oh well, I guess that's how they afford to sell them for 99 cents!

Teething sucks

Stella is teething hardcore and breaking my heart/driving me crazy. We went to Yoga this morning and she was fussy for about 45 minutes out of the hour and fifteen minute class, then we drove to pick up my sunglasses at the Off Center and she fell asleep. We came back home and she was in a good mood for a little while, then I tried to feed her, which was quite a chore since because she's teething she thinks she wants to nurse, then it hurts to suck, so she comes off and cries because it hurts/she's hungry. Sigh. I finally gave her some Tylenol, which I try to avoid at all costs. Then she wouldn't go to sleep, just cried and cried. I kept trying different teethers, even used some Ambesol. Even, and this is a big confession, resorted to letting her watch tv because it calmed her down. Unfortunately, it only worked for about three minutes. Finally, the Tylenol kicked in and/or Coldplay soothed her and she calmed down and I was able to put her down for a nap. I wish these stinking teeth would just break through already, this is getting ridiculous!

Stella Has her First Solid Meal!

So we gave Stella her first solid meal last night. I was a bit skeptical, since she'd also had her shots yesterday, and I was afraid she'd just scream like a banshee. Luckily, she had a much better reaction to her shots this time than last, they seemed to just make her sleepy and maybe a little irritable. Although it's hard to tell now when she's irritable if it's teething or something else. Anyway, we got all set up and I was ready for her to completely reject the cereal, but she loved it! It was so cool to watch her figuring out what to do. At first she kind of lapped it up like a cat, then she got that she was supposed to put the spoon in her mouth and so she then wanted to hold on to the spoon and feed herself. She even wiped her mouth with her bib at one point, it was adorable! So I guess the girl is ready for solids. I do not mourn the passing of the all-breastmilk diet, but celebrate the excitement of Stella discovering how to eat! And I certainly shouldn't feel intimidated by her current meal, which is once a day and 3/4ths breastmilk anyway:)
Notice the nifty modern high chair? A gift from her Aunt Kate from Ikea so that Stella can eat in style. All those regular high chairs were too boring for our little trendsetter. Okay, they were really too ugly and too bulky to match our kitchen!

Dreading Tomorrow

Stella's getting her 4 month vaccines tomorrow and I am DREADING IT! We were supposed to get them last Wednesday but waited so she wouldn't be a complete pill for her Baba and her Aunts who came to visit. OF course, yesterday she still was a pill, she just refused to sleep. Between getting off of her nap schedule, us having lunch at a place that took FOREVER and didn't have a/c (we didn't know!), and her teething, we couldn't get her to sleep at all. Having guests is nice, but I think it totally gets ALL our schedules off when they are here for several days! I realized a few minutes ago that what I really should be doing is cleaning the kitchen, doing laundry, all the stuff that Stella may not let me do for the next couple of days if she has an unhappy reaction to the shots like she did last time. Poor thing was just not herself for 2 or 3 days, and cried out in pain whenever I accidentally brushed her legs where she'd gotten the shots. At least this time I'm prepared and know what to expect. Oh, well, a little pain is a small price to pay to have the world rid of horrible diseases that 50 years ago could cripple or kill your child (polio anyone? shudder!)
In an hour I have to go all the way across town to have a meeting for a murder mystery I'm doing this Friday. It was presented to me as having NO rehearsals. Of course, I guess this doesn't count as a rehearsal, it is just a happy hour meeting to discuss the game plan. I thought that was why we arrived at the place we're performing an hour early! Oh, well, these things never are as promised. Let's just hope Stella doesn't give her Daddy any trouble tonight when they are home alone.

Stella's 4 Month Check up

We just returned from Stella's 4-month check up and she is healthy and growing apace! She is 25.5 inches long (still 90th percentile), 14 lbs, 12.8 oz (still 75th) and 40 centimeters in head circumference (only 25th percentile). Although the doctor thinks the head size will increase once the flat spot she has on one side evens out. To that end, we are to spend even more time with Stella upright and on her tummy. The doctor even recommended we put her down for naps on her tummy, with her head turned so that the flat side of her head is not touching the mattress. I was surprised by this, but apparently it's safe now that she can lift her head and roll over. This means doing away with the Swaddler, though, so we're going to wait to attempt this until the weekend when Tim is home. I'm sure the first few times I'll be checking on her every five minutes! But we don't want her to have to go through life with a misshapen head:0
Also, the subject of solids came up, and the doctor said as long as I don't mind feeding her more often like I have been, I don't have to give cereal until I'm ready. Phew! Although I think we're going to start doing it soon, as Stella seems ready. She watches us eat and reaches out to pull plates and stuff towards her sometimes. I read a bit in T. Barry Brazelton about mommies being reticent to give their children solids because we'll no longer be the sole source of nourishment, and recognized myself. He really made me realize that it's okay to move on this next stage. Of course I also dread solids because of the cost and the fact poopy diapers will now have to be rinsed in the toilet. So far, Stella has been practically free on a day-to-day basis since I bought the cloth diapers eons ago and she's breastfed. Now we'll have an ongoing expense! Another new development, we should start giving her water, especially when she's out in the heat. We'll see how she takes to that after only having the sweet taste of milk. I'm going to try tonight when we go to Tim's run, since she'll be outside. Last Tuesday she wanted to eat when we were out and I think it was because she was thirsty, not hungry. New developments every day, this is when she's really getting exciting!
Her Baba and Aunt Christine were supposed to be here 40 minutes ago. Hopefully they didn't encounter any bad weather! 

Another meme!

So Tim tells me I am still pronouncing it wrong. I think it's meem not mim. Whatever. Anyway, the newest meme is typing "Julie wants" into Google and then typing up the first ten responses. Fun! Some of them didn't make any sense, so I skipped them in favor of ones that did.
Julie wants ..... to know if she'll ever get Straight A's (not again until Grad School, but this happened a few times in my younger days. Unfortunately it has no bearing on your future life. they don't tell you that.)
Julie wants.... to meet 1 person
badass Julie wants ....to go clubbing (this is my favorite. God how I would love to go clubbing, I haven't done that in years! Dude, once we're all done with breastfeeding, I should totally drag Anna and Ashley to do that. We already have something else we are going to do that we all agree on. hee hee. only 8 months to go!)
Julie wants ..... Jean killed like an animal. (oh wait, maybe this is my favorite, although I've only ever met a couple of Jeans/Genes, but they were both incredibly sweet)
Julie wants .... to do 8 things.
Julie wants.... to return to her roots.
Julie wants.... to be a mathematics teacher after finishing college. (no freaking way!)
Juli(a) wants .... me to flip the bird this way (not really, I'm not picky, flip the bird anyway you'd like, just don't flip it at other drivers, they will often get out of their car and try to kick your ass. I learned this the hard way in high school. trust me, don't do it)
Julie wants.... to fall in love and exactly who she is looking to fall in love with. (too late, already fell in love with Mr. Tim nearly 10 years ago and Miss. Stella 4 months ago)
Julie wants.... out

Meme from Kelli

Tim makes fun of me because I call these things "mee mees". They are apparently mims. Whatever. Kelli tagged me to do one from Stella's point of view, although it's nearly impossible, as being only 4 months old, Stella doesn't have very strong opinions. But I'll do what I can!

3 Things That Scare Me
naps
Being laid on my changing table when I'm really hungry and really wet. What if she never feeds me?!
loud noises

3 People That Make Me Laugh
Daddy
Mommy
MeMe

3 Things I Love
Rabbit (aka Rae, aka Rae Rae)
Buddy
Kitty

3 Things I Hate
naps
wet diapers
having to poo but it just won't come out!

3 Things I Don’t Understand
English
Why Mommy is annoyed when I wake up at 5am raring to play
Let Down - I want my milk RIGHT THIS SECOND!

3 Things On My Desk/Table
I don't have desk or table. Mommy's bedside table, which is next to my crib has:
A Book about Baby Giraffes
A Book about Baby Koalas
a coaster

3 Things I’m Doing Right Now
Sleeping in my crib, which is now in Mommy and Daddy's room. I love my crib, I do a 360 turn in it and spend lots of time trying to roll over and waking Mommy and Daddy up really early.
I'm wrapped in my swaddler
I'm dreaming of crawling. Or at least sitting up!

3 Things I Want to Do Before I Die
I agree with the first two responders: Mommy’s not even willing to discuss me in the same sentence with that word so I guess we have to skip it.

3 Things I Can Do
Roll over
Do baby sit-ups
Smile the world's most beautiful smile

3 Ways to Describe My Personality
Happy
Outgoing
Selfish (hey I'm a baby!)

3 Things I Can’t Do
More like 300!:
Be Reasoned with
Recite Shakespeare
Control my bodily functions

3 Things I Think You Should Listen To
Here Come the ABC's by They Might Be Giants
For the Kids cd, especially "Hop Hop Hippity Hop"
My cries

3 Things I Think You Should Never Listen To
dogs barking
phones ringing
"shhing" my parents do when they are trying to get me to go to sleep

3 Absolute Favorite Foods
Mommy's Milk
Mommy's Milk
Mommy's Milk

3 Things I’d Like to Learn
To sit up
To crawl
to walk

3 Beverages I Drink Regularly
See "Absolute Favorite Foods"

3 Shows I Watched as a Kid
I am not allowed to watch tv, but I really try. I am trying to be like an owl so I can turn my head around 360 degrees and see the tv no matter what Mommy and Daddy do!

3 People I Tag
Henry
Daniel (use Mommy's LGT blog!)
Jackson (tell Mommy to start a blog!)

Here's a picture of me with my Great Grandma, Mama and my Great Grandpa, Papa. Don't let my expression fool you, I really liked them, I was just really sleepy!

So fortunate!

I was just doing our finances and realized how fortunate we are that we can afford for me to stay home with Stella. We made it through the first half of the month without touching savings, with even a little bit to spare. This the first month since I've become a Stay At Home Mom that we were able to do that. Of course, we did have a month where Roxie was sick and then needed her teeth cleaned which cost over a $1,000, which you can hardly budget for. It's really a relief to be like, "phew, we can do this!" Sometimes I think, "what did we spend our money on when I worked?" Of course, then I remember that we put a ton of money in savings, took great vacations, and last, but certainly not least, went out A LOT. So that's where the money went! I can't wait for November, when Tim's car is paid off and then we can start saving again. Tim wants to sell his car, but I just think there's too much convenience in having two cars. Sure, he takes the bus, but what about when I start doing plays again? I'm sure there'll be times when he'll need a car and I'm gone to rehearsal. And with his car just a few payments away from being ours, it seems silly to sell it and risk us needing to buy a new one and take on a car payment. I don't know, maybe he'll convince me, we'll see. It would be nice that big chunk of change in savings, and it's silly that it only gets driven once a week, if that.
Tim thinks I'm a master budgeter, but I'm really not. I couldn't do it without Quicken. I tell you who is a master budgeter: my friend Kelli. I read how much she's getting with how little, as far as groceries and just generally living and I am blown away! Maybe I'll start issuing challenges to myself. We've definitely cut back on our eating out, which is good, but we both just love Tim's gourmet meals so much, it's hard to cut back on the groceries hardcore. Well, as we've both said, you gotta' set your priorities for what makes you happy in life. Family, friends, food, music and theatre I think are Tim and I's top 5.
The picture has absolutely nothing to do with the post, but I thought the post was pretty boring and needed some spicing up:) It's from her "Future Longhorn" photo shoot. Now I just need to get one of them printed and sent to the Alcalde, the Texas Exes magazine, so we can show her off!

July 4th Partay

Isn't this the cutest picture? It's Anna, Daniel, Me, Stella, Ashley and Henry. Aren't we the best looking group of mamas you ever saw?! :)

Oh, this is going to be a fine day

I am really tired. Yesterday, Stella woke up at 7:30am, which is now her new waking up time, but for some reason I was more tired than usual because of this. But I have accepted 7:30 because she went from midnight to 7:30am without waking up at all. Yes! Oh, and Monday Tim had the day off work. Stella woke up at 7:15am, I fed her, we played, then I put her back down to sleep about 9. I went back to sleep too and we all 3 slept in until 11am! I have not done this since she was born. It was so awesome! Then this morning she decided to wake up at 6:05am. And decided she was not going back to sleep after I fed her. She was going to be all talkative and cute and want to play. Sigh. So I got up with her, ate a bowl of cereal, and then she seemed fussy so I thought perhaps she'd go back to sleep. This was a little after 7am. I read her the rest of "Are you my Mother?", (I really need to get more books. Maybe I'll check out the Monster Library Sale again. I am so tired of alternating the Foot Book, The ABC's, Are You My Mother and Mr. Brown Goes Moo. I really like Dr. Seuss, can you tell?), and then after a lot of "shhing" (our sleep cue word, we learned this from The No Cry Sleep Solution), she finally went to sleep. So did I. But she woke up again at 8:10am. We had a little tummy time and I fed her and then she was fussy again about 9:00am, so I read her the Feet Book and after much shhing, she went to sleep. But I cannot go back to sleep, AND apparently I accidentally threw away the can opener because it was in the bag from Slapdash and I didn't realize it. So no Decaf Coffee for me (which amazingly keeps me awake). I just re-read that and wow, I am not even coherent.
I really should be cleaning. I'm hosting book club tonight and I did not realize my house was so dirty until early yesterday evening. I thought I'd just have to run the vaccuum and be done. But I think I have a bit more than that to do. Damn.
And we have decided we are going to move the crib into our room because Stella is outgrowing the pack n' play bassinet. So don't laugh when you come to our house and there is no crib in the nursery. It's just actually being used! Tim has sweetly agreed to having her in our room for at least a bit longer. I'm just not ready to have her all the way over in the other room!

Wee, Slapdash!

So I just finished draft one of my Slapdash script and thanks to the fact that AOR has wireless, I can blog about it to you in real time! I would totally post this on the LGT website, but Tim has my computer set to find loadedguntheory.com internally or something and I can't access it without him working secret voodoo when I am not at the house. It's majorly annoying, especially since I want to see where we stand on reservations.
As usual, I started out not being happy with my script, not really thinking that was where I wanted to go, and ended up really liking it. That's the great thing about Slapdash, you just have to trust your instincts, there's no time for overanalyzing.
I had the hardest time leaving Stella. I was seriously fighting back tears thinking about spending 11 hours away from her; by far the longest we've been apart. Also, I'd miss out on our nighttime feeding, which is when she's such a little angel. But, as I figured, as soon as I started writing I've been too busy to miss her. Although I'm looking forward to seeing her again in the morning. Well, guess I'd better go pump before we read our scripts at 3am. Whee, more sugar please!
UPDATE: The clock on this site is totally wrong. It is not 12:38am, it's 2:38am. Just so you don't think I'm a speed demon writer!

My Word Cloud

A nifty little time waster I got from Tim, who got it from Kelli.
http://www.snapshirts.com/

For the Love of Pete, Sleep!

Stella suddenly refuses to take naps. She's almost always been a sleep-fighter during the day, but now it's reached epic proportions. Sunday she didn't sleep at all from 2:30-8:30pm, and Tim finally got her to sleep by sheer force. He has much more patience for rocking her bassinet and saying "shhh" over and over again than I do. I spent the entire afternoon trying to put her down, then picking her back up when she would cry. He finally took over at 8:30 and, hallelujah, she slept! I guess I should consider myself lucky that she sleeps through the night beautifully. We put her down about 10pm, sometimes earlier if she's fussy, I usually wake her up just before I go to bed to feed her, about 11 or 11:30 (although not always, it depends on how long it's been since her last feeding), and then she sleeps until about 5:30am. Then she goes back to sleep usually until 8:30am, which is earlier than I like, but I'm able to get a good 5 or 6 hours in a row, which rocks. But oh, those naps, she just doesn't want to take them! I was reading reviews of sleep books on Amazon, which left me more confused than when I started. They really are more geared towards babies that don't sleep at night rather than ones that don't sleep during the day. And I hate parenting books because they are usually so "all or nothing". The only ones I've read are "What to Expect the First Year", T. Berry Brazelton's book, I can't remember the name of, and The American Academy of Pediatrics. Those are all pretty unjudgemental and "just the facts, mam".
I'm sad too because my card reader will not work. That's why there haven't been any new pictures of Stella posted for a few weeks. We did get portraits taken at Sears Saturday, which is where the shots at the top came from. I can't believe the Sears website allows you to save those. I'm totally "breakin' the law, breakin' the law!" They turned out really great, I can't wait to get the prints.
Last night we had an awesome July 4th party. A bunch of folks came over and we had beer, barbecue and breastfeeding. Ah, what a difference a year makes. Last July 4th we were all at Tim's old company's July 4th party watching the fireworks. There was beer and barbecue, although I had no beer then. I had just read The Fastest Way to Get Pregnant Naturally and I was following his instructions to be a teetotaler. And little did I know, I was just a wee bit pregnant. Stella was a tiny developing speck! That's so crazy to think about.

Stella Rolled Over!

I never knew that watching your child roll over could be so exciting. Stella is 3 months, 6 days old today. We were over at Anna's having lunch with her, Daniel, and Katy, and I had put Stella down on a blanket. She was really enjoying herself and first she rolled onto her side. I was like, "look guys, she rolled on her side, isn't that cool?" Then, before I even knew what was happening, she rolled all the way over onto her tummy! It was awesome! And I had two witnesses. Of course, I didn't have my camera, but Anna dutifully took a picture with theirs, so hopefully I can get that. Afterwards, Stella was inconsolably fussy, so we had to come home and put her down for naptime, but it was still so cool. I need to put her down on blankets to just hang out more often I guess. I think I don't let her just "be" enough, I'm always trying to play with her. I'm so excited. But now I have to clean because I have company coming tomorrow. Tutaloo! (or however that's spelled).