new friend and new hat

Yesterday I watched a friend's child so she could volunteer in her other daughter's school. The little girl is four, and she had a great time with my daughter. At one point she had Kiddo laughing because she was being silly as four years olds are. As the play progressed though, Kiddo stopped laughing, because that's what people do. The little girl tried to recreate the moment, and said "I want to hear her laugh again." Apparently baby laughter is magical to everyone, not just adults.


I put the finger puppet bag on Kiddo's head. She left it on there for a quite a while considering her adversion to hats. Isn't she cute?

In other news, my husband is safely home after driving through snow and wind for three hours in the dead of night to get here. It's nice to have him home.

This morning my daughter was so excited when she saw him in bed she almost leaped out of my arms to get to him. I let him change a dirty diaper, then I took Kiddo to another part of the house so he could get some much needed rest. About 20 minutes later she determined that we needed to walk to my room. As she approached the door she announced "Da!" and then pushed the door open, and moved quickly to touch his feet (the closest part of him). After a moment I reassured her that yes, dad was now home, and we needed to let him sleep. It's good to have him back, and apparently I'm not the only one who thinks so.

color for a dreary day

The high today is projected to be 40 degrees, but it's already 1:30, and it's just barely reached freezing (32). It's supposed to be the warmest day this week. Yet we had no car, and I needed to get some paperwork up to campus, so we bundled up, and away we went.

She was ready to be inside when we got to the house, until I pulled out the camera. Fun! Excitement! Smile! But she was also excited to loose the mittens and hat. She wears the mittens because she can't get them off, and the hat because it represents going outside. I'm glad she takes it all in stride.

Here's a close up of her rosy cheeks.

all Kiddo all the time

My husband is out of town for a professional conference. As this signals the end of this year's busy season, I am grateful. As this puts another line on his vita, which is valuable for his future job prospects, I am grateful. As this helps show his advisor that yes, he is a capable student that should graduate soon, I am grateful. As this means that its just me and the babe for four days straight - well, that strains the gratitude a bit.

Especially because my husband's departure fell on the second day of the Priest-Laurel conference, of which I was mostly in charge (with one or two other leaders). So, we started off dad's absence with a day of shepherding and interacting with 175 youth and their assorted leaders. The conference was a success; most of our youth just don't get to see that many others that believe as they do. Granted, it took inviting half the state to get that many 16 and 17 year olds, but I was grateful to help out. This did unfortunately mean that on day 1 of our time together, Kiddo got a grand total of 30 minutes of nap (compared to her usual 2 or 3 hours total), while I sat on the floor of the afternoon dance.

Day 2 of dad's absence was marked by church, which meant she got one of two naps. Why this obsession with naps? Well, first off, because I am obsessed with sleeping patterns, because I love to be well-rested (or at least, I believe I would love being well-rested, having not been in this condition for years, it is a largely theoretical belief), and I can only get enough rest if my daughter does. And a lack of naps means poor nighttime sleep, and the cycle continues.

Although the sleep is an issue (obsession), having the conference and church were actually good things, because it meant we were out of the house with much to do. As mentioned, the conference was full of people, and Kiddo loves people. And then the dance was certainly a highlight too - loud music with a beat! what more could my budding musician dream of?

I believe that came the next day, while we were in church, singing hymns in Relief Society. They asked me if I would lead the music. As Kiddo prepared to sing along she realized that momma can wave her arm to the music! So she happily joined in, singing and waving along. It makes me happy that while she loves a beat, she loves the hymns more.

We've scheduled visitors for today and tomorrow too. When my visiting teachers asked when they could come, I encouraged them to come when my husband would be gone. And when a lady I visit teach needed someone to watch her little girl, I quickly volunteered for the opportunity, then explained that she would have to come to me, because dad took the car. But he will bring it home soon (with himself inside - thank goodness), and hopefully then he won't go anywhere without us for a long time. (Until he starts interviewing for jobs, at least.)

more help around the house

My child also likes to help out dad with the chores.

why crawl if you can walk?

Today after her morning bottle, my daughter was standing between my legs as I was sitting on the couch. She turned around, grabbed my fingers in her fist and held her hands up in what was unmistakably the position she is in when we help her "walk" around the house. Who was I to disagree? I stood up and we walked around for a while. She thinks she is so big to get around this way. I personally am grateful that she is tall - I don't have to hunch quite as much to get her around.

small friend

One of my really good friends moved to Alaska today. We exercised together at 5:30 am for over a year. She was the first person outside of my family that I told I was pregnant. She took me shopping when I couldn't bear to look at clothes because nothing fit, and helped me find my favorite pregnancy pants, bar none. She loved my daughter, shared generously with her, and called her "small friend." I love the intimacy in that term.

As she heads off to the north, we wish her nothing but luck and good fortune, but I wonder how long it will take me to stop missing her every time I walk past the library...

no meds

I had a dentist appointment yesterday to get a cavity filled. This must have been a small cavity (which matches my proactive dentist's way of doing things - she announces to me at each visit all the things we might have to do in the future, she's watching, and none of them sound fun), because the dentist informed me that I probably wouldn't even feel it if I wanted to go forward without medication. Now, I am not keen on tooth pain. But, I'm also not keen on the needles it takes to get the rest of the procedure painless (thanks to my long-term eye issues), so I weighed the options and said: let's do it.

She drilled and filled without any discomfort, and I was home faster than any of us expected. Which means I could have left the child at the neighbor's as opposed to dragging my husband home, but how was I to know that?