Update from the lazy blogger

I realized today it's been almost a month since my last post!! Wow. We are doing great. Chris worked almost every day last week, so it was a struggle to stay on top of life, but I think we are managing (barely). Emmaline is great - she now is wearing 3-6 month clothing because she is so tall! She is "talking" a lot, and it's really fun to go back and forth with her making all sorts of funny noises. She is also able to hold her head up very well, and sometimes we put her in her bumpo seat. She tolerates it for about a minute but then begins to slouch. But Chris and I are still impressed she is able to sit in it at all (only 3 months old seems early to me).

I almost have a draft of a paper done, which might sound impressive until I mention this is the third draft of this paper I've written this year, and I haven't even submitted the darned thing yet. I've also been applying for a couple of jobs - one in Hamburg, Germany, and one in Pasadena, Cal. Thinking about getting a job and leaving Fort Collins, and finishing my degree, and traveling to conferences, all in the next ~6 months makes my head want to explode. So I'm trying to just take it one day at a time and stay focused.

My mom is coming to town Wednesday and it will be great to have her. I know she's looking forward to seeing Emmaline (she has grown a lot since her last visit when she was ~1 week old!), and I'm looking forward to the help around the house and a little extra time to get some work done. Also, tomorrow is Chris and my 8 YEAR wedding anniversary, and so we'll be able to celebrate this weekend with free babysitting :).

We've had some fun lately, too. I'm really enjoying being able to play softball and kickball again (you heard right, I'm in an adult kickball league!). The weather has been unusually warm so we haven't had a freezing cold game yet, which I think is a first in the 6 years I've played fall softball in Ft. Collins! Our last games are this week and I will miss playing. Especially since this is probably our last softball season in the Fort :(. Well, I'll end with some more pictures ...

My friend Jennifer got married at the end of September at Red Rocks State Park. It was a gorgeous day for an outdoor wedding. The ceremony was equally beautiful. They had written their own vows and signed them to one another, while some interpreters said them, and they were very personal, loving, and sincere. I loved how they were able to use body language in professing the vows since they were signing, it seemed even more meaningful than if they had spoken them. Anyway, here are some pics from the day:

Chris has a fancy new lens, so we have been taking even more pictures of Emmaline. While I was away on a girls' weekend in early October, Chris took these pictures:

The juggling act

Mommy's sunshine!

My life has taken on a bit of a personality disorder. On one hand, I enjoy what I do and the people I work with, so I was somewhat looking forward to getting back to work. I'm making some progress again on my dissertation, after a couple of weeks slow-down due to idiotic supercomputers and buggy code.

On the other hand, I love being with Emmaline. Plus, Chris' schedule has forced me to be home a few days the past couple of weeks (last week because of a hike, and this week because he is working). Also our daycare person has previous commitments to watch another infant for a few weeks, so she can only watch Emmaline for half a day Tuesday and Thursday. It is challenging to find time to get work done in between watching her and keeping the house somewhat orderly. Yesterday I got up at 7:00 but didn't get a chance to work until about 5:00, and ended up staying up until midnight doing some work. Yuck.

Even when I'm at work, I can only do so much because every 3 hours or so I take 20-30 minutes to pump. This has been my least favorite part of motherhood! I don't mind feeding her myself. It's usually fairly relaxing - I often either watch TV while she eats or just stare at her and wonder at how awesome she is. But pumping at work sucks (haha). It's boring and an intrusion on whatever progress I might happen to be making. Also it's awkward to have to stop talking science with someone because I'm getting painfully full. My goal is to nurse for 6 months and I know this work/pumping balance will be the hardest part. On the bright side - I'm almost halfway to my goal and physically there haven't been any huge issues.

But staying home with Emmaline can be a lot of fun. I enjoy hanging out with her on the floor - looking at her colorful toys, listening to her make funny noises, singing Frank Sinatra to her, reading books, & watching her work her muscles during tummy time. I think she likes baths now and those are fun, too. She especially enjoys being wrapped in a towel after her bath. I've been able to see some friends, too. Last week, Kim and Cedar came over for a little bit. And yesterday, my friend Mollie and I went on a walk (she had her daughter Charley last Sunday - I can't believe she was able to walk for 1.5 hours with me!!).

A couple of weeks ago I had a realization. I've been coming home during lunch on the days I work. It's nice to feed her myself and to see Chris in the middle of the day. One day, she fell asleep in my arms after she ate, and I just sat there for a while with her. I tried to make a mental image of the moment so I can remember the feeling and look of her at this time in her life. I have some other happy places I have mentally stockpiled - the Lizard Head trail in the Wind River Range, the Needles district of Canyonlands, the vistas and small villages we visited in the Alps, and the Flattop Mountains. But now I have a totally different kind of happy place :).

I'll have a few more days to work on this juggling act because Chris has some more work to do. That is definitely a blessing. I just hope it doesn't postpone my defense date by too much!!

Sometimes when I come home I tell Emmaline what I've been working on. She doesn't even pretend to care:

Tummy time!

Life is good today ...

I'll keep in the spirit of blog posts for the time-crunched, and just update some highlights over the last few days. As the post says, things are going well lately.

This morning Emmaline looked at the monkey on her mobile, smiled, and then grabbed it! So awesome. (I realize if you don't have kids this sounds like no big deal, but after 2 months of her hitting herself in the face with her flailing arms, it's exciting that she is beginning to control them!)

Last night I went to see Zac Brown Band at Red Rocks with my friend Michelle. It was a great concert, even though it rained almost the whole time! I forgot how much I love concerts - it's so much fun to sing along and dance, even though I am awful at both. I've never been to a concert at Red Rocks and it was as great a venue as everyone says it is. I missed Emmaline, especially since she had been in daycare all day, but it was also really nice to have a night "off". So thanks, Michelle, for thinking of me and letting me be your date for the night!! :)

We moved Emmaline into her nursery on Sunday night, mainly for the benefit of whoever is not feeding her. Also we thought maybe we would sleep more soundly because she is a grunter! So far it's been working. I'm not sure if it's related or not, but she went 7 hours between feedings Monday and Tuesday nights! Monday night was the best because she was asleep from 10-4 AM! We went to sleep at 11, and I was so excited about getting 5 hours of consecutive sleep that I couldn't get back to sleep - ironic.

I decided not to do the half marathon in November. For one thing, I am barely running - maybe 5 miles a week. I don't want to injure myself trying to do too much too quickly. Also, I underestimated how much I would want to be with the baby, instead of working out. Since I'm also trying to finish my dissertation, it just seems like too much. However ... I think I will register for a trail 10K in San Francisco the weekend before AGU! :)

Speaking of finishing the dissertation - it's not going well.

The babe and the 'boat

Since I'll be working full-time again on Monday, Chris and I decided to escape to the mountains for a few days. We chose our favorite mountain town, Steamboat Springs. We've been here since Wednesday, and it's been pretty much like paradise! We've been mountain biking, hanging out with Emmaline, and watching some bike racing. The baby has been pretty good overall. Her sleep schedule is a little messed up, but other than that she has been a trooper.

We are high maintenance coffee drinkers, this is everything we brought for making coffee!Getting dressed on Thursday. It's been sunny so she needs a hat (pants are on the way). She is definitely smiling these days, it is really cute :)
We've mostly enjoyed the trails on Howelson Hill/Emerald Mountain. The singletrack is AMAZING!! Chris hung out in a park with Emmaline while I enjoyed the tight, smooth trails through aspen glades, and the sweeping switchbacks through wide open meadows - heavenly! I've been pretty slow but very very happy to back on the bike.

Emmaline really loves her dad, and even when she's tired she'll get a smile on her face when he's around. This is before the family nap on Thursday (7 miles of mountain biking really wipes you out when you're out of shape!).

Speaking of sleeping, Emmaline was awake 2:30-5 AM Friday morning. So instead of riding that morning, we all hung out in bed a little longer.
Friday we took turns riding at Howelson, and then met up to watch the end of the US Pro Cycling Challenge in downtown Steamboat. Chris bought us oreo-covered doughnuts!! Oh my gosh, what a way to end a ride :)
I painted a onesie to look like the Leopard Trek kit, so Emmaline could cheer on Andy Schleck, her favorite rider!
There were people everywhere to watch the end of the race. The atmosphere was electric! The bikers came by so fast, but it was worth the wait.
After a hot day, we let Emmaline hang out mostly naked, and Chris and I enjoyed a dip in the pool.

Watching the sunset from our patio - a perfect ending to a perfect day!!
Today we drove about a mile up Rabbit Ears pass to watch the bike race. Once again, it was super exciting!! First a breakaway of 5 guys passed us, followed by Cadel Evans (winner of the Tour de France) and another dude chasing them down, and then the peloton came wooshing by.
Chris spent the afternoon riding on the Beall and Ridge trails at Emerald Mountain, and I sat in a park with Emmaline. Tomorrow it's my turn to ride, right before we had back home and to reality :(. This has been a wonderful break. I'm glad we've been able to get out and about with Emmaline. And I've really loved spending time on trails like this ...

Snippets

I started this post almost 2 weeks ago!

The baby
Alright, I know this is the only reason most of you read my blog these days ;), so I'll start with the good stuff. Lately Emmaline is really becoming more aware of her surroundings. It's so much fun to watch her discover the world around her. Last night Chris and I took her on a walk in her stroller. Usually the best we can hope for is for her to fall asleep. But last night she was awake and looking around the whole time. She seemed to be in awe of everything she saw, even if it was just blurry shapes on her periphery.

She's also been growing quite well. In her first month she went from 6lb 12oz, to 8 lb 13oz! Most of her newborn clothes don't fit well, which makes me a little sad, even though I should want my daughter to grow. The funny thing is her newborn diapers don't come all the way up her back, which kind of makes her look like a plumber. Not so good for leak protection, though!!

Work - blah
Chris took on a huge project in early August, which in his words "Nearly killed him". He probably worked 80 hours the 2 weeks he was working on it. Luckily my friend Laurie was out for one weekend during that time, and she was a great help (and fun to be with!). Chris also got sick, so he was either working or quarantined away from Emmaline the whole 2 weeks. It was very hard for both of us. We were grateful for the income, but very glad when he finished the video (which you can see here - he did everything from casting to shooting & editing).

This past week I also went back to the grind. Honestly, in some ways I was looking forward to it. I enjoy what I do, and am anticipating wrapping things up sometime soon(ish?). I also really like the people I work with, and was missing some of the social interactions. So for all those reasons, it was good to be back. I missed Emmaline though! The hardest thing is the mornings. Usually I go back to sleep after her last feeding (anywhere between 5-7 AM), but this week I stayed awake. So I'm operating on about 6 hours total sleep each night, but it's not really enough! At least she doesn't mind when I drink coffee (in moderation), thank the Lord! :)

That's all I have for now. Emmaline is asleep but I bet she will wake up soon (she ate at 6:40 and it's past 11). In other news, the garden is doing pretty well! Although we have very little time to tend to it or fix the veggies that come out of it. But they sure look nice :)

Cuteness Overload

Today was fun. I hardly slept at all the day before, so was very pleased when Emmaline let me sleep until 10:00 (with a few interruptions, of course). Then we rushed over to my friend Kim's house, who had her son Cedar just two days after our new arrival. It was nice to visit with her and laugh about some of the crazy experiences we've had over the past month. Then we had a photo shoot with the two new friends. Cedar was wide awake but Emmaline slept through the encounter - although that didn't stop her from snuggling up with her new friend! It was super adorable.


Next we went to Starbucks to catch up with my Bible study friends, Deanna, Lyndsey, and Jennifer - what a great group! I miss meeting with them regularly, but life is so busy for all of us. After coffee, I came home and decided to play with Emmaline. Kim mentioned playing with Cedar and I thought ... what does it really mean to play with a 4 week old? But it seems like a good idea and a good way to let her know I'm interested in her and help her development.

So today playing consisted of laying on a blanket on the nursery floor, looking at colorful toys, staring at the singing caterpillar, and some tummy time. I also don't quite get tummy time. Emmaline is doing great at holding her head up anyway, and she usually doesn't enjoy being forced onto her stomach. But today she enjoyed it and turned her head from side to side a couple of times. It was actually really fun "playing" with her, and I'm excited about the developmental strides she'll be making soon.

Is that a smile?

Okay, tummy time has officially pooped us out

"What the freak is up with that caterpillar?"

The downside was maybe she was overstimulated, because playtime ended with an hour of cry time. Beginning with this video ...


But eventually she took a nap and I was able to get some work done, something I'll be trying to do a little each day from now on. Chris has been working a ton since last Friday (~30 hours in the past 2 days!). He got home around 7:30 and held Emmaline (she was being fussy again), so I got to eat dinner and relax for a bit. I don't know how single moms do it. Having him around, even just for a few hours a day, is a huge help and relief.

She fell fast asleep in this position - but it didn't last

The Silver Lining

Just when I am feeling super tired or worn out, something will bring a smile to my face. Either that, or I will give up and take a nap! For instance, one night last week, as I was feeding Emmaline, she reared her head back and let forth a massive projectile vomit all over me and her. It was EVERYWHERE!!! I called Chris into our room to help me clean up, I didn't want to move her for fear of making it worse. So he was dabbing spit up out of her nose and telling her what a mess she was. I was deciding where to start on me - with the spit up on my shirt, in my bra, or on my arm. And then (most likely on accident) Emmaline smiled at Chris! And then we were all smiling and having a ball. Who knew I could be so happy while covered in spit up??

As promised, here are some pictures. Thanks for stopping by!
My aunt and uncle sent Emmaline some Braves clothes, so she wore them while we were watching the Braves and Rockies play a couple of weekends ago. Interestingly I went into labor while we were watching the Braves and Rockies ... not sure who she will grow up to cheer for!

Emmaline hanging out on my lap a couple of weekends ago. I took a bunch of pictures of all of her faces, this is one of my favorites.

Last week she put on this pretty dress I bought her.

Chris' parents gave Emmaline a bath last weekend and she hated it less than usual. They enjoyed loving on her while they were here, and she loved the attention!

We went on a tour at New Belgium (yes, E came too!) with Chris' parents. I had a little bit of beer and Emmaline didn't seem to mind - woohoo!

Chris and I took Emmaline on her first hike at the Caribou open space near Nederland. The wildflowers were amazing, some of the best I've ever seen in Colorado!


Chris got a freelance job that required scouting out a location with 360 degree views, so we spent Saturday afternoon driving along the Peak to Peak Highway. We stopped to feed Emmaline at this scenic vista.