As I watch AMC's Halloween marathon...

(I have loved this guy (and his movie) for years.  I didn't see it as a kid; Mom thought it was way too scary.  I don't know how I would have reacted.  I'm wondering how I can raise Ruby to see the happy sweetness in this movie, and love Jack Skellington, instead of being scared.  Probably not possible-- I guess it does have scary elements for little kids.)

But anyways, it's Halloween! My favorite holiday.  Last night was the Bluffs' third annual Halloween party.  It was, as always, awesome.  I brought pretzels (the more difficult kind), peanut butter cookies, and a new kind of brownies.  They were nasty.  It was fun to see everybody and their costumes.  We played Werewolves and watched Garfield's Halloween, in accordance with tradition.  Ruby was great, even though we kept her out until 1 AM.  She was super comfy being held by everyone, eventually falling asleep for hours in Amanda's arms.

Our costumes were nothing special.  I just wanted to do something that would mean drawing a mustache on my daughter. We were..truckers, I guess?

Everyone else looked awesome:

Unfortunately not pictured: Celia as the girl in Scooby Doo with the name that I can't remember because I've never actually seen the show or the movie, Cannon as Colonel Sanders, and Alan as a very believable Jimmy McMillan.

And the winners of the costume contest:

Perfect!

GOOD GIRL

Kyle has been sick since Sunday with the flu.  It's awful. We've discovered that being sick with a baby is far worse than being sick without one.  He doesn't get to kiss her, which sucks for him, and he can't help me take care of her, which sucks for me. It has been exhausting!  I know that I'm new at this and a total wuss anyways, but dang.  I am anxious for him to get better.

Ruby must have sensed how crazy I'm feeling because last night this girl slept for 5.5 hours straight, was up for 20 minutes eating and getting her diaper changed, and then slept for another 3.5 hours.  That hasn't happened in a looong time.  It'll be a while before she sleeps through the night, but man, that is going to be awesome.

I love when babies look like wrinkly old men.

Just loungin' on her mom's burgundy velour maternity sweatpants. Luxurious.

Cute ROBOT blankie made by Kaity Nieman.

My little starfish

I have to stop making pretzels.  It's getting ridiculous.  So yesterday I made bagels instead.   This recipe isn't too hard and they taste really good--although they're not what you would call gorgeous.  I don't think they can replace my pretzel obsession though.

I'm getting such a kick out of Ruby lately:

 We got this little Halloween outfit at a garage sale and I love it.  And it confirms that she looks like a boy unless she's dressed like a girl.  

Her first time in the Bumbo!  She loved it.  She sat there for ten or fifteen minutes, but then her neck got tired and her head slumped down so we took her out.

I call this her starfish outfit.  She looks so silly.  I couldn't get her limbs to cooperate for the camera though, so just imagine how starfishy she looks when they're all splayed out.

This is before I took her on a walk this morning--which never ended up happening.  I stepped outside and noticed the Arctic winter and walked right back in.  I think her limbs sticking out of the Bjorn in this outfit are just HILARIOUS.

I REALLY need to charge my camera so I can stop posting crappy pictures from my phone.

Ruby's first...

Anyone who's been here will know that table instantly:

Ruby's first Rice King trip!

Victor congratulated us and called her "Forensic Jr."--he calls Kyle "Forensic".  We love him.

We could tell Ruby loved Rice King because she slept the whole time.  Oh wait, she does that no matter where we go.  She definitely WILL love Rice King someday though.

Here's what she is doing right now:

It must be a hard life, sleeping and eating all the time. Poor girl.

When Ruby's Sleeping

So, other than baby-raising, what are WE up to?  Actually it isn't super easy to come up with any non-Ruby-related updates...taking care of a newborn really is a full-time job.  But there are a couple things we've been up to in between feedings and diaper changes.

As part of Birthday Week, Kyle and I left Ruby for the first time to see a play.  Luckily, Christy was the babysitter, so it was super easy to leave.  We went to the teeny Springville Playhouse in the basement of the library and saw Dracula.  We had a great time, it was cheap, and it made me feel all Halloweeny.  Lots of blood and bad accents.

 Over the weekend we tried this recipe for soft pretzels.  They were great--chewy and dense.  They tasted just like the pretzels I got at Costco when I was a kid.  Unfortunately, they were also a lot of work and took forever to make.

Yesterday I decided to make another batch and used this recipe.  They were completely different!  These were more like the pretzels from places like Auntie Anne's Pretzels.  Lighter, more breadsticky and buttery.  Also delicious.  They were way easier to make and took less time too.  Will I try another recipe today?  It's very possible.  We have eaten more pretzels in the last 4 days than the last 10 years combined. It's kind of heaven.

For my birthday, Kyle gave me...my very first blog book!  Oh man, it is cool.  It's contains the first half of my blog and it's surprisingly awesome to look through.  Slightly embarrassing to read the stuff I wrote 3 years ago (I am now, naturally, more mature and wise and awesome) but I really love it.  Now I want a book of Kyle's blog because I think it's hilarious. (So, I'm 25 now. Weird. I'm not nearly grown-up enough to be 25.)

 I can't tell you how excited I am about AMC's epic new series that premieres on Halloween.  A ZOMBIE TV SHOW.  Starring Andrew Lincoln, one of my favorites from Love Actually. 

He's gone from this:

To this:

SO EXCITED.  And now, back to Ruby and AMC's Fearfest 2010.

1 Month!

These monthly updates are for my own future reference/perusal/crying over when my baby is all grown up.

Right now Ruby loves: looking at our faces, her binky, the SwaddleMe that her aunt Katy gave us, being in her carseat, going on walks, and spitting up all over us a couple times a day.  She has a darling smile and is growing really fast--probably because this girl loves to eat--all the time. Kyle calls her "Ruby" and "girl".  I always call her "girlfriend." I don't know how that happened, but it feels the most natural.  She sleeps pretty well most nights, but not enough for Kyle and me to feel like we're getting enough sleep.

Kyle and I are...well, tired.  But we're not zombies at least.  Definitely still in the adjustment phase, but we have fun going on walks and playing with Ruby.  Kyle sings her some pretty great songs (his poop version of "Under Pressure" is almost as good as the original).  I stick to normal lullabies like *NSYNC and Frank Sinatra.  Kyle thought he would have a really hard time changing diapers, but is completely over the grossness--for which I am very grateful.  Kyle is super helpful--he gets up with me in the night, and does a huge chunk of the work once he gets home from being a microbiologist.  I definitely feel like taking care of Ruby is a team effort, not just MY job.

We love Ruby so freaking much it's ridiculous.  It's great to be a little family.

Ignore the fact that she looks like a boy in these pictures.  Usually we have her in something girlier.

Can't you tell she REALLY wanted to give me a hug?

You don't make this move unless you be DANCIN'

And now, why I love her funny face:

 

She cracks me up.

Ruby's latest adventures

Ruby loves to be out and about.  She is happiest when shopping, eating out, or going on walks.  She is only cranky when she's been inside our apartment all day!  She is definitely not like her mom or dad, who have turned into homebodies (I think it's the lack of sleep).  Lucky for her, Christy and Lucy and Dad were in town last week and we spent every day running around having fun.  Christy (pregnant) and I (postpartum) were exhausted, but Ruby and Lucy had a blast.

We saw some awesome animals by my house.  Unfortunately this picture is of nasty big pigs, not the adorable baby goats or little kangaroos or llamas or yaks or anything interesting.  

Ruby went out in the cold for the first time (it is freezing most mornings) and wore her little lamb/bear/whatever outfit.  It is so cute and going to be worn a lot this winter in the frigid Utah snow.

We went to Corn Bellys!  It was so fun, even though they don't have the princess dress up clothes anymore. It was also my first time wearing the Baby Bjorn, and I love it.  So easy and comfy.

Lucy and Ruby had a lot of bonding time.  Lucy finally has a cousin on the Anderson side!  She loves Ruby and was great with her.

This little monkey is from Ruby's grandpa Ken.  Lucy decided it was awesome and anytime Ruby was sad, Lucy would run get the monkey to show her to cheer her up.

Ruby's first bath!  She took it like a champ.  No crying, no peeing in the tub.  She loved the warm water.  Unfortunately, when Kyle and I bathed her today (first time on our own) she screamed AND pooped.  Not sure what we did wrong...

I just love her face in this picture.

A girl's first raptor statue is...a pretty big deal.

Ruby continues to be awesome.  She is so cute in her little outfits, has hilarious squeak-toy hiccups and the softest hair, smiles a lot (it's adorable even if these ones don't count), and her toes are tiny miniature replicas of mine. She has an innie belly button, long fingers, and loves to be swaddled and sung to. We go on lots of walks and she is definitely a cuddler.  She is growing like crazy--she can't fit some of the clothes she wore a week ago, and I can totally tell that she's bigger just by how she fits in my arms.  At her 2 week appointment, she had already put on over a pound since birth!  She will be one month old on Tuesday--I can't believe it.

And now some random poor quality pictures from my phone.