ketchup.

Sometimes when I think of something I want to blog about I write it down on a post-it by the computer and get to it whenever I have time/want to. I was thinking I should do a little “catch-up” post, so I wrote it down on a post-it. Chris was at the computer and asked “Why does this post-it say ketchup?” I had written “ketchup” instead of “catch up”. We will blame that one on mommy brain.
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Chris is writing his thesis full-time this semester. And when I say full-time, I mean full-time. These past few weeks have been especially hectic. It seems like if you have a whole semester to write one paper, it should be easy. But turns out it’s a really big, really hard paper. He works so hard staring at a computer for 10 hours and then comes home and I tell him to do a million things. He is our superhero. And guess what? He got accepted to Michigan State this week. Its one of the best programs in the nation in his field, thank you very much. We are waiting to hear back on an assistantship to make our final decision. But hooray for getting in!! How come Michigan State isn’t in . . . Hawaii? Chris also got called into the Young Men’s Presidency. We thought it would be fun to both be working with the youth, but turns out it’s very hectic. Mutual night isn’t the daddy-daughter time/mommy’s escape that it once was. But we are blessed to be able to serve, and we have a fantastic bishop who tells us we can do whatever we need to to make it work. Chris will be great with the Young Men, though he said he is used to working with missionaries as Ward Mission leader and from his time at the MTC, so he will have to adjust to being surrounded by teenagers instead.
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Carly has a thing for hats. Look at those long arms. We always say she is like "go go gadget arms!".
I am still always two steps behind Carly, it seems, but she’s cute so it’s ok. My current biggest test of patience is trying to get her to eat solids. We are on week three and she still fights to the death. I have to pin both of her arms down and sing “I like to eat, eat, eat, apples and bananas!” really loud in order to distract her enough to shove food in her mouth. Oh, man, it causes me to lose my patience so quickly. The other day I gave up and said “Fine, but you’re the one who is going to be embarrassed when you have to take a bottle of formula to prom.” Other than that we have fun together. I looked at my list of goals the other day and realized the Spiritual ones were the only ones I have kept up with. That’s good I suppose. Haha. But I went to the doctor last week and am 2 lbs shy of reaching my pre-pregnancy weight. Maybe if I actually start working out I can reach my ideal weight.
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Trying to simultaneously suck her thumb and eat.
Speaking of weight, Carly had her 6 month check-up last week. She came in at a petite 14 lbs 10 oz (21%) and 25 inches long (30-something%). She got immunized, which is what caused our fever all-nighter. The next day she was taking a nap and I heard her whining through the monitor. I was asleep too, so I waited hoping she would fall back asleep. She didn’t and when I went in to get her I found her covered in vomit (not spit-up) and shivering from being wet. She started to heave right then and I picked her up and turned her over so she could puke all over her mattress without it going down her throat. I was terrified. I called the nurse and she said it was probably caused by the fever, but to call if it happened again. I gave her a bath and miraculously her fever broke by the time I took her temperature after the bath. It still hurts my heart to think about her heaving and throwing up all over herself and her crib all by herself. Why didn’t I just get up and go check on her? I should have been holding her and kissing her forehead while she went through that. I want to cry whenever I think of it. Anyway . . . we have had a healthy baby for about a week now, and I’m a big fan.
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And I wanted to say thanks for sharing your stories. My mom texted me and said she wished she had the same networking we do as a young mom. In a strange twist of events, Carly started nursing again on Monday after a nearly 3-week strike. I’ll take it as long as it will last, even though now I’m struggling because I was emotionally prepared and even excited to stop. The grass is always greener, right?
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We have started reading a lot of books. Carly mostly likes to play with them.
That’s it for our little C family of three.

All that jumping is hard work. Yes, she is asleep.