My real live doll! Now where is the instruction manual?

You are probably only looking at this blogpost to see pictures of Anna (which are at the bottom-- feel free to skip ahead if you want), but I am going to take the opportunity to elaborate on some things I have discovered with parenthood as well. Take it or leave it.
1. Babies are hard to understand. I do so much better with adults. I know that supposedly you are supposed to be able to differentiate between the babies cries, but to tell you the truth-- her crying all sounds the same ("poopy diaper," "I'm hungry," and "get me something more interesting to look at than this wall" all have the same plaintive wail). I have asked her to use complete sentences when she has a request, but she has as yet failed to oblige me.
2. Parenthood really is a 24 hours a day job. All that free time I was worried about filling has now evaporated along with uninterrupted sleep. The good news is, I adore my little girl, and I actually get jealous of my time with her. If too many people hold her for too long I start getting antsy to get her back-- afraid I won't be her "favorite" any more.
3. Anna is allergic to Utah, or at least, the Utah dry climate. We took her to California and she was a perfect angel, waking up only one time each night and letting her parents do all sorts of fun stuff. We come back to Utah, and she reverts back to unpredictable baby behavior and I revert back to a living zombie.
4. Baby smiles are better than chocolate. Good thing too, because I think I am going to try giving it up. I am willing to try anything if it makes her more comfortable.
5. What a miracle. I never thought something so beautiful and so perfect could come from me. Now if only she had gotten the perfect mom! I have already apologized to her a dozen times. I am so good at following directions....but everyday is a work at improvisation.

Here are some photos (finally! you say). Anna's first photo shoot when she was just days old in our old apartment in provo before we moved. Thank you Kaela for catching those moments!









People ask us all the time who she looks like. I don't think she looks like either Richard or I-- she is far more beautiful than that! As far as I can guess, she has my eyes and hair, Richard's mouth, her grandmother's ears and chin, my mother and sister's coloring. I actually think she looks like my sister Katie.