Time? What's that?

Mostly I have zero time to do things like blog. But in the few evening minutes I have been able to snag, I've still not been able to do anything other than quickly skim other people's recent posts. It has been a veeerrrryyyy crazy week around here. And as I've learned from attempting to make posts on three different occasions, I just don't have time to blog about it all. So sad! So I'll just hit the main points.

Greta is a delightful baby. I'd started telling myself that maybe I was mis-remembering the Anja newborn days, that maybe she wasn't that bad. But now I realize that it's not true. Greta is a normal newborn. She cries when she wants something: food, diaper, or sleep. And I almost always know what she wants, and the only time she keeps crying is when she wants sleep, and even that almost never lasts more than an hour at a time and is mostly contained to the evening. It's amazing to feel like I've succeeded in filling her needs. It's also amazing that she will just lie in one place and happily watch the world go by. The only unfortunate thing is that she doesn't like her swing--the one thing Anja DID like--and that makes it hard to be in the kitchen, because that is the safest place for her in that room. She really prefers to lie flat on her back and will lie on the changing table happily for as long as you'll let her. She usually sleeps like an old dog (except for last night when she was sleeping for about 10-minute intervals from 1:00 to 6:00) which is also great. And she is so cuddly! Basically Greta is everything in a newborn that Anja was not, and Martin and I can't help but imagine she'll be a terror or a toddler since Anja was a very difficult newborn but is the best toddler I could possibly imagine.

Okay, I know that some people REALLY like the newborn phase, and I think it's fine, but I am REALLY enjoying this toddler thing. Anja is finally old enough to "help" me cook!!!!!!! We made strawberry bread one day last week and then we made brownies the other day as well. Also last night she helped me put together some tuna salad. Really she just stands on a chair and eats her Cheerios off the counter and watches me do everything while sometimes sneaking tastes of whatever it is we're making. She is SO CUTE. I'm going to make her an apron as soon as I find the time to do that.... which will probably be never, becaaaauuussee......

Anja has recently started refusing her naps! Two days in a row she's not gone down. The first day I kind of freaked out about it, but it ended up not mattering--she was a delight all day long anyway. The next day (yesterday) she was a little grumpier, but still not TOO bad. I'm worried that this is going to be a permanent thing. This is a very scary thought. I NEED NAPTIME. When else am I supposed to clean my bathroom!? Seriously, the idea of Anja not taking a nap means VERY BAD THINGS for my already-less-than-desireable housekeeping.

Yesterday my mom called and asked me if I was going to church. I said, "No. I'm not going." And for the first time ever, I didn't go to church on Good Friday. I would've attempted it, if I hadn't tried to go to the library with both of them a few evenings before and even though I was only gone ten minutes, it was a disaster and Martin met us outside the library to help us get back home. Had it been a walk-able day yesterday, I probably would've at least attempted to go to church, but the fact that it was also cold and rainy made me kind of not want to take Greta out anyway, especially on a walk. So I was completely unholy on what should've been the most metitative day of the year.

Tomorrow is Easter and we'll celebrate with my side of the family in the afternoon at my aunt's house and with Martin's side of the family here at our house in the evening. Since tomorrow is a full day, I have to do all my preparations today. Part of those preparations include making Challah!