Aunt Ashley and Uncle John

Anneliese got to meet her Aunt Ashley today! She and John came up for the afternoon to see both kids. Nathan was very excited to get some special Ashley love, and Anneliese slept contentedly in both Ashley's and John's arms.... which I'm pretty sure means she likes them too. :)I'm used to seeing Ashley cuddling my kids, and she's always had such a nurturing/maternal instinct anyway that it seems perfectly normal to see her in that role. But it was surprising and fun for me to see John cuddling Anneliese while he watched a football game. It looked very natural on him too! I'm excited for Ashley and John to get married already and start making babies of their own. Since they spoil my kids, I reserve the right to become one of those annoying people in their lives who nags them about baby-making. Get on it, you two!

Ashley also pointed out that with Anneliese drinking bloody milk, she's sort of a vampire baby. But we'll refrain from calling her Renesmee, or from thinking of her as a vampire in any way. If we focus our brains very hard, we can follow emu's "strawberry milk" idea -- which Mark is a lot more comfortable with! Only when Ashley and I are together would vampires even enter the discussion!!

We also took Anneliese to church for the first time this morning. I think people were kind of surprised to see me -- last Sunday I was singing in the choir, very very pregnant. And then
today I was there with the baby all snuggled into the Moby wrap (I wanted as few people to be tempted to touch her as possible!) and dozing through the service. I know some people say you're not supposed to take a baby out in public so soon, but I really needed to get out of the house, and the timing worked well with her feedings for us to be able to make it to worship.
Which I think we both needed. Something about being out and about just makes me feel more human, you know?

But at the end of the day we were both definitely exhausted. I didn't even know Mark took this picture until I just found it on our camera. It kind of sums up the mood of our evening.

Twilight

I finally joined 2008 this week and read Twilight, the first in Stephenie Meyer's vampire series. Did I like it? Well, it's not that simple...

Here's what I liked:
- Bella, the main character, and Edward, her vampire boyfriend are generally kind to each other. Edward is chivalrous and respectful, for the most part, towards Bella.

- The book plays up restraint as being just as attractive as giving into temptation. Not sure how long this will last in the series. But in this volume, at least, the sexual tension is well-written, and that's enough.

- There is a focus on personal choice to determine the type of character someone has, not just circumstance. Bella respects Edward for what he has chosen to be, not what he was "born" into.
- Bella is productive at home, smart in school, and never "plays the dumb card" to get attention.

Here's what I didn't like:
- The story was just so much of the same thing. Girl meets boy. Girl thinks boy's a vampire. Girl pursues relationship despite vampireness. Nary a subplot. Is anyone really this one-dimensional?

- Edward is a little too perfect, to the point that he's not believable or attractive. He's smart, he's gorgeous, he knows every word to every song on the radio, he's fast, he's strong, he's a brilliant pianist, he's an excellent driver (there's an air of magic even when he's speeding), he's protective, he's a good kisser, he's loyal, and on and on and on. I mean, give me a break. I know we all strive to be great partners, but no one is this good at it. Come on.

- Bella's dad seems totally clueless. Who would let their daughter out to play baseball with her boyfriend in the woods in the middle of the night? Who would let their daughter drive hours away by herself to a huge city she's unfamiliar with? I think he loves her, but he needs to get a clue. He's a cop, for pete's sake. Pay attention!

I got to the last page of the book, rolled my eyes a little, and put it on the nightstand. And then woke up this morning wondering what happens next.

So there's that - I got drawn in, even though I didn't love it. I'm with Kelley -- this was good, but not sure what all the hype is about.

I'll probably watch the movie, though. :)