(this is annie)

Though the thought of pregnancy and parenthood is terrifying, I really do like babies. They smell good if they're not poopy, and their tiny hands are always trying to clutch on to adult fingers. Yesterday I got to hold a baby named Meg, and when she smiled at me I felt a large sense of calmness and happiness. I wrote to my mother about it, and this is her reply:

Aren't babies the sweetest, best thing to hold in your arms? 11 weeks
old is such a neat age...they do start to recognize the human face, and
often the smile is not from gas. They really like people.

I also love my mom because even if we see an adorable baby somewhere, she'll quietly tell me, "You were cuter." Moms are great like that.

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Traci sent me a lovely spring bouquet as thanks for feeding her cats. It has magenta tulips, white snapdragony flowers, pink bellish flowers, and flowers that look like starfish. The more I see flowers, the more I believe that my secret calling in life is to become a florist. Think about how much fun that would be! You'd learn all about different plants, and you could create beautiful arrangements with endless color schemes. I wonder what you have to do to become a florist, if there's some crazy floral academy somewhere.
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My grandmother's name was Hazel Pearl. Isn't that a wonderful old lady name?