SID 7/21/98

Tired But Happy

You couldn't see it, but Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis) was wearing fleece-lined boots with her red gown during this year's Nurses Ball. I'm a tired mother at the moment, and I need to be as comfortable as possible!" she says. Grahn gave birth to daughter Katherine Grace in February and only took a four-week maternity leave. She says being a single mom didn't provide her much choice financially. "It was up to me to hold down the fort," she says, which isn't so easy on no sleep. "Sleeping isn't something my daughter has figured out how to do at night yet!" she cracks. But Grahn perks right up when she talks about her baby. "Nobody can prepare you for what a child gives you - the feeling that you would take a bullet for her," she says. "The gratitude that I feel when I look into her eyes is just the biggest gift."