Drools and Laughs

Maddie sporting a little drool while hanging out in her "Daddy's Little Princess" outfit.

A couple of loud laughs while playing with Sophie the giraffe.  Notice how she's able to hold Sophie!

This week went by quickly.  Last Sunday we determined we were not comfortable with our au pair's driving.  This was unfortunate because she is wonderful with Maddie, but we need someone who can drive as we don't have time to take our au pair to and from their required classes and meetings (not to mention to meet up with friends).  By Tuesday, we had been matched to another au pair, Amelie, who drove up to our house and met with us that evening.  She is from Germany, speaks fluent English, already has a valid IL license and has been driving for 6 months, and seems like a great fit for our family.

Amelie will be coming on the 21st of the month and staying until the middle of July.  This means we'll have to get another au pair sooner than we'd anticipated, but we're okay with it because there is a greater selection in the summertime.  This also gives Vivian another week to find a new host family.  The transition may be a bit stressful, but we all agree that it's the right decision for the long-term.

Maddie continues to amaze us, making lots more noises and holding objects more firmly.  She is now going to bed between 6:30 and 7:30, sleeping through the night a couple of times each week.  The other nights she wakes just once for a feeding around 4-5am.  She continues to take powernaps about four times a day for an hour each, but wakes happy, hungry and smiley.  Her eczema is much improved after three treatments with the medicine and we'll continue to put lotion on her multiple times a day to keep it at bay.