Our first full week alone went really well. We had something going on every day which made the week fly by! Since it takes nearly the entire morning to actually get out of the house, once we're out and go do what we need to get done and then get home, Mike is almost home so I don't feel like we've even had much hanging around the house time. I decided to leave at least a day or two in the coming week without plans so we can have a little more down time.
We had friends visiting from Seattle this weekend. Uncle Jason and Aunt Tonya took a few days to come over while on their annual trip to Vegas. Maude went out to eat for the first time at night. It was a sport's bar and with the NCAA tournament, it was quite a lively (aka LOUD) place! She did great - I think it was a lot of excitement for her with many things and people to check out. The entire weekend was pretty stimulating for her. Mike, Jason and Tonya went to Magic Mountain yesterday and Maude took a 3+ hour nap! I was able to shower and get ready all at once (that never happens anymore!), eat lunch, bake some bread, pick up the house, unload the dishwasher, and even relax a little bit. It was amazing!
In other sleep news, last Thursday night, Maude went to sleep at 8:30 PM and didn't wake up until 5 AM, then went back to sleep after eating and slept until 8:30. I felt like I'd slept forever and had so much energy on Friday! This weekend wasn't as good, but I think the excitement of the guests and the late bed times messed her up a bit. Here's hoping we can continue with the good sleep patterns starting tonight!
I reported last week that we thought Maude was smiling for real and I can now confidently say that she is! (We're still pretty sure she's been smiling at us for a few weeks now, but there's now no denying it.) There's nothing better than getting a wide grin from her just because she sees our faces. She's also making more little noises and practicing using her voice. Her very favorite place to be is on her changing pad. We get more smiles and "oohs", "goos", "gaaahs" and "ahhgs" when she's laying there than we do anywhere else. She has a colorful, toy-filled, musical, light up play mat that she enjoys, but it's nothing compared to her changing pad. I spend a good portion of every day standing there and talking, reading, and singing to her.
Maude's favorite songs are the "Hokey Pokey" which we sing when we're putting an outfit on ("You put your right arm in...") and "Mary Had a Little Lamb" with modified words. She has a soft little lovie which is a pink lamb so we made the song about Maude and her pink lamb. Here is how it goes:
Maude had a little lamb
Little lamb
Little lamb
Maude had a little lamb
Its fleece was pink as a pig
Everywhere that Maude went
Maude went
Maude went
Everywhere that Maude went
That lamb was sure to go
It followed her to school one day
School one day
School one day
It followed her to school one day
And went to calculus class
(We also replace "calculus" with geometry, biology, chemistry, AP English, or some other class she's sure to love someday)
We're looking forward to what new thing the next week brings!
Here are updated pictures from this past week. I felt like we took a lot more than this, but then I realized that Jason and Tonya took a lot with their camera. It was the first time since the day she was born that we got a few pictures of us as a family so hopefully we can share those once we get them.
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| All smiles on her changing pad! |
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| I bought her a hat which she obviously loves! (Note that she is on her changing pad, but it doesn't have its cover on and Maude is naked except for the hat. She'd just peed all over her clothes and the cover.) |
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| Again, loving life on her changing pad! |
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| All dressed up! I think she looks like she's trying to be all mysterious and model-like in this photo! |
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| Snoozing with Uncle Jason. |
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| I don't know if you can see it, but her shirt has a little scarf on it. It's cold and rainy today in LA so it is a very appropriate top. |
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| A close up. |
