monday

what a day.

I left for work this morning with a long list of to-do items and I left work this afternoon with 2 things checked off. But the rest of the day was jam packed full of things that I hadn't anticipated, but had to be dealt with. Stressful things that I would have rather not had on my plate today, but - it comes with the job and so you deal.

Kyle started the morning getting ready for his first day at his new job. The nanny was a little late due to traffic, so Kyle was a bit stressed. In the end, everything worked out and he got to work fine.

The nanny that came today was not the person we asked to take the job last week. That nanny got food poisoning over the weekend, so we called our back up nanny to cover today and tomorrow for us. She was extremely gracious and saved our bacon. Abby did great.

The nanny said that Abby was perfect all day - she even slept an extra hour at nap time, didn't cry at all, and was good during her diaper change. HuH? Yeah. I also appreciated that the nanny texted me every so often to let me know things were going well. I was very happy to hear that things went well and that Abby took the transition well. In hindsight, she takes everything in stride most of the time, I shouldn't have been surprised.

However, the original nanny will be coming over wednesday through friday. So, hopefully things continue to go well. We'll see how things go.

I drove Kyle from work to class and we had about 15 mins to talk. He gave me the brief version of his day and I gave him the short version of mine. Neither of us had long enough to do either story justice, but it was better than nothing. So, now I'm home, Abby is asleep, and Kyle is still in class. He should be home around 10.

I have a report to write tonight for a very important meeting tomorrow. It's the one meeting that my boss comes to observe me on, and it has turned out to be a bit of a complicated case. So, I'm a little nervous about the whole thing and will be extremely glad to have it behind me.

wish me luck.

Here are a few pictures in the meantime.

Abby using her play dome as a convenient seat

we went to a book signing on sunday (more on that later) and Abby was plumb tuckered out. Poor Kyle held 20 lbs of dead weight for over an hour before finding a seat.

baby zzzzzs

the library

I was inspired by my friend hannah to seek out our local library. It turns out, that it's about a mile from where we live. :) So, after Abby woke from her nap we packed up and went to get a library card.

It's always hard getting out during that time of day now. At 4:45 it was mostly dark, and by 5 it can't get much darker. So, it just means that it takes a little more motivation to actually go anywhere. Time change was more fun before kids.

The library was a lot bigger than I expected. I would have taken a picture - but, again, it was pitch black out. Abby and I made our way in and got a library card and directions to the children's room.

woah, mom. there's a lot of books here.

did you see these??

This is Abby being confused as to why we're taking field trips after dark. Ok, so she was actually just banging on the window sill for five minutes, but she was having fun.

Of course, since she's figured out this whole crawling thing (talk about a lightbulb moment!) This is the view I get most of the time

The librarian was very sweet and didn't make fun of me at all when I asked if I could take a picture of Abby checking out her first library book. In fact, I think she was kinda excited about being a part of that moment. And yes, Abby picked the Andy Warhol book of colors. Good taste, no? :)

this is Abby's favorite picture - this is for you Aunt Jennifer

The library has tons of groups and activities for little ones, and I'm very excited to make this a regular part of our week. Maybe next time, mom will get some books too. :)

You Capture - Free Pick

Usually when I see the You Capture assignment for the next week, I get excited. Last week, I panicked. I do not do well when left to my own devices with this kind of thing. I need structure, guidelines...and a deadline. :)

That being said - here are a few hodgepodge pics from the week. A few are repeats from Halloween, but, eh, who's counting?

My halloween cow

experimenting with the flavors of oak leaves.

A few more fall leaves for anybody who was feeling deprived...

berries

sourdough. love.

Go see the creativity running rampant at I Should Be Folding Laundry!

sweetness

a few things I wanted to document.

We had a nanny come and interview on Monday. She brought her 6 month old daughter with her, and while we introduced ourselves, Abby and the baby got to know each other as well. Let me pause here. Abby and the baby. Meaning - Abby wasn't the baby. She looked so very very old compared to this 6 month old. It took me aback - it really did. So, anyway, I was interested to see what Abby would do. She looked at the girl for a while, and then looked at me. She pointed at the girl and then she got up and leaned in and kissed her right on the lips.

it was the sweetest thing ever. And she didn't even do her usual big open mouthed codfish kiss - it was a cute little pucker. I must have reacted well, because she kept doing it after that. She was so gentle and so sweet. I was so proud of her. :)

Although, eventually, I had to give Abs a little lesson about when too much kissing becomes a problem since she was just lovin' on the little girl so much.

Later that night, we were both worn out. As I rocked her while she drank her bottle, she felt extra comfortable. We both nearly fell asleep before she was finished with it. When she did finally empty the bottle, she handed it to me like always and then - like always - turned on her side and buried her face into my shirt. Usually, she stays that way while I rock her, but she rarely falls asleep. That night, she went right to sleep in my arms.

It was so peaceful. I thought about putting her in her crib as soon as I saw that she was asleep, but decided against it. I started thinking about how numbered these moments are and how soon it will be before she's not drinking any bottles and is too big to fall asleep in my arms. So, instead, I just held her. I probably sat there for another 40 mins just listening to her breathe little baby breaths.

I can't believe how fast this has all gone. More than ever, I want to cherish every single moment. I just know that the next time I blink she'll be all grown up.

answered prayers

Life has a funny way of working out sometimes, doesn't it?

Last week, while I was busy taking pictures of anything in the house I could find to sell on craigslist so that I could raise enough money to buy other things that we actually needed - Kyle got a phone call from BC.

The short version is - they offered him a job!

He would be doing the same kind of tech support work he did for his grad assistantship - except he would be working solo and in charge of different departments. One of which is the theology department (where he went to school). Since there is currently a hiring freeze at BC, they would be hiring him as a contracted worker. This means that he would get paid hourly - but also allows a bit more flexibility in when he sets his schedule. More or less, though, the job is a 9-5 gig. Once the hiring freeze is lifted, Kyle would have a very good (and even likely) shot at moving into the salaried position if he wanted to.

The flip side, of course, is that we need childcare now - and fast. The short version of that story is: it would take selling a kidney to pay for a daycare around here (seriously, more than our rent each month) and we had another cheaper in home day care option fall through. So, we're looking at nannies again. We interviewed one girl today and have 5 more interviews tomorrow.

The job is such a blessing. Jut when we weren't sure how to make ends meet anymore, this came along. Now - once we pay a nanny, I can't say that there will be much left each month. In other words, it by no means gives us the life of luxury - but we should be able to pay our bills. Which is luxury enough for me.

While it is a blessing - it is also a sacrifice for Kyle. He's been a little sad about leaving Abby. He's really really enjoyed being home with her. He loves spending his mornings playing with her. And since he'll still be going to class after work - he will likely only see Abby before he leaves in the morning now. And, that's a sacrifice for him - but one he's decided he's willing to make for the time being. Kyle is such a good dad - and such a good husband.

So. Send us good thoughts that we can hopefully find the perfect nanny for Abigail. Somebody who will nurture her and keep her safe. I think it is going to be much harder this time around to leave her in somebody else's care. She's old enough now to miss us - and to know we're gone. It's an extremely busy week for us - but I'll try to keep everyone posted on the nanny front. :)