Just a quick hello

We are settling back in nicely!  The biggest news of the month is two-fold: 1) Maya is getting a bunch more teeth, so I've updated her tooth chart (and will keep updating - there are at least two more on the horizon).  Of particular interest, her lower lateral incisors, which were supposed to appear ages ago, are just now coming in at 17 months :) Also, 2) we decided to ride the wave of a bunch of adjustments in the return to Michigan (and daycare) and night wean/sleep train Maya.  I had been avoiding "sleep training" with every fiber of my being, insisting on waiting until I thought Maya was old enough that she could both understand that she's "supposed" to be sleeping through the night (and we could have discussions about it) and also that she really didn't *need* to nurse.  The idea of leaving a tiny baby who's legitimately hungry or thirsty to scream for hours alone in a crib seems awful to me, and I simply refused to do it no matter how tired I was (and no matter how many times husband tried to convince me that all academics do it - and pretty much among our colleagues here, they do).  However, sometime during the trip to Oz, I decided she was indeed meeting both requirements.  So, upon return, we have had her a) falling asleep in her own bed without being nursed or rocked down, and b) staying there all night, because "it's night-night time" and "mama will come get you in the morning when the sun comes up."  Shockingly, it has worked with nearly zero tears.  I am now, finally, catching up on a year and a half of sleep deprivation.  I am happy :)  The only thing that will make me happier?  When we completely wean - I'm leaving Maya with the grandparents the first week of August so that I can attend a conference, so that's my target weaning date (ok, a little before that, so that there's not too much disaster in Maya's life all at once!).  I'll be very proud to make it to 18 months, but I think that's the stopping point for me.  On the bright side, nursing from 12-18 months has been LIGHTYEARS more fun for me than nursing from birth-12 months.  I can't even remember the last time she bit me, fancy that!

I leave you with the cute photo set of the week - Maya loves wearing everyone else's shoes!  And yes, we do indeed brush that hair before actually leaving the house :)