...life as we know it: . . . good sleep and a great friend

I need to get this post out before my very busy weekend commences -- my dad arrives tomorrow morning and we have college football to watch this weekend! And this week has been pretty awesome as well . . .

First off, one of my very best friends from the States arrived last weekend to meet her hubby in Amsterdam (Spencer, from my last post). So they did the 'Dam touristy stuff over the weekend, then Jane took the train to Eindhoven Monday morning to spend two days with us! As soon as she got here she ran up the stairs to see our sweet boy, and pretty much held him for the next two days. : ) I fed Liam shortly after and then the four of us headed to lunch at La Place in the winkelcentrum. Keith got his haircut afterwards as Jane, Liam, and I walked around and poked our head into some of the shops. I have really been missing my friends so it's hard to describe how it felt to be with Jane again. We have worked together and talked/seen each other on a daily basis for over 6 years now -- this will be the first year I haven't taught with her, which may not seem like a big deal to most, but I think being able to work with your best friend is a rare thing and one we didn't take for granted. I have missed her so much these last few months!

Ok, off my soapbox . . . anyway, we really had a great time catching up, talking about babies and life and work and family. She held Liam anytime he wanted to be cuddled (which is often!), and brought some very sweet gifts / cards from friends back home. But perhaps the best gift she gave us was S-L-E-E-P. She told me she wanted to take over the night-time feeding for us to give us both a chance to get some extra zzzz's, and at first I hesitated because I didn't want her one night with us to be a sleepless one, but when I told Keith what she wanted to do, he said, "Okay," like we were twisting his arm. : ) So Jane took over after I fed Liam at 2 am, and I got to sleep until 9 am! That is HUGE. And Keith sleep from midnight to 8 am with a short wake-up to help Jane warm the bottle at 5 am. It was so nice to wake up on my own and lay there for a few minutes, rather than waking to hungry boy who wants to eat NOW.

We spent Tuesday hanging out, doing a little "arts and crafts" project with Liam, and talking some more (isn't that what women do??). I was SO sad to see her leave when Keith took her to the train station, and she of course couldn't resist running back up the stairs to give Liam one more kiss good-bye. He loved meeting his Aunt Jane, and I can't wait for us to see her again in December. Here are some pictures from our visit with Jane . . .