Out with the old, in with the new...

While there are many new things to report, I thought I'd start with something that isn't new....Evie's enthusiasm for giving kisses. As you can see from this not so flattering photo, Evie is all about giving me kisses. It's very sweet of her, but sometimes she just about knocks me over! Funny girl! As for new things on the horizon, there's a lot to talk about. First, Evie just pulled herself to standing without any help for the first time yesterday. Even though she's not even 8 months old yet, we're guessing that it won't be long until she's walking. Luke and I made a bet....I've got 10 months, and he's got 10.5 months....so we'll see if either of us is right, or even close.

Another new thing is that we've decided to switch from a day care center to a nanny. There were many reasons for our decision, but two of the biggest factors were Evie's health and our belief that she will greatly benefit from one-on-one care while we're at work. Since starting day care, Evie has had almost non-stop ear infections and a string of other bouts of illness. We're hoping that getting her out of a group care setting, where infections run rampant among the li'l ones, and getting tubes in her ears will result in a much healthier baby. Evie has been such a trooper throughout, and we think it's high time she remembers what it's like to be healthy again...and to not have to take antibiotics all the time! We're also very excited about the nanny we hired, and think she will do a fabulous job with Evelyn. She comes highly recommended, has a great child care background, genuinely seems to enjoy children, and we believe she is someone who will always put Evie's needs first. All of those things may seem like "givens," but as we learned from our experience in interviewing candidates for the position, such qualities are not as easy to come by as one might hope. In any case, we're hoping that this new arrangement will work out well for all! Tomorrow's the first day, so wish us luck!