The forty-second week

It's been a busy week as we gear up for next week's holiday. Not only have we had to finish up our shopping, but we're going to be hosting both of our families here on Christmas day. Madeline and I had fun on Wednesday and Thursday as we drove around town, from store to store, ticking things off the list and soaking up the holiday atmosphere.

Inexplicably, Madeline's nap schedule has returned to normal after last week's derailment. The day after we returned from Roanoke she was back to normal. I have a feeling that it took the major disruption of traveling for two days to get things back into synch.

Sometimes I find myself thinking that Madeline is at the perfect age right now. Despite the occasional grumpiness or naptime issue, she's just so much fun. I love watching her learn and explore, and when she crawls to me and climbs my leg. It's fun to see her stare wide-eyed as we walk around town, and when she points her tiny finger and issues a soft word. And I could listen all day as she talks noisily to the oversize book she's holding in her lap.

Then I realize I've thought she's been at the perfect age for about four months now. My dentist, who has a 5-year-old daughter, told me recently that he's experienced the same phenomenon - every age seems like the perfect age. I guess I have a lot to look forward to.

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Notes:

- Last week we finally stopped Madeline's acid-reflux medication. She had been taking it since she was 7 weeks old, and we were told she might be on it for most of her first year. We had tried a couple times to stop it earlier, but each attempt seemed to cause increased fussiness. Looking back, that fussiness could have been related to other factors, such as teething. Or not. In any case, she's done with it now, though I think she quite enjoyed the taste.

- Speaking of teething, it looks like she's getting a couple more. About 4 weeks after we spotted her top front teeth, the teeth to either side of those are now pushing through. I didn't expect we'd see any more for a while, but a baby's teeth seem to be the most unpredictable of the major developmental milestones.