Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

This week I wanted to give a shout out to my mom who was able to visit us and help with the little man. She arrived the day after we brought Tristan home, and was able to stay for 3 weeks. During those three weeks she was an immense help as I was short on sleep and most of all experience. I felt spoiled as I was always able to fit in a shower and daily naps-it was great! I'm so glad and incredibly grateful that she was able to make the trip. When she left, our little home felt so empty and I couldn't wait for the next opportunity for her to come and visit.

I also wanted to give a shout out to Aunt Laura who so lovingly made a cradle for Tristan. It turned out beautiful and arrived without a nick or scratch (which seems miraculous after seeing how the baggage is handled at the airport). Tristan fits perfectly in his new cradle and is able to sleep comfortably thanks to a wonderful blanket Joanne (Grandma Domm) made for him.

During the last week my mom was here, we took a trip to the nearby town of Bad Durkheim to explore its castle ruins which date back to the 1100's. Because we had to climb numerous steps to get to the castle (and had learned from previous trips that the stroller wasn't the best option) Paul toted Tristan in the Baby Bjorn under his coat. This was the first time we had used the carrier and were skeptical of how warm or even comfortable it would be (Paul wondered if our poor little guy could even breath in there). To our surprise though, it worked like a dream and Tristan slept the whole time. Thanks Jen D. for the Baby Bjorn-what a great gift! The picture below shows the three of us in front of the castle.

Here is a side view of the castle. Thanks to a friendly old man who was taking a walk nearby, we learned that the castle and inhabitants were overthrown during the French Revolution. For any history buffs this really is a fun place to be-as there is history all around us!