all it took was 15 months

I had no idea when I gave birth to Arabella that it would be 15 months later that I'd get my first full night's rest (that's even debatable since Adelaide still wakes me up). It's a pretty monumental accomplishment that Bella slept through the night last night. Since being in the States I've gotten her off the bottle which has led to longer nights sleep for my girl. When she wakes up now it's because she can't find her binky. I usually have to retrieve her pacifiers that have fallen out of her crib and bounced all over the floor. Last night she went to sleep at 7PM and didn't wake until 6AM. I changed her diaper put her back down and she slept until almost 9AM. I had to go in and check on her at 11:30PM just to make sure she was ok. That's the sort of thing you do when your child has been waking up multiple times at night for the past 15 months.

Arabella has grown so much in the past 5 weeks in Washington. All the new experiences have led to lots of new milestones and more talking too. She says "Mama" all day now. I love seeing both my girls grow like little seedlings when they are in the States.

This picture of Arabella was taken in the hospital on day 2 of her life.