New Beginnings

All good things must come to an end. After 8 wonderful weeks of Pete home this summer, he was back to school on Thursday prepping for the school year ahead. I was definitely in denial about his return and about the implications for me as a full time stay at home mom, at least for the next month before Maeve starts up at creche 2 days a week and I start working again.

With one final completely free weekend, Pete got to choose our Sunday outing. We revisited Utrecht for the morning and enjoyed the calm of the city on a Sunday morning. On our first visit to Utrecht, it was a busy Saturday with markets and a festival crowding the streets. This time, we got coffee and croissants and spent a lot of time sitting with a view of the Domtoren, the tallest church tower in the Netherlands. Every 15 minutes the bells would chime and the whole thing was so serene.

A long stop at a huge Utrecht playground and lunch at an outdoor cafe rounded out a fun outing.

On Monday, sweet Maeve turned 3 months. Wow, that went by fast!

Back to school shopping with a view! 

I had mixed feelings about being on my own with Maeve. I was sad not to have Pete around to share in all of her "first" moments and I also worried that if she had a fussy day, that I would be on my own to deal with it. With Jude, as I was new to the city, I was working hard to build up my support/social network. I would begin every week eagerly trying to make social engagements to occupy my time and some days would have no plans, rainy weather and a fussy baby. 

My first solo day with Maeve was perfection. I had forgotten about all of the perks of staying home with an infant. The day started early and I was on Museumplein changing a blowout before the Stadelijk museum opened its doors. After a walk through of the Amsterdamse School exhibit and some home goods shopping, I met up with my new mom group at the amazing Boezemvriend ("Breast friend") baby cafe and concept store. It is the ideal environment for little babies- very pro nursing with lots of comfy chairs, plenty of baby chairs, play mats and gyms and a huge selection of high end pregnancy, nursing and baby items. There was a big turnout this month and we stayed 3 1/2 hours, socializing with new friends. A stroll through sunny Vondelpark, a stop for ice cream and I was on cloud nine. 

Loving spending my days with this munchkin

Maeve and some new friends

On Friday morning, I walked with Maeve to our new house (30 minutes) where we met with a number of contractors and painters to start getting quotes for work that we'd like to have done. The current owners were so sweet. The wife pushed Maeve to sleep in the garden and stayed with her while I went all over the house. Then they let me stay to feed her while watching the Olympics and offering me tea. After our long visit, we set off to explore our new neighborhood. I found a few playgrounds within a few minutes walk, which I know Jude is going to love. I found the entrance to the Middelpolder, a recreation area with walking trails and scenic farmland along the Amstel River. We stopped in the local shopping center for lunch and I was amazed at the number of restaurants and shops just down the street from our house (from the outside it only looks like a few shops). While I was eating lunch, I ran into a woman who was in my prenatal yoga class. Her daughter is now 5 months old and we found out that we are moving to their street! It was a great morning getting excited about our new house and neighborhood (and neighbors).

My walking buddy

In the afternoon, I took Maeve to Baby Sensory class for the first time. This was a course I enjoyed with Jude when we first arrived and being back in that building brought back a lot of memories from our early days in Amsterdam. Two years really goes by quickly! I'm looking forward to more special time with my little girl!