Ruby took her first bus ride today, to sit in on a support group meeting for breastfeeding mothers. She honored the meeting with an amazingly explosive poop diaper, although all the other moms there, with older babies, were unfazed. Everything is a milestone for us still though.

David returned to work on Monday, so Ruby and I have the house to ourselves all day. Thankfully various friends agreed to swing by and hang out, for adult company as well as lending a helping hand. On Monday Katie brought lunch and as she left, Megan, Adam and 9-month-old EJ popped in. EJ was impressed with Ruby--which is a good sign, because we hope to arrange some babysitter-sharing gig with her when I go back to work. Yesterday Chloe brought dinner and hung out while David went to his weekly mandolin orchestra after work. And tomorrow my aunt Leidie and uncle Rudo, who are visiting from the Netherlands, are coming by--with lots of traditional dutch licorice for me I hope! As you can tell: food is key. Last weekend our friends Clare and Ansar brought us delicious apples from a farmers market when they visited.

Next week Ruby's grandparents from France are arriving. We're all excited and looking forward to the hands-on help for a few weeks. Jaya might be back too while my parents are here--a rare family reunion. My mom couldn't wait with a bunch of stuff though and has been sending all kinds of great finds for Ruby during the last few months. The blanket I'm using on the couch while Ruby is sleeping is actually a huge cashmire scarf that her parents gave her when I was born. Ruby also has a bunch of adorable and oh so tiny little wool sweaters that I wore when I was a baby.

Finally, check out the awesome mobile that our friend Steve made for Rudo. The colored cubes are made from origami and the whole thing, when hung up properly, is perfectly balanced. All made from scratch by Steve! We're going to hang it up above the changing table.