Couche Tarde

Couche Tarde is a French phrase meaning "open late." We learned this phrase a few years ago when we were in Montreal for a wedding. We noticed that it was written on a lot of signs (mostly at gas stations and convenience stores) and we entertained ourselves for hours trying to figure out what it could mean before we finally asked somebody. As you can see from the picture above, Ethan is not "open late." Though he has taken on more of his fair share of domestic responsibilities and loves being with and helping out with Maddy, he can in no way be counted on at night to do anything but babble incoherently or say something utterly infuriating before falling back asleep. I became enraged last week when, after I asked him for some help with feeding and changing her at 2:45am, he told me that he wanted to continue sleeping. When I confronted him about it the next day, he had absolutely no recollection of the incident and told me that I should poke him or hit him awake when needed. Since I realized that he is in fact sleeping and not ignoring my pleas for assistance, I was able to have a sense of humor about it the other night when he...once again...fell asleep mere moments after offering to change her diaper. I snapped the photo below when I took him up on his offer to poke him awake; he eventually roused himself enough to give Maddy Rae her midnight snack! 

I have to give Ethan credit for all that he does to make life easier for me. Yesterday, as I attempted to clear out Madelyn's room, Ethan took on the enormous task of ridding our apartment of the cat hair that has accumulated over the past six weeks since we've had neither the time nor the inclination to be vacuuming in the few spare moments that we have. Though it definitely takes time to do this, I've always wondered why Ethan insists on setting aside at least an hour to accomplish the chore. I got my answer when I stumbled across him in this most unusual vacuuming position. Though he insists it's highly effective, I have to wonder...



Finally, no entry would be complete without a few photos of our newest love. We took these today. We've gotten a kick out of seeing Maddy all bundled up when we take her out. It's freezing outside, but she seems to stay nice and cozy in her car seat. We're looking forward to having the chance to show her off this week when we see friends and family for Thanksgiving! She is getting cuter and more engaging with each passing moment.