mini!Dawn is so cute, I agree. It's so easy to write cute, but not cloying. I trust that if I ever step over the line, I'll be soundly slapped down by my readers.

It would have been too easy to make the social worker into a bad character. She can still be a complicating force in everyone's lives, while still acting in the best interests of the child. After all, social workers are doing their best in a really rough situation. They're good people.