Dancing in the Rain

Yesterday the heavens opened and dropped a bunch of rain, cooling the temperature down from near 100 degrees to maybe 85 or 90. Afton took full advantage.

It didn't take her long to be joyously soaked. She also had a partner in crime, who was trying to get a little yard work done.

But, Afton managed to distract him from that from time to time for a little romp around the yard.
Yes, this is the rough stretch of the summer, the stretch where we check the weather report in a vain hope that the temperature won't crack above the 80s and where we find little consolation in the fact that we don't have much humidity like the east coast or the fact that it's not 110 like Vegas or Phoenix. It's hot. It will be hot for weeks to come. I suppose this is what makes mid-September weather seem so glorious.

A little more of Afton and Ainsley

Afton returned from her grandparents this past week with a little darker tan, a few mosquito bites, a new small owie (which she was very proud of -- it even had a bandaid), and pink pink fingernails and toenails. When the pink nail polish wore off due to a couple baths, she insisted I repaint them. Luckily I had one crusty bottle of pink nail polish in the bottom of a random drawer.

Needless to say, Afton is turning into a little girl.

As for me, I don't know what day it is, or often what time it is, but it's been a good couple weeks with Ainsley. No, no magical sleeping through the night. However, Tony has been off work this week and a great entertainer for Afton. I've napped more days than I haven't, so life is generally good. We'll see what happens come next Monday when my help disappears back to work.

Here's the latest on Ainsley. She occasionally opens her eyes during the day.

And by way of comparison, a picture of Afton about the same age. (Note that Afton has a bow in her hair primarily because she had no older sister to come and rip it off. Luckily Ainsley didn't lose any skin when Afton decided to pluck the last bow.)

She has been named

Ainsley Irene. Ainsley was a name we liked (the Ains is pronounced like the "ains" in the word rains), and Irene is Tony's grandmother's name.

Other highlights of the past week include:

• Ainsley was not in a rush to be born, but my blood pressure shot up last week.... Thus the doctor's decision to induce labor.
• The one person who had not prepared himself for a June delivery was Tony. Yes, that's right, the guy who was giving me shots for 16 weeks with the warning that the shots may only get us to mid-June. His explanation was genetics: He figured that this kid had enough of his genes that it wouldn't trend toward "excessively punctual," shall we say, as do most of the women in my family. (We don't like to be late.)
• I distinctly remember saying, "Don't take a picture of me in a hospital gown."
• The labor and delivery was fast -- 3 hours. Tony came back from lunch at the hospital cafeteria in time to hear me say, "Bring the garbage can over here, I think I might throw up, and get the nurse I think the baby is coming."
• Speaking of labor, the epidural DID NOT WORK! I fully realize that many women have gone through much longer labor feeling every ache and pain, including my mother. But the whole point of an epidural is to avoid that. I was peeved.
• In the final 45 minutes of labor I said things such as, "I can't do this," "This is ridiculous," "I'm not paying the anesthesiologist's bill," and in relation to Tony's constant urging for me to breath, "Breathing does NOTHING!" -- but I don't think I swore at him or anyone else.
• Afton likes to hold Ainsley, whom she refers to as "Afton's baby."
• Since Ainsley's birth, Afton has been truly entertained by her grandparents, her aunt and uncle, and her dad. While still hoping for the best, I'm fairly sure there will be some fireworks when all these parties end and we settle into life with just the three of us hanging out all day.
• For now, Afton is hanging out in Oregon with her grandparents and all seems to be well. So a big thank you to my parents who will be celebrating their 33rd anniversary tomorrow by... hanging out with Afton. :)

And a couple more pictures of the crew...