Grammy's Visit

Audrey's Grammy came for a visit this past weekend and everyone had a blast. There was only one scheduled event--yet another trip to the zoo. Saturday was mild and sunny, a "zoo day" (as opposed to the rainy "aquarium days") if we ever saw one. This was our first trip to the zoo on a Saturday, and it was much more entertaining than the mid-week, or Sunday zoo adventures we have experienced before. For one, the carousel was open for business. I thought Audrey was going to get her own horse, but the girls found a very pretty peacock bench all to themselves.

We also timed our visit to the giraffe building perfectly. We arrived about two minutes before the trainer started working with the animals. Rather than just licking the walls, the giraffes were walking all around, touching little plastic disks with their noses, and bending down to get food from the trainer. It was definitely the most entertaining giraffe experience to date.

Unlike the giraffes, the elephant house is off-limits. Fortunately the recent heat wave has melted most of the snow, and the elephants were out and about. The new little baby elephant was the clear audience favorite at the zoo.

Audrey spent most of the remainder of the visit getting Grammy time. And Grammy spent the remainder of the visit getting Audrey time. I always feel bad, thinking I should be a better host and keep people entertained, but I know that holding Audrey, napping with Audrey, and playing with Audrey is what people come here to do. I guess I can understand that--I love doing those things too.

Kelly and I are a little happy about one thing. Whether it be in person or via video chat, most people only get to see daytime Audrey. The thought that this easy-going smiley baby is at all difficult at night is hard for people to believe. With Grammy sleeping on our couch, she has now witnessed our second nighttime daughter. Smiley Audrey currently exits the house around 9pm, and up-and-crying-every-30-minutes, eat-every-90-minutes, scream-for-20-minutes Audrey takes her place. We love her dearly, but nighttimes have definitely become more and more difficult in the last month or so. Things are still bearable because at the end of every sleep deprived night, daytime Audrey greats the morning with her ear-to-ear smiles.

One again, Audrey thanks her Grammy for coming to visit. She was disappointed her Papa couldn't visit as well, but it will just make the next time she sees him that much more special.