Hurricane Ike and Tornado Ainsley

The headline on the tv screen says it all! Hurricane Ike hit the Houston/Galveston coastal area and we were lucky to have John, Colleen, Ainsley and Colleen's mom, Carolyn come stay with us for four nights. Ainsley was a delight, but she was as busy as a tornado! We entertained her with all kinds of toys and make-shift toys, like the laundry basket, which she enjoyed sitting in....

....and crawling under! It also served as a blockade to keep her away from the tv dials which she discovered.

She made us laugh with her "tongue action." The more we laughed, the more she did it!

John thought of an easy solution to the glass-top coffee table, which Ainsley loved to bang her hands on! It soon became a little play area, which she enjoyed! We hated to see all of them leave this morning, to go back to a house with no power, but they were anxious to see the damage caused by Hurricane Ike, and to begin cleaning out their refrigerator and freezer, fixing the fence which blew down, and making other repairs. It was an unplanned, but great visit.

"The Texas Tornado"

Colleen had to go to Florida for a few days on a business trip, so I went to Houston to help John. He told me the afternoon I got there, that Ainsley had become a "little tornado." Soon, I found out why, and totally agreed with him! At ten months old, she is all over the house and moves faster than a tornado, in to everything! She crawls, pulls up, and walks holding on to things. I soon learned that if I went into the kitchen, in about 10 seconds, she would be directly under me! When she found an unplugged cord in the living room, under the sofa, I barricaded her from getting to it again, but that made it more intriguing, and she managed to crawl over or under all my barricading attempts. When I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth, I took her with me and closed the door. She found the little cap that covers the screw that holds the toilet to the floor. Immediately, that was going into her mouth. I had to stand on that while I was leaning over the sink to brush my teeth. Then she was into the trash can, tipping it over looking for any tidbit to put into her mouth! Diaper time? This is when she became a REAL tornado. After putting on the safety strap to secure her to the changing table, she starts crying and then digs her heels in and pushes to try to escape off the table, head first. Then she does her "tornado twirl" and flips over to her stomach. All of this must be anticipated with diaper wipes and a clean diaper ready to go! It could easily take two people to change her diaper, but I managed. Oh, did I say, she had a case of diarrhea the first day, so this routine was repeated many times, to include a change of outfit for both of us, afterward!

She loves pushing the little red wagon, which Macy walked with at the same age. She pushes it across the room, then waits for someone to turn it around, and she pushes it back.

One of her favorite things to do is playing "Peek-A-Boo" over and under the coffee table. She belly-laughed everytime she went under....
...or popped up!

Ainsley's favorite two toys of the week were a plastic bowl and a plastic coffee scoop, which she'd put in her mouth and crawl with!

She learned that when she did this, I'd laugh, so she did it over and over and over and...over!


The second night I was there, Ainsley woke up several times during the night. The next evening, John fed her a huge bowl of cereal and applesauce, until she was about ready to pop!! I gave her a bath, then a bottle, put her in bed about 8:30, and we both thought it would be a peaceful night...WRONG! She was awake at 11 and then again at 11:30, when he finally gave in and fixed her another bottle

God indeed had a "master plan" when he gave babies to young people and not senior citizens! While she kept me busy every waking minute of her day, she is such a delightful, happy little girl. John even asked the day care people if he could get a discount, "because she is so cute." They thought about it, but wouldn't give in! I just wish I lived closer so I could get my "Ainsley Fix" more often. See you next month, Texas Tornado!!