At last! The fever seems to have gone, we hope for good. After a cranky morning, Abigail spent much of the afternoon bustling around sticking her nose into everybody’s business, just like old times. She developed a faint rash here and there on her torso, back, neck, and one leg, so we’re thinking maybe it was roseola. Whatever it was, we wish it good riddance.

Around the same time that Abigail was recovering, we had a lovely block of sunshine to enjoy between storms. So we took her up the trail behind the house. Dr. G’s childhood home is in a wonderful location, nestled up against a forested butte with a creek running down the hill and through a field next to the house. There is also a playground for young children and a running path. We passed the developed area and headed up the muddy path to the butte, and as soon as Abigail got under the trees she acquired the expression Dr. G has dubbed The Sponge. She got very still and quiet, concentrating intently on her surroundings. She titled her head back to look up at the mossy tree branches and then followed the path of a robin leaping from puddle to puddle in front of us. She craned her head for as long as she could see a dog (there were several out on the path with their owners) and quickly discovered that it is fun to tickle mama’s face with a proffered piece of long grass. She pointed down at the creekbed a few feet below us, but the banks were too slick to approach. We just stood for awhile to watch the water thread its way around the rocks. It felt good for all of us to get out of the house and smell that clean, green air. It felt like God pushing the “reset” button for us.