Well, we made it through May. I asked Dr. G. if I should keep doing this blog series and he suggested I do it “in perpetuity.” Poor Abigail, if it were so! I can imagine her as a teenager finding the blog post where she asks about the birds and the bees or the one where I discuss her bad habit of picking her nose or farting in public. Anyway, I’ll keep going for awhile, at least 3 times a week for the next few weeks.

Abigail has had two great passions yesterday and today: hugs, and outside. She is still in that fussy post-relatives mode where it seems to her like a crime against humanity to be asked to play by herself for ten minutes. The outrage! The tears! But that neediness also comes with wonderful hugs that she bestows at every opportunity, whether she is delighted to have caused one of her toys to play a song, startled by the loud bus engine going by, or simply in need of a short rest. Abigail hugs are the best. She wants every part of her body, including her feet, touching my body and she will wiggle and climb until it is so. Then she rests her head on my shoulder and clings with her arms, holding very still for sometimes up to a minute. She sighs contentedly and says, “Mama. Mama, mama.” I sigh back and say, “Abi, Abi.” Then she is off for her next adventure.

She has taken to treating me as a limousine driver, holding up her arms to be carried and then pointing imperiously where she wants to go. More often than not, it is to the front or back door. When we get close she will point at the doorknob just to make herself extra clear. If I walk away without taking her out, she becomes angry and desolate. Yesterday I left her with her dad while I took some laundry out and she came chasing after, sobbing against the french doors where I had disappeared. He thought it was separation anxiety; I thought it was because she was upset that I had gone outside without her. Sure enough, a trip out back to examine the flower beds cheered her right up. Today we did two outdoor cuddle sessions, two walks, a splash session in the pool, two examinations of the flowerbeds (squeezing the baby lemons on the tree is especially interesting), and a trip to the front yard to sit on a rock and wait for Dada to get home. The problem is that there is not anywhere for her to play outdoors. Our summer grass is extremely prickly and causes an itchy rash, while the cement is rough and gets quite hot during the day. The front yard is all gravel. Maybe I should get some mulch or something and make her a play area.

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