07.19.02

Happy Friday! This morning I was awakened by the sound of our doorbell. I wasn't expecting anyone and wondered if it was just my imagination. But then, it rang again. I went downstairs and peeked through the peep-hole....it was Aric's Uncle John. Still in pjs, disheveled hair, and teeth unbrushed, I was a bit mortified opening the door. He came to pick up a rod from the garage for my father-in-law. After opening up the garage for him, I ran upstairs to brushed my teeth and get dressed as fast a s I could. Then I brought Ashlyn down to see her great Uncle. He didn't stay long at all...and after he left, I stood there still half-asleep and breathless. I just love it when Aric's family drops by unannounced. I'm being sarcastic here. Don't get me wrong, I love having them visit...I just wished they would give us a call beforehand.

You know what I always have a hard time with?...addressing relatives by their proper titles. When Uncle John was here, I forgot what to call him...so I simply called him "uncle". But in Chinese, every relative has a title by which side of the family they're from (either mom or dad's) and the age hierarchy. It's really complicated and specific. I should really ask my mom to write it all down for me....especially the titles for Ashlyn. For example, to Ashlyn, Uncle John wouldn't be "great Uncle John"...it would be something like, "great 2nd uncle" or something. *Ugh* It's so confusing. If anyone should know, please email me.

Today was a nice relaxing day. I spent the afternoon glued to MTV's "Brandy: Special Delivery". The two hour special had me completely enchanted with the pregnant chanteuse. Though I like her songs, I wasn't a HUGE fan (never watched "Moesha" or anything)...but after this, I see her in a different light. She is sweet, good natured, fun, humble, honest, vulnerable, and very down-to-earth. And by the end of the special, I was so drawn in that I cried silly happy tears at the birth of her daughter. *sniff*sigh*smile*

Ashlyn has mastered the art of crawling and is beginning to venture further away from her usual play area (which is the ENTIRE living room). She loves to head for the kitchen or front foyer. I think she enjoys the feel of the cool ceramic tile. But those areas are not very safe at the moment. We have a lot of things piled there from the office....including a heavy drafting table that is folded up and leaning against a wall. I'd hate for that thing to fall over and squash her. =/ It's time to get the safety gates.

When Aric came home from work, we gave Ashlyn an early bath, then waited for Brian and Grace to come over. Tonight the fellas worked on their computer stuff again. It's a lot of grunt work and usually goes late into the night. The nice thing about all of this is, it gives us wives a chance to spend more time together. Ooooh, that sounded weird. =P hehehehe
James and Grace made us dinner. We had grilled carne asada and shrimp tacos with all the trimmings. After dinner, Grace, Sue, and I gave the other Grace a break by cleaning up. Then we sat around the table with our little ones to chat and look through photos. I love listening to the expectant moms talk about new sensations they're experiencing. Sue's beginning to feel fluttering on the right side of her lower abdomen. Cool! You'd figure I'd remember all this from being pregnant with Ashlyn...but I really don't. I remember some things, but for the most part, I had forgotten a lot. My memory has gotten pretty lousy since Ashlyn was born. Sometimes I forget the time of her last meal, and days just seem to blend together.

Pictures from tonight:

my sweethearts

Ed and Ashlyn

Lauren on Brian's shoulder

Ed watching Lauren and Ashlyn feeding a doll

Crace, Grace, Sue, and Lauren

Lauren smiling

Aric and Brian working in the hot sweaty garage

James

Ed

We got back after 1am. Ashlyn had slept at James and Grace's for a bit, so by the time we got back, the baby would not go to bed. She was way fussy, but refused to lie down. Everytime she sat up, I'd lay her down, and that went on for a good hour along with her crying. Aric fell asleep watching us go through the struggling routine.*grumble* I finally brought her downstairs, gave her half a bottle, and rocked her a bit before she peacefully closed her teary eyes.
I AM SOOOO BEAT! Have a good weekend! =)

Ashlyn's pics of the day