Yesterday I picked Ainsley up from day care and since Clif had a happy hour with work, we went to the park before going home for dinner. Ainsley had never been to the park, so she didn't really know what to think of all the things I was making her do. In this picture she is standing in a play train they have there. She was like "Ok mom, what do you want me to do here." She did love watching the other kids play though.
This is a picture of Ainsley on one of those springy bouncy toys. When I was growing up they were metal and in the shape of horses or lions or some other crazy animal. Now they are plastic, and I honestly could not make out what kind of animal this was supposed to be. She really loved this thing. She was a little small for it, so I had to pretty much hold her on there, so I couldn't get a picture of her really enjoying it, but just take my word for it.
And, I think this was her favorite. I figured it would be. The first time I put her in the swing she had a death grip on the metal chains. But she warmed up to it. The second time she giggled and talked and was much more brave. She'd let go and then grab the front again real quick.We didn't stay too long, Ainsley is always a little fussy at night. Not bad, she just has long days and she misses seeing mommy and daddy and just wants to be held. So we were only there about 20 minutes. We saw one of Ainsley's little classmates with her big brother and dad there. It was neat because Ainsley seemed to recognize her. She looked over, then looked at me, and just let out this big belly laugh. It was like she was saying "Oh my gosh mom, look it's my friend! I don't believe it." This park is not very far from our house and they have a pond with ducks and geese, so maybe the next weekend we're in town we can bring Gatsby and daddy and have a picnic there.
I think I've decided that people have kids in order to do the things they liked to do as a kid, but can't now because they are grown ups. I can't even remember the last time I went to a park, I think I had more fun yesterday than Ainsley did. The only thing missing from this park was a merry go round. I remember having family reunions at this big park around where I grew up, and there was this big (at least it seemed big) metal merry go round that me and all of my cousins would pile on to. Then one or two of us would get off and take it round and round as fast as we could and jump on at the last minute to enjoy the ride. It was awesome! I know Ainsley's a little young for that, and I don't think they have metal on play grounds any more, but I loved it. I think it was definitely my favorite thing. When she gets a little older, we'll have to find one somewhere.
