Update: We are still alive
It's currently day four of Abby's absence, and we're pretty good all things considered. Margaret is a complete terror at this point, but I've battened down the hatches in the home so we haven't had any incidents. She's still slow-moving, but is really determined so the main floor of the house is starting to look more and more spartan as all of our knick-knacks, photos, etc. have been relegated to the parents' bedroom. I suppose it was a pipe dream to think that we could leave them out anyway.
Particularly helpful has been my parents presence for the last two days. The relatives from Philly also drove down yesterday to see the grandparents and kid, so we had a full house to entertain the dog and baby. Unlike earlier visits with the cousins, Margaret can not only register their presence, but can also revel in the absurdity and chaos that accompanies them. Andrew is a definite clown who can make Margaret giggle through his prancing, dancing and general perpetual motion, but even "serious" Alex will occasionally jump into the fray to elicit a cackle from the baby. We went to Montrose Park where Margaret spent the afternoon wobbling through the jungle gym as the cousins ran all around.
Today, my folks were supposed to leave at 7:20 AM due to a plane reservation snafu on my mom's part, but conveniently, a noreaster swept in which dumped lots of rain and delayed their flight until 8:20 PM this evening. So they got to spend another day chasing Margaret around the house while I went to the grocery store, put up a stair gate, organized the attic (we've got an attic in the new place!), etc. Mom was especially good at getting Margaret to nap, although that's mainly because she was willing to sit in the rocking chair holding the kid as she snoozed.
As we dropped Mom and Dad off at the airport, we did the standard "Wave bye-bye!! Bye-bye!!" shtick that we always do as we bid people farewell. This time, however, Margaret's lower lip stuck out and started quivering at which point she started to wail. It wasn't the usual petulant wail that accompanies, for example, my departure from daycare. Instead, it was a soulful sound that suggested she was legitimately unhappy with the departure of Grandma and Grandpa (again, unlike my departure from daycare since that's when the fun begins) and the drooping corners of the mouth that proceeded the crying seemed to indicate that she was slowly registering a deep despair. Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but her reaction to their departure was different from her past fusses.
Then, on the way home while stopped at a stoplight, we spied a blonde woman about Abby's age and build who was wearing a rain jacket that was very similar to Abby's. From her newly forward-facing vantage, Margaret was giving her a very hard look as we idled at the light. Not really thinking, I asked "What, do you see Mama?" Which immediately induced the same heartfelt blubbering that accompanied Grandma's departure. Again, I'm probably reading too much into her behavior since we were in Margaret's fussy time zone, but dangit, Mama better be having a fun time in Costa Rica!
