First week of summer

Frances’s last day of school was this past Friday (which also coincided with her last day of dance class, thus the leotard and tights getup):

After Saturday’s dance recital, my little world traveler ventured to her favorite place in the entire world to visit by herself—Nana and Pop’s house in Lynchburg!  By all accounts she is having a fabulous time, staying up a bit later than usual, buying new shoes, and eating butter on her lunchtime sandwiches (I kid you not on this one.  But as my mother said, what happens at Nana’s house stays at Nana’s house).  She even had time to make her debut television cameo in a local news story:

Those are her now-famous new shoes pictured in the lower right photo.

My mother is Immediate Past President of the Lynchburg Rotary and one of her pet projects as President was raising funds for an all-inclusive children’s playground at one of the more popular parks in Lynchburg.  Frances attended the groundbreaking ceremony and stole the show.  What you don’t see in these pictures or the news story (click here if you’re interested in watching it) is how much praise my mother received for her tireless efforts in realizing this project.  Congratulations, Mother!

So, while Frances has been gallivanting around Lynchburg in new, white Mary Janes smiling for the television cameras, George and I have been enjoying a quiet week in Richmond.

Heading to the pool!
Parenthood is nothing but relative, isn't it?  Only when you have both a 4 1/2-year-old and a 2 1/2-year-old is a week with just your youngest "quiet."

He’s starting to miss her I can tell, but I think we both feel like we’re on vacation—George is able to play in Frances’s room with her toys completely free of distraction and I’m guaranteed a 3-hour block of time in the afternoon while my growing boy naps.  No doubt all three of us are in for a shock once things get back to normal next week.  But the house is much too quiet without her and (just as suspected) we find ourselves talking about Frances all of the time.  We are all missing her!

Father's Day morning.  Daddy is wearing his new "tie" from Frances and Frances is wondering when she gets to leave for Lynchburg.

Happy Wednesday, everyone!