Tuesday: grandma camp

Well now, that's more like it! Sunshine, for once very welcome. Still a bit on the cool side, but hey, campers can handle cool!

Garden, neglected. (But appreciative of all that rain from yesterday!) Chores, neglected. 

Good morning Primrose, grandma camper of the week!

Snowdrop comes to the farmhouse once again. I have shuffled activities to suit the weather. Today --  Olbrich Gardens for the morning, swimming pool for the afternoon. Somewhere in there, we will fit in a rest hour and lunch. That's the plan!

And the reality tracks the plan pretty well! Well, except for the rest hour. That goes by the wayside.

Free time for me is so scarce right now, that I'm concentrating on getting the bare essentials noted and recorded. No long paragraphs about grandparental joys and obligations, no deconstruction of a pre-autumn garden transformations. Photos and notes, as we make the most of splendid sunshine and of Madison's special summer treasures.

We start with picking strawberries from my berry baskets. Primrose is suspicious of my ability to grow fabulous berries, so Snowdrop gets the harvest.

And now we leave for Olbrich Gardens. The girls are especially interested in the tropical conservatory. I let them take the lead.

But happy as they are to check in on the plants, the butterflies, the birds and fish, the place is small and they are speedy.

We are done in ten minutes. I have, therefore, an opportunity to foist on them the larger botanical gardens.

And they like their trek through the highlights. So long as I dont stop and bore them with too much detail about enchanting plants and flower combinations.

It's nearly noon when we leave. And here's a dilemma: I'd promised them a trip to the ice cream store sometime this week. Today seems like a good day for it, but does it make sense to drive home, cook them their requested spaghetti lunch, and then head out for ice cream? It does not. It's much easier just to take them to the ice cream store now and do lunch later. You make think this is foolish, but in my book, ice cream is as nutritious as spaghetti, if not more! So, off we go, to our local ice cream shop!

We then return to the farmhouse for lunch. Which they eat, in its entirety.

Now, normal people would insert nap at this point. And swim after. But the girls play for a little while (with the collection of dolls here which were once a Snowdrop favorite, but lately she has strayed away. It was rather sweet to see them imagine complicated stories around them)...

... and now it seems like the afternoon is running away from us. A nap might push things too far into the day. So we ditch the rest period and go straight to the pool.

And the girls are so happy there, and the pool is so empty now, at the end of the season, and the weather is so fabulous that I have to say, this may indeed have been the very best way to spend the afternoon.

Snowdrop challenged herself to go down the big slide...

But mainly, the girls frolicked and I cheered them on.

After Snowdrop went home, I had to face the prospect of making dinner. I caved and went with pizza. It's not Primrose's favorite, but she snacked on cheese and crackers before and honestly, tell me that this is any less nutritious than a plain pizza slice!

Evening. Her third one here. I have to think she is tired. But full of camp experiences! It was such a full day!

with so much love...