The sweetest things are free

Little Andrew's almost-summer visit with us has come to an end.

On Saturday TG, Audrey, and I drove him to Culver's at the North Carolina line (Carowinds exit) where we met his mother -- our daughter Stephanie -- and his sisters Melanie and Allissa, and Dagny, to return the kids to their proper owners.

Also we ate Butter Burgers and Concrete Mixers.

I think everybody was ready to get back to normal, but there was a wistful feeling too, that we'd be parting once again.

That's why I take pictures.

I love it when, after the dust settles and the goodbye kisses and hugs have been shared and the fond see-you-soons have been uttered and we've each watched the other's car head -- one north and one south -- back home, the sight of these precious faces in a picture makes my throat close and that familiar prickly feeling in my nose and eyes start up, unbidden.

Sniff, grab for a tissue, dab, sigh. Feel silly. You know.

On his last evening in Columbia, we took Andrew to the park. He didn't get to play so much as pose, pretending to play. But he enjoyed it anyway.

As I told you before, I'm on a mission to get shots of all four grandchildren with their aunts and uncles on this side of the family. And it's not easy pinning some of these people down.

You may notice as you view these, that big Andrew -- Uncle Andrew, that is -- was not with us. That's because he was in Knoxville on military duty all week.

Little Andrew was crestfallen when he realized Uncle Andrew wouldn't be able to take a picture with him. Or, he was sad he didn't get to see Rambo, who went with Andrew to Tennessee and stayed with a friend.

Take your pick.

In less than two weeks we'll all be together again, to celebrate Dagny's third birthday. We'll make up for lost photo opportunities at that time and yes, you'll be required cordially invited to view the results.

But on Friday evening, we made the most of the golden hour and near-perfect weather, and got the shots.

Andrew posed with his lovely aunts Audrey and Erica, who adore him.

Chad was along, and sat for a group photo with Erica and Andrew.

Andrew posed with me and his Papaw (Audrey took that one).

Then I wanted a photo of him with his Papaw, just the two of them. There aren't enough shots like this. The word posterity looms into view but I don't choose to think of how close I and TG are to being in that category, haaahahaha. 

Because none of us knows how close we are to being a memory. That's why we wring every drop of joy from every moment we're privileged to have.

As for me, taking the pictures is covering the bases in the only way I know how, for future days when my children and grandchildren and even great-grandchildren will look at them and marvel at how good we had it.

I'm reminded of the Andy Griggs song If Heaven. Partial lyric:

If Heaven was an hour, it would be twilight

When the fireflies start their dancing on the lawn

And supper's on the stove, and Mama's laughing

And everybody's working day is done.

If Heaven was a town, it would be my town

On a summer's day in nineteen eighty-five

When everything I wanted was out there waiting

And everyone I loved was still alive.

It's that last line that gets me.

Anyway.

After we'd taken all the pictures we had gone there to take, we set off for dinner at Chick-fil-A. Andrew ate like a field hand, right down to the last slurp of his chocolate-syrup-covered ice cream cone.

Ahhhh. To be a kid again, never having heard of a calorie or a carb.

Back home, he stayed up late tormenting playing with Rizzo and watching sports with Papaw one last time before bed.

On Saturday he wore his outfit I'd bought him on his first day here. Last year, when Allissa and Melanie stayed with me for one week each, I started the tradition of buying them an outfit. Andrew missed out on that, so this year he got an outfit plus a pair of basketball shorts he wanted, and two small toys.

One of the toys was a red car that I don't think he let go of all week. It's in his hand in most of these pictures.

It was a glorious early-June day with thousands of ice-white cumulus clouds, and the Culver's sign was blue and white against the blue and white.

Allissa and Dagny posed for one last photo, Andrew included, before we left. Melanie sometimes isn't able to cooperate and this was one of those times, but naturally she was there too.

I can't wait for Lissy's visit -- coming up soon! -- and for Melly's week, later this summer. The hotter it gets, the more we'll stay home. But that's okay; I can get the shots without leaving the property. Wait and see.

What's next? Well. I have big plans for transforming the pool area with solar lights and all sorts of other stuff before June 17th, the day of Dagny's birthday party. EVERYBODY will be here and I wish to stun with my outdoor decorating prowess.

If you know me at all, you will have recognized that as a joke. I have no talent for outdoor ANYTHING except whining about being too hot and getting bitten by mosquitoes. But we shall see what develops and directly proportionate to my level of success, I'll show you pictures of what I am able to accomplish.

At any rate, as usual I shall thank you in advance not to snicker. Give me an EA for Effort Already.

And that is all for now, except that I wish everyone a thoroughly delightful week.

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Happy Monday

We are famously hot

Columbia, South Carolina, where we live, has a motto for itself: Famously Hot.

They put it on flags and everything.

Andrew and I have been staying cool mostly but every day, we do go on errands and/or adventures.

On Tuesday, the first full day he was here by himself, I insisted suggested that Andrew let me take his picture out in the front yard.

My grandchildren know better than to demur when I have a camera in my hand. Out we went.

It was a beautiful day. Andrew found a great big stick to carry around.

Our America the Beautiful balloon is still doing great, attached now to the stair railing.

What we do is, we fly our mylar balloons until they can't stay afloat anymore. Then, when we need them again -- like for a birthday or a holiday -- we go to the store and ask for our balloons to be re-inflated with helium.

This costs nothing. And you get to enjoy your big expensive balloons at least twice and maybe three or more times, if you're careful.

But this is a brand-new balloon, just bought last Monday. We hope to use it again on the Fourth of July, and maybe even next Memorial Day.

Yesterday Andrew and I had to visit the AT&T phone store because I shattered my iPhone 4S (ancient in technology years) in a parking lot and had to get a new one. 

Now I have an iPhone 7 and I feel so up-to-the-minute. I know you're wondering what color. It's rose gold, which is to say pink. I got a sparkly protective case.

After the phone store, we went to a local fire station. We had emailed ahead to make sure it was okay.

The fire station was quiet although we had seen Engine 171 out on the road earlier, on a fire call, and it had just been re-backed into its space in the garage.

The Fire Marshal asked Andrew how much water he thought the mountain-sized blaze-red truck held.

A thousand? Andrew guessed.

And he was right! The Fire Marshal said the tank inside the truck holds one thousand gallons. He showed Andrew the hoses and other equipment, and let him stand all over the fire engine.

He also pointed out that they own a special red boat that they take onto rivers and lakes when there are fires to be put out on water craft.

Also there's a rugged miniature fire engine, which they take up into the forests when there are fires in those areas.

Andrew was surprised to learn that the huge fire engine is so full of water and hoses and other stuff, only four people can ride in it.

I was surprised by how big it is when you stand right next to it. (I know it's the same size whether I'm standing next to it or not. But you know what I mean.)

Andrew got to sit in the boat and the mini fire truck and the big fire engine, and had time to look all around the station and ask questions.

He was impressed. The Fire Marshal was so nice, even giving Andrew some parting gifts as we were leaving.

He got a play helmet and a DVD and I don't know what all else was in that bag.

Finally it was time to go because we had other things to do. That was yesterday's activity; today we made moon sand to play with outside by the pool.

Rizzo thinks it's edible; maybe it won't hurt him. It's only flour and baby oil, with Kool-Aid added for a bit of color. Only, the Kool-Aid doesn't work so well for color, especially when it's up against all that white flour.

At least the blueberry lemonade kind doesn't.

And that is all for now.

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