Portrait of a Ballerina

We were off to art camp again this morning, and it seems to be going really well for Madison and the others.  As always, Daddy made a car tag that went with the theme.  The organizer of the camp saw this, and complimented our efforts.  We're big fans!

It was raining a lot, but we did manage to pick up Madison's ballet portrait from a photography studio nearby.  It turned out really well.  Madison's posture is just dazzling, and her smile so radiant.  This picture alone could be good enough for an audition!

Despite the storms, Daddy traveled north to a funeral today - all the way to Toccoa.  It was obviously a depressing sort of visit, although a quick drive by some old stomping grounds made it all the more depressing.  The old movie theater and the barbecue place just down the street - both are long gone, with only the memories of past visits left.  Daddy used to go to that barbecue place all the time, and I think the last movie we saw there, ironically, was "Independence Day."  It's ironic, because the sequel to that movie just came out this weekend.  I also remember seeing "Apollo 13" there, and a few other movies that year.  It was a good season, but things change, don't they?

The rains were heavy today, and that was a good thing.  The heat was so intense that not even Madison wanted to go outside much.  We didn't make it to the pool, but we'll go again soon.  The training continues, all through the summer, and every single pool visit, Madison shows progress.

Tonight, Ye-Ye came over and helped us get rid of a yellow jacket nest that's suddenly appeared in our front yard, of all places.  You have to wait until dark, and if you know where the hole in the ground is, you just wait until they're all in there - and then give them something to drink:  gasoline.  Lots of it.  I don't know exactly how safe this is, but it does work, apparently.  Daddy and Ye-Ye were out there in the front yard with a flash light, and about three times we poured some gasoline down the hole.

He spent some time with us - Mommy has made this incredible watermelon sherbet to share with him.  I can't express how amazing this watermelon sherbet is to you.  Words, no matter how articulate and poetic, can never fully express the sublime moment when spoonful meets mouth.  It's just so good.

Anyway, we were sharing that, the four of us sitting around talking, waiting for the sun to go down.  It was a nice moment together, the weather cooler now due to the rain storms passing by.

Madison has been reading for the Summer Reading Program.  Of course, she's in the middle of a ginormous book (at least to her - this is the biggest, longest book she's ever read).  But in between, to get her numbers up, she's been reading smaller length books.  This has put her at about 30 of 40 books, so she's nearly at the finish line.  Each book demands an entry on the library's website, with ISBN numbers, authors, titles, and a comment about each one.  The comments are shorter, as you'd suspect, and sometimes humorous (based on the context of the book).  But she's plugging away at that, reading in the car or elsewhere.

And part of her reading continued tonight, as we read from Mary Poppins, and our Space Camp devotional from last year.  That's our 'in-between' devotional, as we wait for the next one to come out with the Olympic theme.

That was our day.  Madison played some games, watched "Jessie," and did quite a bit of art at art camp, of course.  Tomorrow, she'll be introduced to pottery, and a longer day there at the Quinlan Art Center.  These camps are really fun, and educational too.  Madison is learning a lot about art, and also learning a lot about how to make good art.