Esme...

This morning was the penultimate workshop in the Photoshop for the Creative Flower Photographer course I am doing on line via the RPS with Celia Henderson.  Last workshop in this course is on Thursday.  I've already signed up for the next one :-)) 

Andrew and Esme were coming for lunch and I just had time between the online workshop finishing and them arriving, to jam and ice the Empire Biscuits David is taking with him this evening to his group singing rehearsal.  Though I say it myself, they look rather good.  I hope the group members enjoy them.

So lovely to see Andrew and Esme.  Sadly poor Nikki had to work and couldn't come with them she was probably glad of the peace at home!  :-))

Esme opted for beans on toast for lunch and scoffed them.  I was very impressed by her enthusiasm for them!  :-) 

The main purpose of Andrew's visit was to collect my Canon 60D and various lenses, which he is borrowing before deciding how much he wants to spend on a camera.  He almost bought a Canon 2000D in John Lewis but I think he's now wondering if he should buy a higher spec camera second hand.  Hopefully once he's played with the 60D he will have a better idea of what he wants to do.  Photography is something I think he could get into so encouraging him as much as I can.

Esme was an absolute delight.  It is heart warming and astounding to watch a three year old at play when there are no toys around.  Her imagination is completely unlimited.  She played houses using the small storage spaces under the window in the garden room, made us birthday cakes from coasters, used a selection of Lola's rope toys to use as handcuffs to put her Dad and I in jail.  We've been very bad apparently!  :-))  But the loveliest thing she did was discover a photograph on the windowsill of Ele (her gran) Andrew (her dad) Jennifer (her auntie) and Alan, taken many years ago.  Jennifer is around 11 in the photo (she's 26 now :-) and Alan's only 9.  Esme was so excited to find the photo!  She recognised her Gran and laughed - What are you laughing at Esme?  Gran's hair!  She's never seen her gran with short hair!  lol!  The only person she didn't recognise was Jennifer and was quite gobsmacked when I told her the little girl in the photo was her auntie.  She held the frame at arms length for ages,  just gazing and smiling at the photo, then she proceeded to give everyone in the photo a kiss and hug the frame.  Oh heavens!  My heart almost burst!  We also had a hoot playing with Snapchat filters!  :-)

All too soon they headed off to avoid the rush hour traffic, but not before Esme popped through to say goodbye to the pool.  She was sad to hear it is out of commission at the moment as we're waiting for a new pump.  I promised her she would get in next time.  She headed off happy about that, with the two pumpkins I crocheted for her.

We had an early dinner and David and the Empire biscuits are now off to his first get together with the other singing group members since early 2020.  In fact I've just checked and the last time they were together was to sing at a concert on 10th March 2020. 

 If anyone had told them that night what was about to infold over the coming year and a half they would not have believed them!  

Will life ever be the same again?