Frances, The Organizer

The other day, I walked into my bedroom and was met with this:

That would be six balls of play dough lined up on my floor.  I was pretty sure I needed a picture.  Frances was pretty sure she needed to be in the picture.

This picture reminds me of a big game hunter and her quarry.

And now the play dough is organized.  Check an item off the to-do list.



The Last of Christmas

And, the final reasons (I can think of) that humans go on reproducing:

1. Everyone needs their bowls arranged; two-year olds are happy to help:

2. Even two-year olds aren't all bad:

And then Frances and I flew home to Boston, again with very little drama.  We had a wonderful Christmas.  Thank you to all those who made it possible.

Equestriennes!

While the male members of the Hayward-Cowen-Upton clan did silly things like go to church or prepare for work the next day, the females went to my friend Linda Brown's to go riding!  The girls took to it like fish to water. 

First up was Cousin Clare on Count.  Cousin Clare has a major crush on all things horse right now, and she did great.  She even balanced with her hands up in the air.  Congratulations, Clare!

Cousin Nora got to ride Linda's very own hunt horse, Stray.  She seemed so comfortable on horseback and rode for quite a while.

Last, but not least, was Little Frances for her first time on horseback (not counting a Merry-Go-Round).  Frances did not bat an eye as I put her on 1,000+ pound Count, just acted like it was the most natural thing in the world.  I did have Jocelyn walk next to her because I was afraid Frances would lose interest and bail out without warning.  I think I worried needlessly.

I really could not have been prouder.  Frances was so unafraid and happy.

She spent the rest of the day saying, "Frances ride Count."  Which is, I suppose, why humans go on reproducing.

Tractor Fun Sir Thank You

Visits to Arkansas may require trips to Wal-Mart, but they also require rides on Sir's tractor.  Sir was very obliging.

It's hard to see, but, left to right, that's me, Frances, Auntie Jocelyn, Cousin James and Sir on the tractor.

I have a hunch Frances had a good time.  When I got her out of her crib the next morning, the first words out of her mouth were "tractor fun Sir thank you."  Which is, I suppose, why humans keep reproducing.

One Busy Day

On December 28th, I officially turned Older Than Ever.  The Hayward-Upton-Cowen-Weneck clan decided to really fill up the day.  In the morning, the Hayward-Uptons drove up from Van Buren to join the rest of the gang in Fayetteville.  Ring Around the Rosie was a very big hit with the cousins.  Here we have James, Zoe, Clare, Nora and Frances doing a round:

Then we opened Christmas presents from one another.  I won't bother trying to explain who all these people are, but altogether there were 13+ people and lots of commentary.

Frances got her very own copy of The Little Engine That Could .  James, also known as Sir Stripes, looked on approvingly.

Next, lunch, naps, a tour of my dad's new clinic and a trip to Crystal Bridges, the new museum in Bentonville.  This is much of the gang on the way to the museum.  Just imagine Todd doesn't have his back to the camera.

Then back to the house where we were joined by our friends Linda Brown and Bill Lindsey.  The kids were given some highly nutritious pizza.  That's Zoe, Nora of the Sunglasses, Frances, Clare and James.

Some cake for the kiddos, and...

...a little bit more Ring Around the Rosies.

The kids were then sent to bed and the adults breathed a huge sigh of relief.  But, really, it was a wonderful day.  We didn't allow nearly enough time at Crystal Bridges.  Maybe next Christmas when we remember to schedule events rationally?

Away we go

Frances and I flew to Arkansas on December 19th.  It has been a year since she's flown and I was nervous doing this without Mark, but it went very well, even after a 4 a.m. wake up.  She was a little tired when we finally made it to Mimi and Sir's.

She was not interested in really napping once we got to Arkansas, but she was very willing to fake it on Mimi and Sir's bed.

We may have an actress on our hands.  She was most interested in Claire the Cat, even if Claire wasn't all that interested in her.



After harassing the cat for a bit, we took her to Wally World.  No trip to Arkansas is complete without some visits to Wal-Mart.  She was so tired and out of it that she offered to hug a fellow shopper.  Very un-Frances like.  Mark joined us on the 24th and we went to Van Buren to spend Christmas with his family.  No photos of that, unfortunately.  I left the camera at my parents'.  But more Christmas to come.

Struggle

Frances's napping has been very tenuous lately.  Sometimes she naps, sometimes she doesn't.  I am not at all ready for her to give up her nap.  Not at all.  The other day she didn't fall asleep until so late in the afternoon, Mark and I were forced to wake her up to maintain her nighttime schedule.  This is what we found:



She must have read her book until she was too tired to hold it up.  I can relate.  She does seem to be returning to her regularly scheduled programming, so there is hope that we'll all make it to her third birthday unscathed.