Sunsets

A couple of sunsets from a few weeks ago.

After a rainy start to the summer, the month of September was especially appreciated.

Mom and Mike's visit, Part 1

They flew right into Roanoke. I love our airport; it's the size of a large Sam's Club, and it's prettier and easier to park.  We didn't leave home until 10-15 minutes before they landed. 

Their first MUST STOP was across the road from the airport to the mall for dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings. Delicious food and even more delicious company! Trevor and I have been wanting to try fried pickles for a few years; this was our chance.

I did a lousy job of taking pictures.  Mike left his camera behind, so when we finally send it to him, hopefully he'll send me some of his photos.  I think all of these were with my phone, leaving much to be desired.

Mike, Rob, Trevor, Mom

The weather was 10 degrees above normal--perfect.  We went Sunday to the Wine Festival at Smith Mountain Lake.  I figured their bracelets would get them a handful of tastings, but they could taste at any and all of the three dozen wineries represented!

Looks like the lens on my phone was smeared.  (eye roll)

 They had a few dozen craft booths, live music, lots of food. It was nice to get out and do something different than our usual.

Robert and Mike

 They stayed at a nearby hotel.  Before they'd come out to visit, they made Trevor promise to make them eggs benedict, complete with his incredible, homemade hollandaise sauce.  He did not disappoint! It was, as usual, AMAZING.  I could eat it with a spoon, all by itself.

We toured Roanoke on Monday, and they left to spend the week at Smith Mountain Lake, right on the water.  Part 2 coming up soon.

Mexican Day!

Yesterday, our work team of ten had a Mexican Day to celebrate a job promotion within our group. These people go ALL OUT. A couple spent the evening before making giant paper flowers and coming in early to decorate our conference room. Check out this picture--painted chiles on our windows, printed placemats, place setting decorations. The radio hidden in the centerpiece played Mexican music.  The left side of the photo shows just half of the food table, which was laden with beef or shrimp taco and taco salad fixings, homemade chicken enchiladas, rice casserole, 7 layer dip, salsas, cheese sauce, guacamole, and more.  The back table (with the green cloth) is the dessert table--faux fried ice cream (with homemade cinnamon sugar tortilla bowls), and my sopapilla cheesecake. 

It was all pretty amazing and delicious and even fun.

I brought Pioneer Woman's 7 Layer Dip recipe. It received a great response, and Robert and Trevor gave the highest praise for the one I kept for home.  This recipe is definitely a keeper:

7 LAYER DIP

1 can refried beans
hot sauce to taste
1 can diced green chiles, undrained
ground cumin to taste (I used about 1/4 t.)
3/4 c. shredded cheese
1 c. sour cream
1-2 avocados
3/4 c. shredded cheese (yes, in addition to the above cheese)
1/2 can black olives, chopped
 1 c. pico de gallo (recipe below)

Mix beans with green chiles, hot sauce, and cumin.  Spread evenly in bottom of 8" square or similar sized serving dish.  (I used a pretty glass pie plate.)  Sprinkle with first 3/4 c. cheese. This works best if you try to spread everything evenly.  Carefully top cheese with a layer of sour cream.  At this point, you can cover and refrigerate until ready to use or overnight.

Just before serving, cube avocado/s and sprinkle over sour cream.  Sprinkle the second measurement of cheese, then black olives, and then pico de gallo.  I served mine with a big spoon to make it easier for people to serve themselves. (Scooping chips into the dish makes it messy and ugly very quickly.)

----------------------

Despite my heavily bandaged finger (upcoming post), I spent quite a bit of time chopping things to make my own pico de gallo. The secret appears to be in using similar amounts of tomato and onion.

PICO DE GALLO

1 red onion
4 Roma tomatoes (slightly underripe is fine)
1/2 c. fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1 small jalapeno (I used jarred)
lime juice
salt

Dice up equal quantities of onion and tomato.  Roughly chop the cilantro. Finely dice the jalapeno--you want a hint of hot, no burning.  Mix all in bowl.  Sprinkle 1/2 to 1 tablespoon of lime juice over all, along with 1/4 t. salt. Stir together until combined.  Taste and adjust seasonings.  You can make this the night before.

Makes about 2 cups.

Original PW recipes can be found here and here.

Trevor the nerd

Oh my gosh.  This kid has made us laugh since he was little.  He's always been the family clown, cracking jokes, instantly punning, making the most hilarious comments, or mimicking others' voices--endlessly entertaining.

He pushed his hair off of his face, donned Rob's reading glasses, doctored up this picture, and sent it to Holly, all in an effort to continue to amuse her.

Yes, it worked.  And it's still working for me.

Morning

"The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning. It's time to sing Your song again."

Cloudy skies, hiding the blue, sun rises, full of the promise of a new day!

Time marches on

My teenaged son begins sprouting facial hair at the same time I do.

I buy hair mascara to cover my gray, darken my light.  At the same time, I'm buying a frosting kit to bleach out my kid's hair, and lighten his dark.

On the plus side, he just called me "the coolest mom ever."  I'll take that!

Curriculum

It's probably time I do at least a short curriculum list, particularly considering that I don't think I did one last year.

My Father's World was such a big hit last year.  After making the initial decision to go with MFW, I began to believe that I was setting us up for a very hard time.  It was a huge jump from the middle school work Trevor was doing.  It involved a lot of reading, intense reading, along with demanding writing projects. It was written for the student to be almost entirely independent.  Trevor jumped right in and embraced all of it.  While I continued to meet with him several times a week, he was very diligent at completing the work as scheduled.  He completely stepped up to the challenge and really impressed me.  Among other things, his books included Beowulf, The Iliad, and The Odyssey.

It was an easy choice to continue MFW this year.  He'll earn a credit in world history, English/literature, and Bible.  We'll deviate a bit with writing. The curriculum uses one book for writing instruction, and I prefer using something else.  I'll also switch out some of the lit books, choosing material that Trevor prefers. He's already requested to read more Shakespeare (in the original writing), and it's easy for me to use some of what Holly's Shakespeare choices for high school.

Trevor started the year taking an online geometry class with his algebra teacher from last year. It was not working, not for him, nor for me--not the least of which problems included the 11 paragraph explanation I finally received this week, detailing how to manage each week's homework (what to print, what was required, what videos to watch-or-not-watch, when to look in the text, and what was --sometimes--optional-but-not-always).  It was the straw that convinced me to drop the class and pick up Jacob's, which is what Holly used a few years ago.  We'll be supplementing with a Great Course video on high school geometery.

He's been taking chemistry through Virtual Homeschool Support Group, which uses Apologia.  The class meets three mornings a week, and while he was not thrilled with that idea when we registered, so far, he's totally loving the class and the teacher. I also purchased a lab kit so he'll get the lab credit.

We decided also that Trevor would take an introductory economics course, using Uncle Eric's Whatever Happened to Penny Candy, along with the Bluestocking Guide to Economics.  That's just a semester course.

He'll continue to be active with TeenPact (but may not attend state or NC this year), and piece together a gastronomy course.

We continue to look toward the following two years, when he'll start taking classes at Virginia Western.  That was such a good experience for Holly, and I am expecting it will be an advantage for Trevor also.

Driving me crazy

Thursday. Left Kroger, opened my car door, stopped and realized that IT WASN'T MY CAR! I have a radio key, which stays in my purse but unlocks my door and starts my car.  Obviously, this person didn't lock their car!

On a positive note, I was struck by how much nicer my car looks on the inside.  I just passed 90,000 miles, and it still looks brand new inside.

Friday. The business adjacent to the soccer fields has closed off its parking this season.  Seriously?  The business is closed when we are there.  If they don't want us parking there, maybe charge us $2 to park.  We'd gladly pay it. They'd make money, and it'd be worth it to compensate for the person they have sitting in front of their lot to make sure we don't move the barriers.  The police are there too, preventing people from parking along one side of the little dead end street that leads to the park.  It's crazy, and it's pointless.

I dropped off Robert and Trevor at the end of the street and then drove off in search of a spot--which could literally be half a mile away.  But I scored!!!  There was parking along another street, and I PARALLEL PARKED!!  Momentous, really, as it's only the second--no, the third!--time I've ever done this successfully!

Yes, yes, there's a bit of space there, but that's beside the point.  I DID IT!  And I only had to walk 2/10 of a mile, much more reasonable!

After the rain

Rainy all day, clearing at sunset.  I loved seeing the clouds reflected on the wet driveway.

Pumpkin heart

We know that Holly is absolutely first in her heart.

But Pumpkin's finally seeking us out instead of the other way around (but usually in the kitchen/family room!).

Makes me happy to know that Holly's baby is adjusting, just like the rest of us!

Greek Festival

It was drizzly and threatened to rain, but Trevor and I took the chance to go to the Greek Festival with Judy, Kurt, and Emily.

We toured the indoor shopping a bit, then sat outside under the big tent, ate Greek deliciousness, and listened to the music.

A gyro makes any day just a little bit better.

Play ball!

Last month, Trevor and I took advantage of the end of summer evenings and went to a Salem Red Sox game with friends.

Fun night, sat with a group of other people that we knew, and saw lots of others.  We'd specifically chosen a fireworks game, and we were not disappointed.

 

A good time with my boy!

My new job

I've been in intensive training for weeks.  That's been good. The trainer is wonderful, and I'm with two new employees from our office, along with two from other counties who are joining in.

My posters have come s-l-o-w-l-y in the mail, and my office finally has some decorations. I'm not done yet!

I continue to get that I am on the BEST team in the office (out of four teams made up of ten people each). Yay me!  We work and eat. And eat. And eat.  And then we work and eat, eat, eat some more. Surprisingly, no one is really overweight.

The week that this photo was taken, my team went out to lunch one afternoon to celebrate a birthday and as a welcome for me. We also had a breakfast potluck for our team to say goodbye to someone who is moving away.  That same afternoon, we hosted a "Desserting Party" (a play on deserting/desserting) for our office of 90. It was an incredible spread, and the party lasted most of the afternoon, with people coming in and out.  And lucky me--my office is right across the hall from the main conference room of the entire five story building.

This is what I ended up taking home, a sampling of leftovers.

The following week, I missed a staff meeting, and my lead went over the notes with me.

"Will you be here on the 7th?  We'll be going out to lunch to welcome Brenda to our team, and to celebrate my birthday."

"How about the 18th?  We're taking Joanna out to lunch for Boss's Day."

"Oh, did you see the email about the breakfast they will have for us on October 1st with all of the new Medicaid rules going in to effect?"

And she doesn't know that we're having a "Mexican Day" on the 11th to celebrate her new promotion.  I also marked down a Halloween Breakfast scheduled for the 31st.

I get that management does what it can to boost morale.  I get that it's working.  So far, so good! But I've started using the back staircase instead of the elevator.  That, and I think I'll stop eating at home.

Revisiting college tours

Trevor and I took a trip with friends to tour Virginia Tech last month.  Trevor's not particularly interested in Tech, but he knows it's good to know what's out there, to compare, and that he doesn't yet know God's plan.

This time around, I was much more relaxed.  Touring with Holly, I was more quiet, did not want to draw any attention to us.  Now I feel like I've been there, done that, and done that WELL.  No reason to be quite so reserved anymore!

We started out at the new Visitor's Center with an information meeting then were bussed over to begin a walking tour.

We had what I think was the best tour guide ever!  Although I think he was new, he was entertaining without being too corny, friendly not only to us but to students he saw on the way, knowledgeable, and perhaps best of all, he was LOUD.  I didn't have to keep up with the front of the pack to hear him.

The campus is pretty. And old. The dorm rooms are small, and let's face it, the one we saw was pretty yukky with its linoleum floor.  (Holly's room is really so very nice, new and big!)  Even worse, personally, are the tiny, old public bathrooms.  I'm pretty sure this is why they moved the visitor center to a new building. They were probably scaring away a lot of moms.

Just as I felt with Holly, this didn't seem to be a place to consider for Trevor.  But that kind of clarity, at least for now, is a good thing.

After our tour, we stopped by the Geoscience Museum.  It's housed in a classroom (also old and small), and it was deserted, but it was a pleasant way to end our afternoon.

Trevor said absolutely, no pictures, no way, no how.  I tried.

This was a fun time to get out with my kid.  Although he's only beginning 10th grade, he's had the advantage of several college tours already, joining Holly a few times.  Although we were with other people, I really enjoy touring schools with my kids!

Church picnic

In an effort to be more social, we have been actively working at doing a bit more at the church we've been going to for the past six months or so. We like the pastors, I like the music, the people seem fine. It meets in a middle school auditorium, and that just makes it a lot more challenging to connect with people--especially unsociable people like us.

We went to the picnic, brought food, ate food, chatted with a few more people.  It was all good.

Always fun to read bumper stickers at places like this, especially when we see one we've not seen before.

Seems like a fair fit. 

Holly's visit home

Because of my training schedule at work, Robert made plans to pick Holly up from school.  She has one required class that was scheduled ONLY early on Friday afternoons--no long weekends for her!  She received permission to leave a little early.

Me doing the Happy Dance while they were on their way home.

We also had a soccer game that night.  We knew Robert would be late, so I agreed to be the stand in coach.  Hahahaha!  I really know NOTHING about soccer, so "coach" was in name only.  I was very proud of Trevor, who gave the team their assignments, reviewed everything during practice, and spoke to the ref to receive permission (as a player) to call for subs.  That's normally the coach's job, definitely outside of my realm. He watched from the sidelines during the game, planning strategy and shouting occasional instruction.  So grown up and mature!  Robert arrived at half time, and we went on to win the game, 1-0.

Holly and I ran off to find an internet connection for a paper that was due after the class from which she'd left early, but by 8pm.  (Yes, but whatever.) It was an otherwise relaxing night, and she got to watch Trevor's second game that evening.

She and I went shopping on Saturday.  She'd been at school for more than three weeks and had a good idea of things she wanted for her room. She also wanted to stock up on food to keep in her dorm.  She's been doing very well managing her meal plan (which, for Holly, means managing to use up most of the meals), but it's still nice to have food handy and close by.

The eggs and Good & Plentys are mine.

With the exception of a few things that needed refrigeration, we kept everything in the back of my car.  You should have heard Robert the next morning. He wondered why we weren't packing things in my trunk--until he saw what was in there. Hahahahahahaha!!

She and I headed back up on Sunday.  We stopped for lunch at Q-Doba in Harrisonburg.  It's harder to interest her in eating out since she's been eating at school. Q-Doba is fresh though, and she likes to take the leftovers for a snack.

When we got to school, it took us about five trips to empty the car.  We put together a shoe rack that she will use for storage, and I left shortly after 5:00 for my three-plus hour drive home.

It was great to have her back home.  We'd planned it since before she left. While she was fine coming home, she wasn't super-excited-can't-wait about it, which was good.  She's happy where she is.  But she was happy to be here, happy to see her beloved little cat, and Pumpkin was really pleased about it too.

SOCCER!

And right in the middle of everything else, soccer season began six weeks ago!  It started out being a very strange year.  Robert continues to coach. Holly and three other players graduated.  Several players changed teams.  We have fewer 13+ players in the league in general, and instead of the usual eight teams, we have just five for now.  There are a couple of factors which came into play (no pun intended!).  For the past few years, the 9-12 teams have been sparse; so fewer kids are moving into the 13+ teams.  After breaking for a few seasons, the competitive boys' soccer team is playing again, so some of the players are there for the fall season.  Lastly, I believe many are fed up with the league and have just left.  I certainly have my moments when I wish we were doing the same.

So we have a mostly new team, with just three returning players from last season.  A few others have played on our team in the past.  We figured it'd be a year to rebuild and gel, working together to play stronger in the next couple of years. 

Surprisingly, this team has come together very quickly.  Trevor thinks it's the best team we've had yet, quite something since this is also the youngest our team's been in awhile.  The players have synched well, and everyone's enjoying themselves.
 

No, Trevor's not the goalie; this is just practice

What I need to do is bring my real camera.  My phone photos just don't compare.

Goodbye!

The week after Holly left was my last week of work at the library.

 It was quite lovely. Rachel baked a cake. They gave me a card full of wonderfully sweet sentiments, along with a nice gift card from Kroger.

Truth #1: I didn't cry at all. Truth #2: I was glad that I didn't.

Gone shootin'

The day after my birthday, I took a handgun safety course **FREE!!** through a local company.  It was a ladies-only class, about a dozen of us, who met up in New Castle.

The first half was classroom instruction, and then we headed out to a public shooting range.

It was okay.  I didn't really care for it.  It was too loud, too big, and no one understands when I tell them it didn't have anything to do with ear protection.

I was hoping I'd like it better, but I didn't.  Regardless, I'm considering getting my concealed carry permit, just because I can--to be counted, to take advantage of my rights, with all of the crazy anti-gun talk over the past few years. But then I think I have better ways to spend $40 . . .

Trevor's (belated!) birthday

Subtitle: The Tale of Two Cakes

I am sure I had more pictures of Trevor's birthday, but I'm not finding them.  He celebrated turning 15 over a several day time period. It was smack in the middle of The Craziest Week of the Year, with me resigning from the library and Holly's GMU move in.

We celebrated as a family two days early. Per Trevor's request, I attempted a lemon cake.  I've been making the kids' birthday cakes for nine years or so, and this was the first one that was really a fail (first one since Holly's first birthday, which caused me to purchase cakes for the first nine years).  But Trevor has such a sweet and tender heart; he was appreciative and happy.  He opened his gifts, and we ate dinner at home.

On Friday, his real birthday, Kurt came over.  Despite many options, Trevor's only wish was to go to Game Stop, where he and Kurt both bought "stuff."  Trevor used some of his birthday money, and Kurt bought himself a 3DS. Trevor later joked that even Kurt got cool things for Trevor's birthday! We grabbed Vietnamese subs, came back home, and the boys spent the evening playing games.

The following week, I tried to redeem the failed birthday cake, this time baking some kind of chocolate and flan cake. While I didn't like it, Robert liked the flan part, and Trevor liked the chocolate, so it worked. 

It was a fun but low key birthday, and I'm thankful that my kid is so flexible.  Fifteen years. My mama's heart is full.

Hmm

Here's an unflattering picture of me and Robert from our Carolina Beach trip in the middle of summer.

I don't know why I'm posting it though.  (Seeing this again, and DANG, my skin looks good! I don't think I've ever said that before!)

Waiting it out

I found this while going through some of my photos from this past RAINY summer. Holly and I ran into the grocery store only to find this when we were leaving.  This was not the first time I had to wait out the pouring rain after shopping this summer!  Holly and I waited under the eaves in front of the store.

Notice there's an open bag of Cheetos in my cart. We didn't want to starve, you know.

And Trevor's shoot

A week or so later, I was able to more easily convince Trevor to do the same thing.

It made for an easy birthday gift for Robert (or was it Father's Day?).

My handsome and sweet Trevie, quickly becoming a man. How much I love you!

Time just stop, please.

Senior pictures

Holly and I agreed to do a photo shoot for her senior pictures earlier this summer.

I say "agreed," because she turned me down more than once (okay, more than twice).

I was disappointed but understood. 

Really, who likes being the center of attention and having their picture taken a hundred times?

A few weeks later, she changed her mind.

Looking at these several months later, as I post these pictures, I cry.  My gorgeous, sweet girl.

Pretty much all grown up.

 Where did that time go?

My Billie, I love you and miss you so much.
<3333333