Meeting up with Laura in Charlotte

Laura and I have been internet friends for years and years, since 2003.  Actually, I thought it was a few years longer, but that's when she joined our loopy group.  We've met in person before, when she was living in Colorado, and our family mini-vacationed in Glenwood Springs in 2004.  Laura and her girls drove in and we went out for ice cream together.

Look at that!  Laura's oldest is married, two of our girls are sophomores in college, and her youngest is in missionary school in Florida.  Only Trevor is still being homeschooled, and he's taller than all of us!

Wow.

Fast forward to this week.  Laura joined her husband on a business trip into Charlotte. 
I've only been to Charlotte once, a couple of years ago with Holly.  It's a three hour drive, and there's a scary 6 mile section with steep grade that is terribly susceptible to heavy fog.  The colors were gorgeous, an indication of the elevation.  There was some fog but nothing too scary.

It was an easy drive right to her hotel downtown.  I should've gotten a picture of downtown; it has a few skyscrapers that are quite unique; just lovely.

Based on the weather (rain predicted), we made what seemed like an odd choice for a destination:  The Billy Graham Library.  I don't know too much about Billy, but I grew up in the age of the televangelist:  Jim Bakker, Hour of Power, etc.  Not exactly models . . .  Laura was a bit skeptical too, but it was ranked the #1 tourist destination in Charlotte by Trip Advisor, it was close to her hotel, and it was free.

The grounds are gorgeous. The "library" (really a tour/museum) is housed here.  We didn't really comment on the building, but once we were inside, there was mention of coming in "at the foot of the cross," which we thought was quite clever and lovely.  It made me see the entrance through entirely different eyes.

After being warmly greeted and stopping at the information desk, we began the tour with others who had arrived at about the same time.  There were more than a dozen rooms to move through, some with videos to watch, others with displays and memorabilia. 

You went through pretty much at your own pace, but you also stayed pretty much with your group, as some of the rooms had you stop to watch a larger video.  It sounds a bit odd and forced, but it worked, and we felt neither rushed nor slowed.

It was quite well done. The focus was not on Billy Graham but rather on how God used a man to spread His Word and to bring Him glory. It was a tour through Billy's life, his childhood, his marriage and family life, his international travels, his presence in the media on talk shows, etc.

The end of the tour, with a mural by Thomas Kincade.  Odd now, but also oddly appropriate . . .

Laura and I tried our hand at more than a few selfies, failing miserably.  Hilarious!! There is definitely a learning curve which I don't think either of us will ever master.

Bathrooms.  It was my first stop in the building, not surprisingly.  These were the biggest bathroom stalls I have ever seen, and first one (and last?) where I've ever taken a picture!  Look at this, no squeezing between the door and the wall here! 

The sinks were even awesome.  Who wouldn't want one of these somewhere in their house? Basement? Dog wash? Baby --heck TODDLER-- bath?!

(Wiped off the smeared lens.)

As we were conscientious of the time, we opted to stay there for lunch.  Lovely eating area, sweet servers in the food line, good food, and we spread out in a large booth and chatted for an hour and a half--

--before remembering we still wanted to visit the bookstore and Billy's childhood home, which was also on the grounds.

We again attempted a few selfies, then waited for someone young enough to walk by who could take a picture with a cell phone.  (Hahaha!!)

I easily could have stayed for another four hours. It was SO much fun, and I had a really, really great time.

I dropped Laura off back at her hotel and headed for home.  I unexpectedly hit some of that scary fog at the pass. I did slow waaaay down, and the visibility was quite low.  As we were going uphill though, it was far less dangerous than driving in the fog going downhill.  (Every few years, there is a horrible pileup with fatalities on the downhill side.)  I just drove with my flashers on, making sure I could see far enough ahead. As I came over the top of the hill--SUNSHINE and blue sky, the first I'd seen all day!

It was an absolutely gorgeous drive home, and I wish Robert had been with me to appreciate the foliage (and take pictures).  Breathtaking.

A super fun day, so glad we were able to do this a second time, and hopefully it won't be ten more years before we do it again!

Holly's belated birthday

We drove up yesterday to celebrate Holly's birthday.  The drive started out drizzly and foggy, but it gradually cleared and showed the beginning of spectacular fall colors.

We unloaded coolers and packages and cards at school, and Holly unpacked and opened everything.

She chose Chili's for lunch. They have a revamped menu, which happily still includes the 2 for $20 deal that we like so much. We were quite impressed by the new plating.  And look at Robert's fajitas for one person!

The unspoken rule is no face photos

We ran through Walmart and loaded her up on groceries to last the next few weeks. We stopped at DQ to look for an appropriate small birthday cake, but they had nothing--so next time, I'll bring something up. It's always nice to spread a birthday out a bit!

Back at Holly's apartment, we unpacked groceries and headed over to Starbucks to drink and chat some more before leaving for home.  It was a nice day, fun for all of us to visit and be together.

We were blessed that the rain held off all day and for the drive home.

Happy birthday, baby girl!  Hard to believe we've celebrated so many October 4s!! We love you more than you can ever imagine, and hearts are overwhelmed and so very proud of the generous, loving, kind, tenderhearted, brilliant, beautiful, and thoughtful young woman you are.

(And now Mom cries.) 
 ❤ ❤

Wet dog

My dog got a bath last week.  Hahaha!!!

Fall

I'm not a fan of fall, but some of it is okay.

Eating on the deck.

Sleeping with the windows wide open all night. I don't even care that the house is chilly in the morning.

All of the bug sounds outside at night.

Trevor was out early (relatively) yesterday to ref a couple of games.

 The fog was lifting off all of the surrounding hills.  Gorgeous morning.

 He went back to the park in the afternoon and played frisbee golf with a friend.

The weather has been spectacular, and I just wish it'd stay this way.

Touring Radford

Earlier in the week, I impulsively told Trevor we were going to visit and tour a nearby college and gave him a few options from which to choose.  On Wednesday afternoon, we drove about 45 minutes south to visit Radford University.  We knew going in that there were some negatives to the school.

There were three potential applicants visiting that afternoon.  We listened to a 30 minute spiel from the admissions counselor, which was nice, intimate in our small group.  Our tour was led by an Honors Academy student, and the two girls shadowing her were also Honors Academy.  I've been on a dozen or so tours. Some were flashy, some were entertaining, and one or two were just bad--but I think this was THE most informative.  Our guide kept my attention, which really says something.  The campus was gorgeous; I didn't get a great shot, not wanting to embarrass Trev by stopping for great shots.  I loved the layout, mostly centered around a quad area, and the size of the school, just under 10,000.  The large majority of dorm rooms have undergone recent renovation (and the rest will be done in

We knew going in about the downsides to the school: a low average incoming GPA, a party reputation, and pretty rural.  But we knew about and learned of several advantages:  likely Honors Academy admission and potential for full tuition scholarship, lots of opportunity for undergrad research and to work closely with your profs.

So it was an interesting tour.  Trevor and I both walked away impressed, and that was not what I was expecting.  I'm always open for surprises--at least when it comes to college tours.It was a fun afternoon; I really enjoy doing these with my kids.

Lost

Trevor and I began watching Lost on Netflix in the spring.  Holly and I continued to watch over the summer.  Trev lost interest.  As she's gone back to school, we make arrangements several nights a week to watch the show together, pressing PLAY at the same time, and texting comments back and forth. 

It's far more fun to watch it with her, via texting or not. I will typically voice text, mumbling comments while trying to continue to watch the show.  It's not always successful.  Holly's comments are in yellow.

 I laughed until I could barely breathe.

A piece of history

My mom's Uncle Ellis.  I remember him coming to visit us in San Jose when he would port in San Francisco (actually it was somewhere further south, I am sure).  He would come in a taxi, and that was the only person I ever knew who'd actually ridden in one. Odd and exotic at the same time to me then.  We also once dropped him off at his ship, if I am remembering correctly.  He brought us gorgeous jewelry/music boxes from China, a big one for my mom and smaller ones for me and Lori, and he also brought us rice paddy-style hats.


There was also that famous family story about him walking down the street in New York City, passing a man, then turning around and asking, "Hey, aren't you my brother Bill?"  Sure enough, it was.  They were not a close family, needless to say.

As a kid, my mom and her sister and brother knew him as Uncle Elly Belly. He would visit sometimes and take them out for ICE CREAM, one of the most magnificent treats they could imagine.  Somewhere out there, he has two children, around the age of my mom, but with a last name like Thomas, I'm not holding out much hope of finding them to share family history.

We knew he was a "seaman" but nothing much more (perhaps older relatives did).  I found this gem about Uncle Ellis on the internet this week.

Pillows

Yes, I have 14 pillows on my bed.

No, I do not know why.

Overheard at my house

Robert had worn a cord bracelet of Trevor's yesterday.  Conversation with Trevor:
 - - -

Robert: Didn't you notice that I was walking around all night wearing it?

Trevor: Do you think I look at you?

Sunday trip to GMU

Another day of food prep and getting ready to see Holly.  Some of the food included bbqed steak, French onion soup, PW's green chile chicken, sloppy joes, lots of fresh raspberries on sale here, and frozen watermelon for frosties. Robert added chile rellanos and frozen homemade pancakes.

It was fun to unload the car and see her surprised by the cooler, the box of food, and the bag of fall clothes I brought for her.  We went out to lunch at a new place, healthy, yummy food, a nice change for me (her, not so much!).

We were in the perfect spot--Holly's phone was in its final throes of death, and we were able to walk across the parking lot to both Best Buy and T-Mobile to find a replacement phone. Soooo convenient!

We went to Walmart and did a bunch of grocery shopping for her.  It's a funky little Walmart, and I like it for some reason.  I appreciate the foreign ESL checkers, the GMU kids shopping with parents, and the rest of the shoppers a wild mix of everything in between.  We unloaded the car again, and she took me to our first Starbucks visit this year.

It was a great day, not too hot, not rushed. Always great to spend time with my girl.

Second game of the season

Trevor reffed two earlier games.  He enjoys it (and gets paid), and Robert and I appreciate having a reason to get to the games early and therefore scoring great parking spots.  Parking gets ugly and far as the night moves on.

It was drizzly at first, and we weren't sure if we'd even play.  I stayed holed up in the car for awhile. 

Love seeing new bumper stickers that amuse me.  I had to look at this for a minute to get it, as I kept thinking that I didn't know any homeschoolers who were such body piercing proponents.

 Body Piercing by GLOCK

Even when I was watching the game, I wasn't watching too closely.

Robert and assistant coach Tim watching.

Very late night, ending with a run to Chipotle for desperately hungry guys on the way home.

Life is Rosey

Robert knew I was not having a good day on Tuesday.  After dropping Trevor off at his first day of Logic class, he came by work to bring me this.

It was so sweet.  It did make my day better, and it smelled really nice too (so unusual these days, right?).  I've been able to enjoy it for the rest of the week too, something else I've really appreciated.

Amazing things online

My great-grandparents' marriage certificate. You should be able to click on it to make it larger. This is a find that thrills me to no end.

link to page: https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1951-21127-14282-85?cc=1589502

Jealousy!

Kota's been more aware and showing unhappiness when any other pet gets attention.  This may have something to do with whatever issues are between her and Pumpkin.  Still can't figure this one out, if Pumpkin really taunts her, or if Kota just wants to be better friends.  Or if Kota wants to fight her, who knows.

Even with Holly gone, it was quite a shock to see Pumpkin jump up into Robert's lap. Look at Kota laying there with her ears back. She's a little distressed, lol.

Head down, trying to look at the floor, sadly.

Finally deciding to completely ignore the entire situation, she turns her head and refuses to look at any of us.

Princess dog.  She is entirely spoiled and precious.

Move In, Part Deux

I spent Saturday baking and freezing buffalo chicken wings and banana bread, preparing boneless, skinless chicken breasts and queso dip, and doing some grocery shopping.


On Sunday morning, Robert and I loaded up the rest of the things Holly had requested we bring for her room--her tv, bookshelf for the tv, her fish and fishtank, along with the cooler.

We did a massive unloading of the car, and Robert set up the bookshelf and got the tv ready to go.  

 Panoramic view

Holly and I unloaded food and some of her cleaning/bath supplies.

 The girls' kitchen

We went out to Q-Doba for lunch (yay, one of my favorites!) and took her grocery shopping at Walmart.  Robert also picked her up a printer, and he set that up for her back at her room.

Leading to the kitchen is the hallway.  Another single room door on the left, then Holly's door (the one with the light shining through).  The mirrored door is the double room, and the door to the right is the shower.  There's an open space with double sinks, and the last door on the right is the toilet.

The living room, with its wonderful windows!

It was a full day, but we were able to get a lot accomplished, and she's completely settled in!

Two first; no pictures

First FIRST:

On Sunday, I decided there was no point in Trevor getting used to a post-Holly routine, and then have to readjust in a few weeks to a school routine.

I haven't done much planning, but I pretty much know what Trevor will be doing this school year. We started with math only for this week, and I'll add things in as the weeks pass.  I'm not sure if we've ever begun school before Labor Day, so there's plenty of time.

Algebra II.  This is the same book that Holly used and the same series that both used for Algebra I.  It's written as a remedial textbook for college students, so while it's a "college" book, it's not college level math.  What I like, no, what I *love,* about Lial's is that the entire book is written to the student and intended to be self-teaching.  This also means that if they get stuck, I have a chance of helping them wade through it (surely much easier in Alg I).  When I bought this book, the seller unexpectedly threw in the solutions manual and accompanying never-used CD lecture set. The solutions manual is great--while the textbook includes answers to odd problems in back, the solutions manual explains the answers step by step.


Science/The Human Body.  Apologia, the go-to, trusted science curriculum.  Trevor had an excellent but entirely scattered biology course two years ago (the beloved but absent-minded Dr. Abraham) and online Apology Chemistry last year.  It will be different for him to self pace through this course, but the format makes it easy to do.

United States History.  Trevor has really enjoyed MFW's history, but the texts change for 11th and 12th grade.  Holly used a few other CLP packs for history, and while they are not my absolute favorite, they are both thorough and to the point.  Trevor may be a little disappointed, but it will be super easy to add more fun reading in, if he has time. 

Biblical Worldview. The Holy Spirit must have prompted me for this one!  I have no idea what I was looking for or why I chose it.  Worldview, check.  Summit Ministries, check.  I've heard only great reviews. I recently saw this as a free course offered through VHSG, but I quickly decided that this is a subject I would prefer to teach myself and not trust to a random, virtual stranger.


English/Comp.  We'll be using Windows to the World, and Trevor is going to try an online class through VHSG to guide him through The Elegant Essay.

Logic.  This is an outside course which will be taught by a religion/philosophy instructor from the local community college.  Twelve students are signed up, including Kurt and Samuel, two additional  boys from our soccer team, two other girls we know from soccer, and a boy from CAP.  We are all pretty exciting about this one.

Music Appreciation. Because it's good stuff to know, because I paid under $5 for a once-used set at the library book sale, and because this is something I can do with Trevor (and I don't have to teach it!).  

So we had our FIRST day of school, one subject, no pictures.  But it's begun, and that's a very good thing.


Second FIRST:

(Yes, I was headed here.) FIRST night of soccer practice!!  Another first, no photos. That's what I get for being social and talking to another mom.  I could have happily sat in my chair all alone and taken a few pics, but that's not how it happened. 

Sunday

An utterly laid back and relaxing day.

Judy and Kurt invited Trevor and me out to dinner.  It was quite wonderful--I enjoyed looking forward to it all afternoon, and we went downtown to Blues BBQ, someplace we'd never been before.

Pretty funny that there was that moment when the food was set down that everyone paused to take photos.  Delicious food and a pleasant time visiting. Very, very nice, perfect way to end the weekend.

Birthday and moving

Robert, once again, managed to fit everything in the car. Unlike last year, this time, no one had things stuffed on the floor by their feet, and no one had to hold things on their lap for the entire three hour drive.  I even had a few inches where I could see out the back window, which I GREATLY appreciated!  Holly and Trevor were happy to travel with their pillows, and that's nothing new either.  We joked that they'd be completely protected in an accident.

 Okay, she usually doesn't travel with quite that many pillows!

Check in, getting a bin, and move in all went v-e-r-y quickly, a completely different story from last year. We rearranged the furniture in her room, unpacked the major stuff, and Holly and I ran to the JC to pick up some of her books.  It started raining.

We went out to eat, and it continued to rain.  Texas Roadhouse, a special treat for Trevor's bday.

Rattlesnake Bites!

 We went to Walmart to pick up food items to last her for the first week.

It rained.

We took that back to her dorm.  Her room is bigger than we thought.  Her window is bigger than her window last year.  We set up a couple of lamps, and Trevor hung up a cute clock we'd bought at IKEA. We decided to hold off on other decorating until I bring a few more things up next weekend.

She's in a three bedroom apartment on campus.  The building is quite new, 2-1/2 years old.  There is a full kitchen, full fridge, oven, dishwasher, four big bar chairs, and a living room area with a 3-person couch and two chairs.  There's a separate shower and separate toilet, and a double sink. Four girls share the apartment; two of them are sharing the largest room.  It looks like it will be pretty quiet; there are only four apartments off of the main hall.
   

 The door on the left is her closet; the door on the right goes into her hallway.

Hilariously, on our way out, a dad walked past, saw the screwdriver in Robert's hand, whipped out his wallet and offered $5 for it.  Then $10.  We laughed.  We hadn't brought one but had picked up a cheap set at Walmart.  All the guy wanted to do was hook up his kid's tv, and he'd already tried unsuccessfully to scrounge one up from the Student Center.  (Just for the record, we gave it to him for free, lol.)

Robert, Trev and I headed home.  It rained.  A couple of hours into our drive, Holly texted this picture.  The guy across the hall from them accidentally tripped their fire alarm, so they had to wait outside--in the drizzle--for the building to be cleared! Never a dull moment, right?

 That's her room right there, the second from the left, near the bottom, 

in the row of light colored brick, one floor up from ground level.

Logistically, a much smoother move in from last year. And so the school year begins. Trevor is 16. I guess I blinked again, but life is pretty good.

BIG day!

Trevor turns 16 today, and I'm postdating this to autopost while we are moving Holly into her new room back at college.

This was taken in December 2004, almost ten years ago.  I love how it shows their personalities so well, with Holly's sweet smile and Trevor doing everything at 200%.

Words from the song Blink by Revive fit today perfectly.  I'm not sure I'll ever listen to this song again without welling up a bit, but that's okay. It's all good, right?

"Blink"

Teach me to number my days
And count every moment
Before it slips away
Take in all the colors
Before they fade to grey

I don't want to miss
Even just a second
More of this

It happens in a blink, it happens in a flash
It happens in the time it took to look back
I try to hold on tight, but there's no stopping time
What is it I've done with my life?

It happens in a blink
It happens in a blink

When it's all said and done
No one remembers
How far we have run
The only thing that matters
Is how we have loved

I don't want to miss
Even just a second
More of this

It happens in a blink, it happens in a flash
It happens in the time it took to look back
I try to hold on tight, but there's no stopping time
What is it I've done with my life?

It happens in a blink
It happens in a blink
It happens in a blink
It happens in a blink

The whole song can be found here.

Day before birthday

I worked for just a few hours this morning and came home in time to fix everyone a big breakfast. (Actually, I burned the hash brown potatoes, something I never do, but whatever. Everyone was very cheerful and forgiving!)

We'd hoped the weather would be good to get out and do something--take out a boat on the reservoir one more time. But it was raining and drizzling most of the day. It worked out well, as I was able to make a quick early birthday cake for Trevor, and Holly was able to get most of her things together to be loaded in the car tomorrow.

Robert even commented tonight that this is much more calm than last year.  I guess that's to be expected. I think he's right though. She knows exactly what she needs, and I'll be taking up more things to her in a week, so there's no rush.

H & T asked for McDonald's for dinner. Trevor opened his gifts, and ran off to install his new computer fan.  I'd made an ice cream sandwich birthday cake.

Holly and I went through a few more of her school boxes. With the weather keeping us in today, we watched several (4?) episodes of Lost today and finished Season 4.  Just in time--we're trying to figure out how we'll watch them together while she's gone.

A nice and mostly relaxing day, more so in the emotional, comfortable sense.  I don't want to go to bed but have to be up early and driving a lot tomorrow.

Holly's room

Holly shared this with me the other day.  Hilarious and so true!!!

The Frisbee Golf that wasn't

We tried.

We bought the golf discs.

We got to the course late, almost dark.

We dressed appropriately, jeans or high socks, closed shoes, lots of bug spray. Trevor brought home a tick the other night, so we were forewarned.

What I saw of the course was gorgeous.  The first hole? basket? goal? was in the field.  The second  one dropped into the woods along the creek--where it was getting really dark.

I decided, against the wishes of the kids, to call it a night.  The last thing I wanted to do was try to find our way back in the dark, as we were completely unfamiliar with the course, and there was no one else there.

We'll try again tomorrow or Friday.  So nice that it's just around the corner, free, and LOVELY!!

Happy birthday to me!

Robert usually bakes my favorite Texas sheet cake for my birthday, but this time, I chose an ice cream cake.  Holly was going to help me make it, but we watched Lost on Saturday night instead of making cake.  I did it Sunday morning while everyone slept.

There have been plenty of years in the past when a "good" birthday for me was not having to do ANY dishes and everyone getting along.  Those are not bad days at all, but this year, I was quite content to make my cake. Besides, all I had to do was smash up Oreos for the cookie crust and melt a couple of cartons of ice cream to pour them into the cake pan.  It was a piece of cake!

Robert and I made a short trip to the mall to birthday shop for someone else in our family.  Kind of a fun thing to do on my own birthday!

We headed to Carvins Cove, the reservoir just over the hill from us. We've lived right here for four years, but it wasn't until earlier this summer that I found out you can rent boats on the lake.

We ended up with two paddle boats.

Me and Holly in one, Robert and Trev in the other.  I think Holly and I had it a little easier. The guys had a lot more weight, and Robert's not the strongest peddler!

It was very, very, very good that the day was quite overcast.  Otherwise, we would have completely roasted.

We didn't go too far.  We didn't want to leave Robert and Trev behind (!), we were a little nervous that we might hear thunder, and we were worried that we'd be too exhausted to pedal back.

Holly took several dozen pictures. Not knowing what to expect beforehand, Robert gave us his phone for photos, knowing it might be sacrificed to the water.  (It wasn't.)  Anyway, she's not familiar with his phone, and about a quarter of her shots starred her own finger!

We stayed pretty close to each other for the most part, and we easily caught them at the dock.

It was so much fun, and I'm looking forward to do it again.  Holly and Trev both think rowboats would be fun next time.  Me, not so much.  My arms would fall off, I think.

Robert made us Italian nachos for dinner (Macaroni Grill-style), and we had my ice cream cake for dessert:  Oreo crust, a layer of chocolate ice cream and a layer of orange cream ice cream, topped with hard shell.

It was a completely lovely day, perfect.

And surprisingly, none of us had sore legs this morning!

Everyone goes everywhere Saturday and Tinker Mountain

Robert headed off to a soccer coaches' meeting, and Trevor changed plans with a friend, and Holly and I opted to hike Tinker Mountain this morning.  It's so close; the mountain runs alongside our house, and the trailhead is adjacent to the interstate a few miles away. 

 Tinker Creek--which also runs very close to our house

Each of the trails we've hiked have been entirely different from each other. This has surprised us, since three are connected sections of the Appalachian Trail.  This was definitely our least favorite.  The path, for the most part, was very wide, and while some parts were cushioned with pine needles, most of it, I thought, was uncomfortable to walk.

Holly wasn't feeling well, but we decided to press on towards the top.  As we approached the tallest power lines, we could hear their buzz and stopped to eat just a short way below the top.  We continued just a bit further and found this.  It wasn't terrible, but it did obstruct an incredible view!

Although we'd hoped to catch a glimpse of Carvin's Cove on the other side of the mountain, we decided to turn back.

We saw pretty views of Daleville between the trees and could easily spot large landmarks, grocery stores, apartment buildings, and the high school (not in this picture though!).

We spotted the baseball field that is next to our soccer fields (that large brown area on the top left).  Our street appears to be the first street on the left, and I can see the houses curving around--which means our house is hidden by the leaves. So cool to see everything from a distance and have a different perspective on how close everything really is!

Poor Holly was really not feeling well at all.  She came home and slept for a few hours, and I even did too!

Trevor caught up with his friend, and dropped them off to play frisbee golf.  Over at the same athletic fields with softball and soccer, a new course opened in May.  It must be some great secret, because we'd never heard of it!  Trevor and Jason were the only ones there and played until dark.   Great to know it's there, and I'm so glad Trevor got to see Jason one last time before he heads off to school this week.