Halloween

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With such torn hearts, we actually had a conflict on Halloween!  Our dear, family friend, Corie Morton, married to her "Hokie Michael", as we refer to him...at 4:00pm, 30 minutes away, the year that our neighborhood decides to start the Halloween parade and trick or treating at 5:00pm. 

 

When you've had the courtship that God intended, you press on with the wedding even during a pandemic.  

Corie's been part of our lives nearly the entire 11 years we've lived here:

• Swim lessons for Andrew when he was two, before we even knew what Fairview was
• Go-to babysitter for years, before having the nerve to go to college and nursing school
• Andrew's incredible age-group coach two summers ago
  
• Faithful house and dog sitter since being back in C'ville 
• Faithful young woman, who I've had the honor to recommend for various positions.  We are lucky to have her in our lives! 

 

The service was beautifully Christ-centered.  So refreshing. And Corie was a gorgeous bride, for whom I had to unmask for a quick picture before heading back home.  So very sad to miss what was an incredible reception by all counts!   

 

Our "hoopie", Storm Trooper and a BlueMan---likely our last year with all three into it!

 

 

Mom and Dad were going to be wedding guests, but Mom was tired of being cold, so became her hippie from a few years ago.

  

Olivet Fun & Bubble-Up

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 We simply could not be more grateful (or impressed!) with what Olivet has done this fall for families, and the whole congregation.  Monthly "Kingdom Kits" are available  at fun, safe "pick-up" events that include distanced treats (Kona Ice, hot chocoloate, cider, Carter Mtn donuts...) and are so jammed packed full of activities and lessons we can't get through them all before it's time for another kit.

Wednesday evenings, the kids play handbells with Mr. Craig---brilliant how he color codes the songs for those that don't read music. The handbell choir has grown to 20+!  Then the Killian-Lovell quartet plays a few ukulele songs.  

 

Movie night and bonfire - perfect solution for no-contact fun!

 

         Fort building, right in the middle of everything.  Inevitable, I suppose.  

Since limiting screen time is a joke, why not let him track his fantasy team while he watched football, and monitors his email?!?

It's Bubble-Up time!  While Andrew admits he'll miss swimming under the stars at 9:00pm and 6:00am, he said he doesn't feel compelled to try to swim when it's colder than 42 degrees out. So up it goes!  

 

Quite the masked team effort to pull the canvas over the entire pool!  I only got hit by breaking ropes 3 times!  You wouldn't believe what's underneath to keep it from sinking before the zipper can be assembled into place.

Oh, the clipboard!

Homeschooling this week---the spontaneous, sweet moments....

                                         ...the fun science labs...

...and the off-script science lesson of the day.

Masks off for 10 seconds at our King Family Vineyard bookclub---outdoors until we move into Ashley's heated garage.  You do what you gotta do!

Roanoke Meet and Memory Lane

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I'm in Roanoke, just 2 hours from C'ville, with Andrew and Margaret for a meet tomorrow.  So I decided to find the house Mom and Dad lived in (with Kate and Anne---7 and 3---respectively) for what turned out to be God's way of getting them from Richmond in the early-mid '70's to Columbia (1978-1991).  It was a mere 9-month stop for them, but long enough to (almost) bring Emily and me on board.  We were evacuated just 3 weeks after they moved from this house to Columbia.  And what finds BOTH properties were!

They weren't kidding it's a STEEP hill up to the end of their street.  This picture doesn't come close to doing it justice.

BIG, beautiful trees in the wonderful unique parking lot of a driveway, with a view to boot!  What a great place to ride bikes!

As Mom described, you drive up to the side of the house.

Couldn't quite tell what was going on with the chain link fence in the back.

Heading towards the front door...

             ...the perfect serpentine wall of which they were so fond!

Oh, heck.  As long as we're trespassing, why don't we go all out...

Andrew and Margaret stood by the car yelling at me to come on along quickly before I got arrested!  (Good kids, I suppose:-)

But this huge, FLAT, driveway (we don't do flat in Charlottesville)....can you imagine raising kids here?!?  Would have been a wonderful property!

501 Dillard Way SW :-)

 

Ironically, we got absolutely no pictures of the kids at their meet, only videos of their wonderful swims, including Andrew's 9% time drop (12-second) on his 100-breast!  Margaret loved her 100-IM and Andrew was excited to have his first opportunity to swim the 200-free.  A fun meet, even if COVID protocols kept us sitting in the car most of the day.