Summer Recap

This summer has been a bit of a whirlwind with the move and settling in. But here we are a few days before school starts and it is already complete. We managed to cram a lot in and enjoy our new town. So here goes.

Our first official visitors were Todd and Emily and their son, Jeb, who took this photo, hence titled "Worst Photo Ever Taken." It is so bad it is good. They came to visit for a 4th of July lunch. 

After they left, we went downtown to watch the Valley 4th parade. It was really cute. Our favorite float was this one which portrayed Trump and Hillary during a debate. The voices were piped in and it was quite good!

 Polly and her kids, Maria and Jack, also visited. We forced the kids to go to a playground and sweat. Boy, that was a hot day.

 Another surprise was an old college suite mate of mine from sophomore year. I met Natalie (and her roommate, Natalie, yes, that's right) freshman year in Hillside Hall. And sophomore year we were suite mates in Hanson Hall. She taught me all her Dukette moves, since she was on the JMU dance team and I yearned to be that good someday. I'm still working on that.

 We had Benny Sorrentino's pizza....the biggest box you've ever seen. It made us some friends at the pool though wanting to take a picture. 

And yes, the biggest pizza slices you've ever seen too!

 And thanks to this guy, Asher, Ben could do.....

this! He finally learned to go under water and even goes off the diving board and is having the time of his life at a pool. Yeah!

Eddie took tennis lessons at the park and Ben and I met Charlie, the dog. Long story short, but Charlie's owner has a daughter that knows Peirce through work, so we really bonded and I hope we see Charlie and his lovely owner, Elaine, sometime soon.

 This seemed to be the Summer of the Dog. Ben is dying for a dog, so we tried to do everything that involved dogs. First up, was Dogs To Read, at the library. This is Baylor, the golden retriever.

Then we have Gemma, the yellow lab. She slept the whole time and Ben even built a castle around her while he read to her. She also had a dream and broke her castle down when she got up. Boy was she surprised.

 This summer also brought new running shoes for me. I even drove to Winchester to see Polly for lunch and get the shoes there. Gave me an excuse to see my friend. 

 Cacky and Rupert visited and I got a much needed updated photo of my man with his mom for a frame. They both look good if you ask me. 

Peg and Larry also visited. They stayed a week at Big Meadows in Shenandoah National Park and poor Larry sweat so bad attempting to fix my dryer vent. I know he was happy to get back to his RV!

 I did get to take my mom to the Lavender Farm nearby. I lent her my sun shirt from Under Armour and we didn't even realize how perfect the color was for a lavender farm.

How cute is this place and it smells so lovely!

 This summer also brought much rain! Ben danced around in the driveway and had some fun with the downpour. 

He was drenched and got chilly, but it was worth it. Unfortunately, during another fluke storm, our basement got flooded which was no fun at all. Thankfully, we were home to pick up our items and start the cleanup right away.

 We joined the Children's museum downtown and I might regret it because I can't ever get Eddie out of the Science Lab room. This particular day, he put together the periodic table. But of course.

 And now I can't get Ben out of the dentist (!) because the dentist brings her dog to work. Best. Dentist. Ever. This is Baker, the most mellow black lab. He really kept Ben occupied while Eddie was getting his teeth cleaned.

We hung out at the library a lot and went for Lego building one day. This is one of Eddie's creations.

 Shenandoah Caverns kept us (and about hundreds of other people) cool on a very hot summer day.

We hit the Luray Zoo and I fell in love with the cute llama. It reminded me of the luck dragon from The Neverending Story which is the best movie ever.

 Rocky Gap for camping and North Carolina to visit Dan and Sybil were our two getaways this year. Bobo got a cute VW Beetle, so the boys got to ride in style. Too bad they are so short you can't even see them! 

 But, they played and played on the beach all day. 

 And I attempted to read, but it just wasn't happening for some reason. 

 And the best part of our visit is always the sweet dogs. This is Bodie, a great pyrenees. He is a real sweetheart. 

 And Joey, a black lab mixed with something. An angel dog. 

 Ok, Ben, that is enough. Let me in on some of these dog pictures.

Finally, Peirce and I get a picture taken in front of our new home. We always sit here as lovebirds watching the traffic go by. Uh, not quite, but a neighbor did recently mention how our house has "curb appeal", so I think Nanny's bench has something to do with it. I know Nanny is looking down on this with a smiling face.

 And lastly, another hike with Ben. First, we hiked Dark Hollow Falls in Shenandoah. 

And then walked a mile through Big Meadows which was lovely. I can't wait to go back when I'm wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. Fall will be right around the corner. I hope you had a lovely summer and I hope the school year treats you well.