Annual Peach Picking

One of Mark's highlights of the summer is our peach picking trip. This year we did it with some of his family who was out visiting. It was the hottest weekend of summer so far but we did it.  Mark is ready to go back and pick more and will most likely take Jared and Lydia while I am at work this week.  We normally go to Chiles Orchard out in Crozet but on their website they mentioned not having many peaches for the public to pick because December was so warm the trees got pretty mixed up.  Then the frosts got the trees this Spring.  So we headed over to Carter Mountain and found some great peaches. Mark is quite selective of his peaches and his family had some fun with that.  They found a peach and wanted him to come give it his "approval".  They showed him a peach that was covered in these disgusting beetle bugs.  You couldn't even see the peach. It was nasty!   Fortunately he found plenty of delicious ones and Jared and Lydia were excited to have Mark lift them up to pick the approved peaches.  After picking our peaches we enjoyed some peach soft serve.  Carter Mountain is so pretty, I am not sure if I prefer Chiles or Carter's. Im just glad we could go. Pick peaches check! One more item crossed off on our summer fun list.

Hannah, Mark, Cathryn

Lydia, Ian, Anya, Jared

Ian, Jared, Lydia, and Anya. 

Jared also lost another tooth.  It has been loose for awhile and today was the day he got it out.  Mark ended up pulling it out which totally grosses me out.  Jared wrote a very polite (if unrealistic) note to the tooth fairy.  Mark snapped this picture of him and Jared looks so different!  He had wanted to have the tooth pulled out right away but Mark convinced him to wait until after our trip with his family since we would be taking lots of pictures.  The tooth next to it is loose too.

Awhile back Jared and Lydia were playing Hide N Go Seek. Lydia was coming up with some great hiding places.  Mark may have helped with this one.

  

She was up there a good 7 minutes and would have lasted longer if we didn't give Jared some major clues.  I also remembered this funny (somewhat concerning) story.  Lydia and Jared were playing together and it really seemed like a game Jared would not be that interested in but he kept playing along. After a good while I commented to Jared that he could stop playing if he was no longer interested and he said, "I can't stop, if I do Lydia won't pay me."  What?? She was offering him money to play with her?  She certainly speaks his language but I am not in the habit of encouraging Jared and Lydia to pay each other to play together. These kids.

Fun around Charlottesville

Another week of summer gone.  We started the week off with Slurpees for 07-11.  Jared and Lydia had never had a Slurpee before and of course loved them.  I can't remember the last time I had one and it was delicious.  They are just not a go to treat for me which made it more fun.  I know they will look forward to July 11 next year.

We finally made the trip over to Yoders.  It's a cute store with a petting zoo attached.  We enjoyed some yummy sandwiches in the rocking chairs on the big porch and then checked out the animals.  It's funny because it really is just a store but its' a pretty popular place for families to go to.  Jared and Lydia enjoyed the animals and on our way home we stopped at Tastee Freeze which is a run down looking diner place not really by anything on 29. We noticed it the last time we drove up to DC. Mark and I had commented that we would like to stop there because it looked like a good ice cream option and it was.  We got soft serve and it was great.

At home we had a creepy visitor and learned about Outer Space and the Zoo. We also got all out pipes put in and the patching done.  We never loved the color of the downstairs bathroom so Mark repainted it.  He did most of it, I just did some touch up.  I am not sure I love the new color we picked (summer mist) but it is better than the one the previous owners chose. Its nice to have most of the downstairs put back together.  I will have to sweep and dust it a few times to get all the sheet rock  dust off but its done.

We came home from church Sunday and this black snake greeted us. It was quite a surprise.  Its pretty big, you can see its head poking up over in the grass. I have never seen one on our property before which has been surprising.  I am grateful it was just a black snake.  It's probably been helping us out, eating bugs and mice. 

I combined 2 weeks themes because last week I was not very motivated for learning times and the plan was to go to a zoo but we didn't have time so Yoders counted as our zoo excursion.  We did some fun activities and they both know a lot more about Outer Space then they did before.  Neither Jared or Lydia have been particularly interested in Space but when we were picking our themes for the summer Jared expressed interest in it so it made the list. 

We did this cute moon activity that was a hit.  

We learned about the phases of the moon with the help of Oreos.  

Lastly Mark and I went on an awesome kayaking date Friday night. Jared had read another 10 books  (he is doing really well and enjoying his summer reading) and the lightsaber piece he picked was a trip for a mini cupcake.  While we were at the cupcake shop I had the great idea that I should get cupcakes for Mark and I to enjoy on our kayaking date that night. I also found out that Jared doesn't particularly care for cupcakes!!  He doesn't like the frosting on them but that did not stop him from getting an everything cupcake and enjoying it.  It was a chocolate cupcake with peanut butter frosting topped with: chocolate chips, chocolate pretzels, peanut M&M's, and Reese PB cups. He picked out the stuff he really wanted and skipped most of the frosting. I got key lime and lemon and they were delicious.  It was a beautiful night to be out paddling. The weather was great and it was so peaceful and relaxing. We went out on the reservoir down the road from us instead of Chris Greene and it was fun to go somewhere new.  Last Saturday we kayaked at Walnut Creek so we have now gone to: Chris Greene Lake, Sherando Lake, Walnut Creek, and the reservoir.  We are loving our kayak.  

So grateful the Shaw's are so kind and let us borrow their kayak for our date. I go back and forth between wanting another kayak and a bike. 

Mark's mom, his sister Cathryn and her two kids are coming out here next Friday.  They leave Utah Monday and start heading East. Sue rented a motorhome for the next 3 weeks and they are going on a big adventure. We are really looking forward to them visiting and can't wait to show them how great Charlottesville is, we're sure glad we made the list.  They will spend Friday- Monday here then head over to DC.  We will then meet them in Palmyra at the end of next week. Sue has already been here but not Cathryn.  Ian and Anya are 9 so older than Jared and Lydia but they will be happy to see some cousins. 

The Noke'

We took a trip over to Roanoke today. Awhile back Hannah and Matt won 6 free tickets to the water park there and they invited us to go check out the park with them. Roanoke is 2 hours away so we met up there and explored the downtown some.  It's actually a really nice/fun downtown to walk around. The farmers market was in full swing when we got there and it was fun to walk around it. We stopped by "the Star"of Roanoke, which happens to be the world's largest man made star.  There is a beautiful overlook of Roanoke which really reminded us of Colorado Springs.  There are nice walking trails, a discovery center and a zoo up there.  We didn't do all those things but it was fun to check out the area.  We had planned on lunch downtown at a restaurant called "Thelma's Chicken and Waffles" but they were closed!  That was disappointing but Laura, who grew up in Roanoke came through with another recommendation of a Mexican restaurant that has a salsa bar and it was good. We will have to try chicken and waffles some other time as now I really want to!

After exploring that part of Roanoke we headed over to the water park and had a great time in the water. It is similar to the Provo Rec Center only instead of having the option to go indoor and outdoor you have to pick one or the other.  We chose outdoor and head a great time.  There were two water slides which were fun and actually pretty scary.  One had a really steep incline and then it spits you out into a bowl and you swirl down, think toilet bowl.  It was actually really disorienting.  I had never been on a slide like that before.  Instead of shooting out you are pretty much just dropped into the water.  We all tried it (except Lydia but Jared thought it was great) and I would probably do it again because it's so different from other slides I have been on. The other slide was scary because its pitch dark!  There was this kid in front of me (who could not stop talking to us, I could tell you all about his family now) and he said if we wanted to make the slide scarier we should close our eyes but it was so dark in there I would never close my eyes.  I couldn't even see my hand in front of me.  Both my exits from the slides were very ungraceful but it was fun to go.  Lydia loved the lazy river and had fun in the zero entry water pool. There was also an open slide she could go on that was really pretty high up and she loved it.  It was interesting to watch Jared and Lydia around these kids.  Neither Jared nor Lydia are very aggressive and it showed when they were waiting in line for slides.  Lydia almost always had at least 4-5 kids cut in front of her. She came over to me eventually and commented that these kids were not being very nice to her and that they kept cutting in front of her. We talked about it just a little and she was handling it really well it was just interesting to watch. I'm glad she wasn't a cutter but do want her to stand up for herself in situations that call for it. Jared and Lydia were so happy to play with Hannah, Matt and Norah. They just love baby Norah!

You swirl around just like water going down the toilet, then it just drops you out! 

The weather was perfect for a water park. Nice clouds not super hot, it was fun to go somewhere new and try it out.

4 weeks gone 7 to go

We have been out of school for one month now.  Overall its been a pretty great month.  The weather has really heated up this week and its making me realize how pleasant June was. We are steadily checking things off our bucket list and thinking of more things we want to add. Some things are throughout the summer so we haven't checked them off but are enjoying them.

Last night was the first community race at UVA.  Jared and Lydia have been talking about them all year and had a fun time. I was concerned last night because the weather was so hot yesterday but right around 6:30 when the races started some awesome clouds rolled in and a nice breeze picked up. It was still way hotter than I would ever run in but Jared and Lydia did well. They participated in the 100M and 200M.  Jared said he wanted to do the mile but we may try it another week if it's cooler which doesn't seem likely but we will see. Lydia was not a huge fan of the 200M whereas Jared liked it more.  We met up with the Farnsworth's and Shaw's which was great.  Side story: The UVA races were one of the first things we did with the Farnsworth's back in 2014.  Laura and I were reminiscing about it last night, our almost two year anniversary (we moved in on the 19th). We moved in on a Saturday in July 2014. (I remember because we were were worried about getting our keys before they closed because they closed early on Saturday's although in the end they had a key box so we needn't have stressed about it) Josh came to help us unpack and I met Laura that Sunday.  On Monday she called me up like 30 minutes before the races stared to see if we wanted to come hang out for FHE and we decided to go for it. It's been tons of fun ever since then. We are glad we could do the races and will see if we can make it again.

Today we checked out Timberlake's Pharmacy and Soda Fountain on the Downtown Mall.  A friend had told me about it after I saw it on their bucket list. I had never been in there but knew I had walked past it. We hadn't gone in because we didn't have a need for a pharmacy but in the back of the store they have an old fashioned soda fountain/sandwich shop.  It's awesome. It feels so authentic or at least what I think this type of place would be like.  We sat down at the counter and ladies who had been working there for 15 + years served us.  (One from the 1st ward) We got an ice cream sundae, a milkshake and Jared wanted a soda float so he got Sprite and vanilla. It is old timey and vintage and fun. I can't remember how long its been there but well over 30 years as one lady has worked there for 25! It was great to show Jared and Lydia what a soda fountain was and talk about them. Such fun. We will for sure go again. I think next time I would like to try their mixed fountain sodas. It would be a fun summer date night wth another couple not because the food is amazing but just walking along the mall and stopping in.

I didn't actually know Mark was taking this picture I thought he was taking one of just Lydia but at least I am almost smiling. Before we went to talked to our kids about trying something new, not just getting vanilla and chocolate ice cream.  We somewhat succeeded. Lydia was funny: She said "This is way better than I thought it would be! It may even be better than daddy's." It wasn't but it was fun.

We have also been doing our theme weeks which has been fun.  It is so interesting to watch Jared.  I think he truly misses doing school work!  When I handed him some fun sight word papers and timed math papers he was so excited. He loved doing our little activities which was really nice. So far we have done Star Wars, LEGOs, and America. Rescuing LEGOS was probably the favorite activity so far.  I froze a bunch of LEGO pieces overnight and they "rescued" them the next day. Many years ago I did this for Jared, I think when he was like 2.5, he loved it then and has asked to do it a couple of times but I have been lame and not done it but now we have. I think I should incorporate it into every theme.  The funny thing was that the day we did it was rainy and chilly.  It was supposed to be a fun outside cool off activity but oh well.

Tyler was over because he needed a break from cub scout day camp and he and Lydia did a great job working together. Jared was really not cooperating. I know he was excited, he had been looking forward to this for well years...but I was so disappointed that he wasn't willing to work with others.  He needed everything to himself and it was just disappointing. I really don't know how to help him think more of others, less of his own needs. I probably need to model it more but I wish he could just put himself in someones else shoes, think of other's first more. 

We also made some LEGO cheese and crackers.

I love planing these activities. It is a large part of why I enjoy teaching preschool.  It's a fun way to spend time with kids, I feel like I am using my degree and they are learning things. I am also way better at doing something like this with Jared and Lydia then just sitting down and playing with them which they would love. I am sad that it is hard for me to sit and just play with them and am trying to work on it.

Jared and Lydia also took swim lessons at Chris Greene Lake. Jared already knows how to swim but it was nice for him to learn more about strokes and gain confidence. I am tempted to try swim team for him next summer but it's a really big commitment so we will see.  I feel like Lydia gained a lot of confidence from this set of lessons.  It seemed like there was a lot of waiting around and during that time she really wanted to just splash and play around which was okay since they weren't being instructed, just waiting for others in the class to finish practicing the stroke but it meant when the teachers were ready they had to wait for them to get back to the group. I am not sure if city or county classes were more helpful. I think it depends entirely on the teacher.  I do feel like Lydia can now swim for sure underwater (seems so weird but I guess it makes since she doesn't have to use as much energy to swim under as she does above).  She is better/ stronger/more capable than a month ago so I am happy with it. I wouldn't let her swim alone in a pool, I would have to be in it but I feel she has made great progress and will really have it down by the end of summer. Going swimming is pretty fun when your kids know what they are doing. They both love going out to the dock and jumping in. We have spent lots of time at the lake and went swimming with the Lenox's at their pool which was fun.  They have a slide and diving boards and Jared and Lydia loved using both.

Jared loves jumping off the dock.  We were at the lake for 2 hours the other day and he spent it all out there minus the "rest times".  I love seeing him just out playing, gaining confidence and being a kid. For some reason going to the lake seems so old timey to me.  Like it was what kids did when my parents were growing up.  We love pools but there is something about swimming in a lake. It's funny because it was not part of my life growing up but I am glad it can be for Jared and Lydia.

Lydia loves it too and Mark is such a good sport. This is her first summer doing it.  She loves diving boards too and has never bene afraid to jump off them really but last year she never made it to the dock. I didn't either but this year we all went out and had fun jumping in together. 

Perfect night paddling on the Lake. Sometimes I see people posting pictures of really pretty sunsets here in Charlottesville or talking about seeing one and I realize that I have seen so few sunsets in Charlottesville. There are so many trees I feel like I never have a clear view.  Especially at our house. This night I was fortunate enough to go kayaking with Laura and enjoy great visiting and this beautiful sunset.

In not so fun news.  We had another leak in a pipe, a in prick in a copper pipe. This was the 4th one in the year since we have lived here.  We have been super lucky that they have been pretty small and caught early on, no crazy damage but it has been a bummer.  So after this last one we talked to my Dad and decided to replace all the pipes in our house.  I went to work one day (which has been going well, they are a really nice family) and came home to over 15 holes in our walls! It has been such a mess.  We are grateful my Dad helped us out but what a headache.  Our water has been off and on and it has taken quite a bit longer than originally planned.  He is doing a great job but it is time consuming because you have to wait for the mud to dry then sand it and put more mud on, then paint it not to mention how much pipe is in a house.  And sheetrock produces a lot of dust when it is cut and a lot has had to be cut.   It is almost done now and we are grateful.

Old Copper pipes

And what says summer more than swinging on a tire swing and an antique filter?

We are so fortunate to live here.  There is so much to do and we know such great people. This weekend and next are kind of our last free ones.  Mark's family will be here the  22nd-25th then we are meeting them in Palmyra the following weekend. Then we are off to the beach to go camping and then to Pennsylvania the weekend after that. Our week days won't be crazy but the weekends of summer are almost over! We will will have one more before Jared starts school. Crazy when I look at it that way. 

Just another day in the Capital

Last week we drove up to Washington DC to meet up with Mark's best friend from growing up in Turlock, Justin.  He was in DC for work and we were happy to make the drive to see him.  He is my favorite friend of Mark's, we wish we could have seen his family too.  We started the day off by eating lunch at the Shake Shack.  This place is really popular and while we did enjoy it I will never claim that people should absolutely eat there.  I think it may be a little bit of my California roots that I still prefer In-N-Out Burger. We ate in Tyson's Corner at the mall there which had a cute little playground that Jared and Lydia loved.  It happened to be a beautiful summer day. Low humidity, nice breeze, clouds in the sky, not super hot. It was such a great day for eating out and walking around the city.

We didn't have set plans for DC this time but visiting the Museum of Natural History was on our bucket list so I hoped to go there. Justin wanted to take Mark on a tour of his office building but it is not really a place to take a 6 and 4 year old so after talking about a few options I decided to be a grown up and drive into the city, find parking and then find the museum on my own.  We have been here 2 years and I had yet to drive into DC and it was time.  I had my phone with me and knew I could use GPS but when I got in the car and set my route my phone was at 18%!  Traffic was fine and the drive was not bad but I was so nervous about my battery dying. We must invest in a charger for our car!! When I got into the city it was already at 8%!  So stressful. Google maps sure uses a lot of battery.  I was so thankful it lasted until I found parking, that was definitely a prayer answered.  We parked and started our walk to the museum. I opted to park by the Tidal basin as I was familiar with it but it is a long walk to the Museum of Natural History!  Jared and Lydia were such troopers.  It took us over 35 minutes to walk there but I was thrilled that we found it and we really enjoyed the museum.  Jared and Lydia hadn't been yet and they loved it.  Seeing the Hope Diamond was on the bucket list so they were excited to do it and check it off. Before my phone died I sent Mark a text saying I would meet him at the Hope Diamond at 4:30 and check back every 10 minutes or so if I didn't see him, which made me feel pretty smart.  I missed him the first time by just a few minutes.  He got there at like 4:35. We met up shortly after and it was such a relief.  As I was driving away it occurred to me that I should have just taken Mark's phone with me as it still had plenty of battery left but it made for an exciting little adventure (that I do not need to repeat).

After the museum we walked over to the Washington Monument to see if they by any chance had tickets left to ride the elevator to the top of the monument.  We were not surprised when we got there and they were sold out.  You can reserve them online for a small fee (1.50$ a ticket) and I think we will just do it.  People line up to get them at 7:30 AM and we are never really going to be there at 7:30 am.  We walked around the monument enjoying the sights and Mark actually got interviewed by a news station on what the 4th of July meant to him.

Jared was really excited to check out the monument.  He really wants to ride the elevator.

After the monument we walked over to the White House.  We had walked over there before but I had seen pictures of friends where they were much closer than we had been so we asked Justin if he knew how to get to that side.  He worked in DC for about 2 years and knows it pretty well. We found it and enjoyed the view. There is a nice little green space across the street from it so we headed over there to visit.  Jared and Lydia ran around in the grass threatening squirrels and enjoying themselves. No squirrels were harmed as Jared tried to "pet" one by chasing it with a stick. We headed over to dinner and then got Frozen Yogurt on our walk back to Justin's car.  He drove us over to our car which was great because even though it was a beautiful night it would have been a long walk.  Lydia was thrilled with any extra time with Justin. She thought he was pretty awesome and told us many times that he was her favorite part of DC on this trip. She will be disappointed next time we go and he is not there.

Shoulder rides and being swung up and caught added to Justin's appeal. 

It was fun to be in DC and not be rushing to leave before traffic started.  We met up with Justin for lunch at 1:00 so no traffic going in and didn't leave until after 8:30 so no traffic going out. It was fun to be in DC at night too and see the monuments lit up.  We hadn't done that before either. It was a really late night but Jared and Lydia handled it really well, they are growing up. We are so glad we live out here! Charlottesville is awesome and so many fun places are nearby.  It's nice because DC is a place people plan to go too.  We had so few visitors the 6 years we lived in Colorado so while we are so far away we are somewhere people want to go so it kind of feels like we see more people or at least our chances are better of seeing them!