The Washingtonian

  January 6, 2022 New Year!  So much has changed since I've blogged last.  Almost 8 years between posts.  We moved, AGAIN! Cliff notes...We live in Seattle now.  Dave works for a beverage distributor.  I stay home and do pottery.  Both DD's, now 18 and 20 go to LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  Barley is our family pet, he is 7, so I don't think he was in any previous posts.  He is the best! So the details... A lot of things happened in 3 1/2 years.  Life is like that.  I wish I would have remembered to blog. I'll have to skip a lot.  Fill in the blank with Facebook and Instagram.  It was really cool going back and reading what was happening in our lives 10 years ago.  Now that we have "adult" children, use that term loosely, I can't blab everything that is happening with them.  And boy, do we have some stories.  That is where ByStander comes in handy.   We moved in June of 2018 across the country from Owings, MD to Seattle, WA.  We left our amazing Covenant

Oh, I have a blog. I forgot! I bet you did, too! So we are in our groove here now.  Moving and shaking.  Life just passing us by every time we blink.  It's happening to all of us, I know.  No surprise.   We've been warned by those older than us, that this is how it goes down.  What are we to do?  We can not stop it.  We can't change it.  We can only change ourselves and how we view things.  That leads me to New Year resolutions.  Hmmmm.  I have plenty on my list this year.  I might be trimming that down a bit. I don't want to overwhelm myself. That's no good!  I am going to try to live a healthier lifestyle.  You know, the usual...eating better, exercising, more peaceful mindset, that type of thing.  Yoga mats are just flying off the shelves right now. You might want to hide me on your Facebook now. My positivity may get out of hand. Julia is now is 6th grade and going to middle school. She loves it!  She tried out for the girls basketball team.  Although she did

This past weekend was an eye opener for me! We went to the Calvert County Fair (I say that with a southern drawl, go ahead say it).  It was a huge event with beauty contests, Calvert Idol, best hen, best cow, games, rides, tigers, bear carvings....I could go on and on.  Maggie took a beautiful picture of 2 cows just resting.  They look like the are in love.  Check it out to your right. Maggie performed with her gymnastics group. She loved it!  They did a great job!  So, after the performance we ventured off to see what the hype is all about!  This fair has been around for over 100 years. It was quite impressive as far as the livestock goes.  I was not so impressed with the $$$ racket it became as soon as we walked in the gate.  There was a $5 cover charge and then the rides were $4 and $5 each, for each kid!  Anyway, it was a fun experience.  I'll post a pic of Maggie in her leo (as she refers to them now). We also worked the festival at church.  That was fun.  I absolutely love ou

Well, I haven't blogged all summer long! We have been on hyper mode. In the 8 weeks of summer we hosted 6 different families and went on 2 trips. You do the math...pretty much nonstop!The girls also took a trip to New Orleans by themselves. That's a story for another day! The flight attendant calling me AFTER their scheduled departure time was not what I was expecting! Anyway, we were able to see LOTS of old friends!  Yeah, one might say we were kind of busy. I really do enjoy company, good thing! The girls do, too! We have plenty of room and now with the pool we have constant entertainment. We have beaches close by, so looking for shark's teeth on the beach has been a new fun hobby of ours. AND of course there's the Museum of Natural History! My kids have been in it a few (dozen) times. It's one of the best Smithsonians in DC so I really encourage everyone to go while they are here. Well, Maggie has had enough of the big elephant! I understand. Some of our compan

Summer is just around the corner. This was our first really hot weekend. I was pleasantly surprised by how long our spring weather lasted. It was nice having the chilly mornings and nights. The girls were lucky enough to swim at a friend's house today for a Memorial Day cook out. We have had a busy weekend between yard work and parties. Back to reality tomorrow, but just for a couple more weeks anyway. School gets out mid-June here and let's back in mid- August. We have been hosting 2 bunnies for the weekend. Milkshake and Hopper are their names (see picture).  I think naming them has brought on more attachment which will make letting them go harder. They drink water out of a barbie suitcase. We told the girls that they can keep them for a few days but they will have to be let go back to the wild. I think we may have to get a dog sooner than planned. They are animal lovers. Our fence is almost finished. Skipper would have really loved our yard. We miss him. Thanks to all

Oh my! We have been super busy around here.  Julia was in her school production of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.  It was awesome! Of course I think that!  She could have stood up there picking her nose (like some kids did) and I would have not been more proud!  Honestly, I was just so happy that she was a part of something bigger than herself.  She got to see what it was like to work with a group...a large group.  Her part in the play was being a member of the stage crew.  Last week, someone, the director or someone decided they needed 4 impromptu robots.  Julia was selected, or volunteered, to be one!  This whole experience has been so great for her.  I could see in her the sense of pride she felt about the play.  She took her job seriously.  As part of the stage crew, she had to dress like an oompa loompa.  See pics.  I've seen the movie (both old and new) several times, but it wasn't until I watched the play that I understood what moral it was trying to convey.  Don