Wassail!

My adorable motley crew off to wassail Potter's orchard, so we may have apples and cider next year!

Chanukah

Happy Chanukah!

Frostbite Champions

Zara and her Orange Tigers played 4 soccer games in 2 days (as opposed to the typical rec schedule of a game a week) in the Frostbite tournament. This year the weather was comparatively mild (not really so frostbite-y) but the excitement was high. Zara's team tied their first game, followed by 2 wins. They played the team they had previously tied for the championship and won, securing their title as Frostbite Champions (U12 girls edition). It was a great weekend of soccer.

Puppies in a Box

Zara had some free time and a big box, so she decorated a deluxe dog storage container for Zelda. It is so luxurious and capacious that the children also enjoy a turn in said box.

Asheville

We spent Thanksgiving with Aunt Debbi, Craig and Nanny, and apparently I neglected to take any pictures. I did, however, snap a few of our adventures in Asheville - Z outside the famous Vortex Doughnuts (where we oddly ran into another family that is from Charlottesville!) and sisters walking down the street being cute.... Asheville is definitely a place I'd like to go back and visit again.

Sisters

Sometimes you just need a helping hand... or in this case someone to buckle your helmet so you can scoot. For all my whining, they are far more often sweet and wonderful with each other than they are at each other's throats. Well, here I guess Z is at A's throat, but in a loving and supportive way.

Halloween

Z and A went as 2 of the 3 Powerpuff girls - A is Bubbles and Z is Buttercup. I would have reprised my role as Blossom (having dressed up the same back in '02 with Gabi and Clare), but I was in the ER with MHL who took a spill down a hill while walking Zelda that afternoon. To be fair, it was entirely Zelda's fault for chasing after chickens, and she is very, very sorry for having broken her human grandmother. Fun was still had by the kiddos, and props to Wes for solo parenting it through the evening.

Zelda abides

Amity is happy to report that Zelda remains an integral member of the family, doubling as a pillow on occasion. She truly doesn't seem to mind this role, and willingly volunteers to be furniture for the children she adores. Our lives are all improved by having this sweet (and somewhat goofy) pup in our family.

An Lár

Wes has been playing in a Irish traditional musc group, An Lár, with a bunch of his friends from the BRIMS Trad ensemble. Here are two of An Lár's back up dancers and occasional vocalists posing with the sandwich board at the venue, The Tin Whistle.

Labor Day with the MMs

We spent labor day weekend in the Poconos with our darling friends the MMs. We spent much time in water, playing games, hiking, hanging out, cooking, and just enjoying each other's company! A great time was had by all (and Amity got to pose with a pirate when we went out for ice cream). Yarrrr!

First Day of School - K and 5

Amity and Zara, for the first time in anyone's life, now attend the same school (at the same time). I teach there, too. Amity started Kindergarten, Zara started Middle School (5th grade) and I'm back for my 3rd year as a high school teacher.

Haircuts!

In honor of going back to school, we all got our hairs cut. I'm hoping this will reduce some of the activation energy required for getting out of the house and off to school... plus, we're cute, no?

Happy 5 1/2, Amity!

5 and a half years old, and already missing 3 teeth - 2 on the bottom and 1 on top! Here we are at the Summit Diner (off the PA Turnpike, not the one in New Jersey) taking a quick lunch break.

JSL Champs

Zara and Amity both swam for Fry's Spring Beach Club this summer, and Zara chose to swim in the JSL Champs meet at UVA. She had an amazing experience and can't wait until swim team starts back up next summer. Here she is smashing her seed time in backstroke by more than 10 seconds. She was the heat winner (first time ever). Good on you, Z!

Superheroes

Amity and friends have been studying/being superheroes at school these past few weeks. Here's a glimpse.

St. Patrick's Day

Wes and Z (and the rest of BRIMS) performing at Fellini's for St. Patrick's Day.

Planting Trees

Tu B'shevat (the Jewish holiday known to preschoolers as "birthday of the trees") falls a little too early for tree planting here in VA. We therefore celebrated a bit belatedly by planting an apricot (replacing the one we lost a year ago) and a pear (a new fruit tree for us). Thanks to Z's buddy Vic for helping out and getting muddy with us.

Maymont Forever

Z and I had a relaxing staycation Spring Break as the rest of the family was in school. We all took a day trip to Richmond, which of course included a trip to Maymont. We periodically measure their wingspan, and it's definitely getting longer...

Homage to Terry

Sad news today with the death of Terry Pratchett. But of course, "No one is actually dead until the ripples they cause in the world die away..." Read on, Z.

Welcome, Zelda!

After an unprecedentedly long period of non-dog ownership (coinciding with a period of having 2 small kiddos, one of whom has just started really sleeping through the night), we decided it was time to add a canine member to the family. While originally leaning towards a Doodle puppy of some sort (lab/golden-poodle mix was top of my list), we ended up opting instead for a rescue dog. Not finding any super local ones that fit the bill, we went online and found our pup via "internet dating" (for dogs). She hails from Tennessee, where they have no shelters but instead provide foster homes for the multitudes of strays in the area.
Despite what the white in her muzzle (and it is white, not grey!) might otherwise imply, she's about 8 months old. She's absolutely the sweetest, most patient, tolerant, and wonderfully chill dog. We clearly won the dog lottery with this one. She's a keeper! Many, many more photos to follow...

Roller Girls

One of the awesome things the city of C'ville does is free roller skating. That's right! Friday evenings and Sunday afternoons, you can get your skate on for free! They even supply the skates. And the bad music. Really, it's everything you could hope for. Okay, maybe there should be some cheesy lights...? The above pictures document kiddos having fun on wheels. What you don't see is how much fun said kiddos' moms were having skating around in circles and gossiping. Like a bunch of junior high schoolers. Guest photo credit to the awesome Peggy.

Happy New Year!

As has become our tradition, we went for a New Year's Day hike in Shenandoah National Park. We're hip with the times, yo, so here's our selfie to prove it.