Fall Fun and Book 32

We are enjoying fall around here. Evan just finished up his fall break, but Brad and I are still going at a break-neck pace at work. That means we are really trying to squeeze in fun around the edges. Enter Jack:

He is a very sophisticated gentleman skeleton. Many of our neighbors have various skeletons on their mailboxes, and Brad is hoping it takes over the whole street.

Evan did a wrestling workshop this weekend. He and Will probably had too much fun:

He is really looking forward to senior season!

I also finished book 32:

It's our next book club read, and I really think the author just ran out of steam at the end. I did not love it.
 

Well...August Happened

August was a hot mess express. The good news is it all ended incredibly well. 

The last week of July, Evan and I were headed to tour NCSU, and we got rear-ended on 40 in our brand new to us van:

The good news is we didn't have so much as a scratch or a bruise, and none of the other cars involved did either. But, the van was totaled. I can't say enough good things about Nationwide. They checked on us multiple times to be sure we didn't get sore in the following weeks, and they put us in a rental until we found a new car two weeks ago:

We got another Odyssey since the last one did so well in the wreck!

The end of that same week, we took Evan to tour UNC Charlotte:

It's his new top contender! And on the way home we stopped by Ryan's studio and invested in our first piece from him:

It's so fun to support one of Evan's friends as he becomes a professional artist!

Our neighbor was also redoing her kitchen and gave us her marble island countertop, which we love:

The new look was the incentive we needed to finally hang the prints we brought home from Scotland. Evan was much more careful that I would have been:

I love how they look, but I cannot get a decent picture.

I also learned August is my new role is insane. I still love it, but it is a lot of a lot.

I'm very proud that I still did take a lot of time to read. It probably saved my sanity.

Book 26 was a very affirming memoir by Rachel Held Evans:

I love my Jesus but the church and I struggle. This helped me think that through a little differently.

Book 27 was a hot mess of a book club pick:

I cannot say I enjoyed it, but I also couldn't stop reading it. It's a bizarre travel-log about hot dogs.

And I finished book 28 this morning:

I love this series, and I'm a little sad that I think this will be the last book in it. Ana and Din are such wonderfully complicated characters, and just when I think I have the mystery solved I'm very wrong.

We are looking forward to what we hope is a much calmer September!

 

New Treat Unlocked

Two years ago, Evan got a Ninja Creamy for his birthday, and we love making our own ice creams and sorbets. This year, our family kick-off to the summer was the Ninja Slushie. We have made all manner of slushies, and last night we made our first milkshake, which was awesome. Evan is still the chef, and last night he went a little rogue after it was ready.

When he was getting ingredients, he also picked up a three-pound bag of Fruity Pebbles with marshmallows:

He promptly added those to his milkshake calling it Dessert Cereal instead of Breakfast Cereal:

If nothing else, this boy keeps me laughing.
 

Happy Birthday, Evan!

We have had a very fun week celebrating Evan!

We started on Saturday with a trip to Drive Shack. Issa met us, and her gift wrapping was 100% dorm approved:

Aunt Shannon and Nana were able to join, and we had great fun even if we aren't great golfers:

Afterwards, Nana and Aunt Shannon also gave him his gift, which is the biggest Lego set I've ever seen.

Last night, we went to City BBQ and then came home for his gift from us:

He now has new VR toys:

He chose Oreo trifle for dessert, and the look is because Bella was pretty sure she should blow out his candles:

I have a feeling 17 is going to be his best year yet!

 

April Happened

April was an absolute whirlwind! Here is a recap in order of my camera roll...

We were finally able to have the wrestling end of season banquet! It had to be postponed because Coach broke his foot, but it was worth the wait:

Evan earned his varsity letter this year:

The wrestling banquet is just a whole different beast. I could not love these boys more, and the way they celebrate and support each other is really something to witness. They are loud and rowdy and genuinely have the time of their lives. They left the banquet to go bowling together, and the group chat is still going even though preseason won't start for another week.

Book 13 was a dismal failure:

This is the strangest story of a woman who was onboard both the Titanic and the Britannia. It's a not at all scary ghost story that ends either two chapters too late or five chapter too soon. I was reading ahead for book club and saved the rest of the group from this one.

Issa had a huge month! She earned the Outstanding Underclassmen in Psychology Award:

Her name will now forever be in Ledford Hall:

And I'm so grateful for her advisor who has challenged and supported her for the past two years:

The very next day she presented her thesis:

The faculty want her to present at a state conference next fall, which is pretty cool!

I also started a new job! I'm currently wrapping up my role as Department Chair and transitioning into my role as Associate Provost of Academic Affairs. I love the view from my temporary office:

I'm also loving the work. My role is really the helper and fixer for all things academic. The pace is wild, and we have a lot of work to do, but I truly love it. After six years as chair, it was time for a change.

Book 14 was much more interesting:

I heard the author speak at the AACTE conference, and I appreciate his leadership style and approach.

This weekend, Issa danced in her last Dance Works on campus:

It's always so fun to see her on stage, and we managed to get a quick dinner with her before she had to get back for the next show.

This weekend was a much needed recharge. I finished book 15, which is the new book club choice:

I loved it so much a ordered book two and pre-ordered book three. It's a fantasy mystery story that truly surprised me at every turn. I love the two main characters, and I'm excited to see what is next for them!

I also finally planted my herb pots for the season:

It was a perfect afternoon for some porch sitting, and I'm grateful for the rest as we enter the last week of classes!
 

What a Spring Break

I had a fabulous spring break. I ended up doing a little work, but very, very little. 

Issa and I spent the first half of the week getting facials, cleaning closets, and generally just resting a bit. I think we both needed it, and it's always good to have her home.

The second half of the week Brad and I took Evan to Cleveland. The main goal was to tour CWRU:

Brad loved being on his home campus, and Evan loved the campus and the opportunities he would have:

I only cried a little when I realized I could really see him there. They have a great program for his data analytics goals, and the gen ed program is really cool. He was so enthused he actually spent the evening capturing notes:

He says if he gets in he will go!

We spent the rest of the time helping him to get to know the area. We took him to our favorite coffee house, which is right across from the freshman dorms are remarkably unchanged. We also took him to our favorite bakery which was radically different:

Sadly, Presti's no longer does donuts, but it was great food. We stayed in an AirB&B in Little Italy, so we had two great dinners, and we spent all of Friday at the NCAA wrestling tournament:

We saw some incredible wrestling.

I also did a ton of reading, finishing books 9, 10, and 11!

I'm loving the Bridgerton series:

It is different from the show, and unsurprisingly I think the books are better.

The next book was for book club:

I don't think I ever would have picked this up much less finished it if it wasn't for book club. It is a really interesting non-fiction book about the history and future of biomedically engineering.

The last book is one I'm hoping to use with some incoming freshmen:

It is really well-written and comprehensive!

We are all back to reality today, but I'm very grateful for the break and core memories made.

What a Season

We finished the regular wrestling season last night. I honestly don't know what his overall record is, but he finished the season as the 144 starter and we saw a lot of this:

Thankfully, his worst injury was some gnarly mat burn:

And he finished his regular season with a pin last night:

And this team, they are Conference Champs:

More importantly, they are the best group of guys. I have loved watching them cheer for each other, grow together, and just generally be hysterical. 

I still have to look away from the mat occasionally, but I love being there to watch Evan do his thing, and I'm a little sad we only have one more year of these shenanigans.

 

Updates

Life continues to be a bit of whirlwind! Evan is wrestling his little heart out. He is having a great season, and his team if currently 15-1, which is amazing:

In the midst of the the crazy, I am really trying to soak in the Christmas season. I'm living for the twinkle lights, and we made a special trip to McKay's to pick up Christmas vinyl. There is just something different about the crackle of records and familiar voices:

I also finished Book 31:

This is book two in the second series by one of my favorite authors. I love these characters and the relationship between them, and I know she has almost finished book three!