Anna Grows

Ohio Tomato Harvest  Anna has officially been gone two weeks now.  So far, the reports are positive as she settles into college life.  There seems to be more concern about her parents.  Fortunately, Anna has been training them for this for the past year as she was frequently not around.  So what are Joe and Theresa up to? Joe is on a mission to fix the ventilation in the attic and has spent the days working on various aspects of sealing up the house.  For an in-depth discussion on energy efficiency and ventilation, please call him. Theresa so far has attended two concerts at Wolf Trap with friends (Boys 2 Men and Melissa Etheridge/Indigo Girls). All of the other concert goers were people in her age group.  Theresa and her friend Joy were sending selfies to their daughters to let them know what the moms are up to. Homemade Sauce Theresa also did a quick trip to Ohio to visit her parents.  She used the opportunity to demonstrate various uses of zucchini beyond bread.  This included zucch

 August 16 was move in day for Anna at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU).  Classes begin on August 20.  Anna signed up for a move-in window of 3 - 6 PM, so departure time was 12:45 from Vienna in anticipation of a 2-hour drive to campus.  After goodbyes to her friend Vic and the requisite first day of school photo by the tree, it was time to hit the road.  Lesson 1:  never drive on I-95 during the middle of the day, especially on Fridays.  The 2-hour drive turned into a 3-hour drive (and a 2 1/2-hour drive home).  Fortunately, there are several good public transportation options that Anna can utilize for future trips. VCU has the move-in down.  You pull up and drop the stuff on the curb.  The students check out giant bins on wheels to pile all of their stuff into and line up for the elevators (Anna is on the 8th floor).  Since a microwave and refrigerator are provided, it definitely reduces the amount of stuff Anna needed to pack.  The packing bags that were recommended worked gre

Lucy, Joe, Mary, John, Tom & Loren  The Fagellas descended on Greenfield, Massachusetts the weekend of August 3 to celebrate a major milestone:  Uncle Tom's 75th Birthday.  There was some question early on as to whether the guest of honor would show up for the party that was months in the making by his sisters.  Lucy volunteered to host the event at her house, including serving as the bed & breakfast for Joe, Theresa, Anna, Mary, James & Loren (she runs a 5-star establishment).  Ultimately Tom and Dottie came to his party, even though he had root canal surgery the previous day (not the best way to celebrate).  This was the first time all the brothers and sisters have been together in a number of years. Joe, Theresa & Anna flew up to Hartford, CT.  The downside was that the flight was over 3 hours late.  On the plus side, they were able to wait at home and go to the airport later.  Everyone had a great time.  Some of the highlights included: Enjoy fish and chips at a

Anna with the Cats  Anna made her annual summer visit to Grandma & Grandpa's house on July 23-26.  Cousin Aidyn was also there for the duration.  Anna flew into Dayton, where her grandparents picked her up.  Shortly thereafter, Grandma and Grandpa found themselves in the back of the van with Anna driving and Aidyn riding shotgun (it is unknown if they watched cartoons, but it is likely that Grandpa fell asleep). There was sad news on Tuesday night when they found out that their long-time neighbor and friend,  Linda Dangler , passed away.  Linda lived right next door and was a frequent visitor to the front porch.  She and the grandparents always looked out for each other.  She was a great friend and will be missed. Anna and Aidyn were able to distract their grandparents a bit during the visit.  While there do not seem to be many photos from this trip (this is the summer of no photos), there were lots of activities, including: A trip to  Shipshewana, Indiana   - Anna joined Grand

Enjoy the July 4th parade  The heat is on in Northern Virginia this summer!  So far it seems we are on pace for one of the hottest summers on record.  July 4th was no exception.  Despite the heat, Joe and Theresa opted for one July 4th tradition:  the annual Fairfax parade.  Anna opted out, preferring to stay in bed after working the night before.  The parade did not disappoint and included all of the requisite bands, local politicians, Shriners, and of course the Fairfax Library book cart drill team (always a crowd favorite).  Everyone hid in the house for the afternoon and the 95 degrees + heat.  Fortunately, thunderstorms rolled through prior to the fireworks (Anna did reluctantly join her parents for the Fairfax fireworks). Since Anna has been working hard and this is her last summer before college, the family decided to do a last-minute beach trip to Virginia Beach.  As luck would have it, after no real rain for weeks it rained every day from the first full day until the last full

 High School is officially in the rearview mirror as Anna sets her sights on starting college in the fall.  She was excited to attend Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) summer orientation on June 24-25 in Richmond, Virginia.  It was two days full of information for both Anna and her parents.  As an added bonus, Anna got to spend the night in a dorm and meet her roommate for the fall.  Somehow there are no people pictures from the trip, but rather some of campus. Joe and Theresa were marveling at how much college has changed since they went to college back in the 1900s. For example, In order to find a roommate, Anna filled out a detailed on-line questionnaire and then was able to look at other potential roommates (sort of like online dating).  Potential candidates were able to message each other to see if it may be a fit.  Theresa and Joe both seem to recall it was a roommate lottery. The dining options are robust with every sort of food you can think of, including a sushi bar.  Bot