Anna Grows

Ava, Hannah, Maggie & Anna Volunteering  Despite the pandemic, Anna's girl scout troop has managed to find ways to continue activities, even if it is not in-person.  Over the last few weeks, Anna's troop was working on their election badge via Zoom (learning about the electoral process, election history, etc...).  This past Saturday was an in-person activity with Volunteer Fairfax.  The girls joined a group to label storm drains in a local neighborhood. The Fairfax County Soil & Water authority organizes groups to label storm drains (warning not to dump and letting folks know where the water drains to).  The girls learned about the watersheds in the area and spent a couple of hours labeling drains (who knew there were so many in a small area).  Anna was happy that it was near home, so we didn't have far to go (we learned our water drains into a different creek from the one we were labeling, which was only 1 1/2 away).  The weather was nice and ...

The big news of the week is a new car.  We bid adieu to the Suburu a couple of weeks ago after news that the transmission needed to be replaced (at a cost exceeding the value of the car).  This launched a lot of research, soul searching, and negotiating before settling on the winner:  a Honda Civic. Purchasing a car during normal times is an ordeal.  Purchasing a car during a pandemic is an added level of stress.  Fortunately we had time to look at options (there was not a pressing need for a car since we really do not have a lot of places to go at the moment).  Theresa established some criteria for consideration.  She needed a commuter car that had good gas mileage.  She also wanted something that would be good for Anna, who will be driving in another 18 months.  After some research and a few test drives, the Civic quickly rose to the top of the list. It should be noted that Theresa often consults with her brothers (aka the car guys) when re...

Hike at Sky Meadow State Park  It as another week of lovely fall weather with temperatures in the low 70s.  Joe is still harvesting tomatoes from the garden (we plan to enjoy them while they last).  Unfortunately the nice weather did not last into Columbus Day weekend as the remnants of Hurricane Delta are currently saturating the DC area.  Nonetheless, we were able to take advantage of a rain-free Saturday and headed towards the mountains for a hike and some apple picking.  This was such a great idea that EVERYONE from Northern Virginia was doing the same thing. The destination:  Sky Meadow State Park.  This is a place that we go a couple of times a year at the foot of the Shenandoah mountains.  It is quite lovely with a wide variety of hikes.  The first clue of what to expect was the traffic headed west.  Granted, we dos not get out for many trips these days, so there was some questioning as to there was really traffic or it was just s...

A hike around Manassas battle field  It was a beautiful fall weekend.  After a crazy week in DC (a debate, a Presidential hospitalization.....), it was nice to take a moment  and try to appreciate what is truly the nicest time to be in the DC area.  In the spirit of finding something positive, here are some of the highlights from the week: Anna had taken up roller blading and aspires to get some roller skates.  She decided to practice in the storage room for now with a focus on her backward skating (there were definitely obstacles....not the least of which was Storm).  Apparently roller skating is making a comeback.  Look for Theresa to join in on this pandemic craze! Theresa & Anna enjoyed meeting up with Petra and her mom on the Vienna Town green.  It is always nice to catch up with friends, even at a social distance. Anna had a girl scout zoom event focused on how food is sourced.  She gave the event good reviews. Went for a hike ...