Vacation +

Couple weeks behind now. Karen and I went on vacation to Maine in the middle of August to escape the VA heat, and visit a place neither of us had ever been. It was amazing! There were a few hiccups along the way including a whale watching tour that sent both our stomachs for a loop, and getting rained out of Baxter St park and Katahdin Mt. and sleeping in the "boat house" aka a shed. But we were on vacation and in Maine, so it was great! We visited some great people along the way and got some bike riding in and had a great time together. Here's a picture link if you haven't seen them on Facebook or Google+ yet.

Coming back to work is always a rude awakening, but we're back in the swing of things now. And new swings too. I started class last week. One class on Wednesday afternoon and another class Friday morning. Nutritional counseling and Nutritional Biochemistry. After one class of each, so far so good. They will be interesting and helpful.

Here's another call out to see if anyone has any suggestions on blog names for my new blog. Karen and I have come up with several good ideas, but I just wanted to throw out a line and see if anyone else had any good ideas.

This past weekend, after my Friday class, I dropped off Maddog, and headed up to Northern VA. Scott and I went to the shooting range and also had a great mountain bike ride at Fountainhead park. What a great trail! And then I finally saw "The Avengers!" and what a great movie! Saturday night I caught up with an OLD friend on the phone on my drive home and then met up with good people at Avalon. Sunday included some clean up and then some school reading and hanging out at Karen's in the afternoon and having dinner with her and her mom. Another great weekend!

Birthday bash!

Lots of fun was had this past weekend. Friday we had an unofficial softball party, with a few players and special guests. Always great food on the grill, like chocolate spiced chicken, grilled veggies and hot dogs. Painkillers, mojitos, chips and salsa and good people. Not to mention it's walking distance to my place, and can take Maddog to play with his friend. "Take me out to the ball game" on the accordion also happened, along with a lesson if you wanted one. What else do you need on a Friday night?

Saturday was the 4th Annual Richmond Moonlight Ride. This was my first time participating in this event, but I'd definitely do it again. It was a ton of fun. Just me, some good friends, and nearly 3000 of our riding buddies riding through the streets of downtown Richmond. The streets were shut down just for us. If I was trying to drive anywhere I'm sure it would've been a hassle, but I wasn't, and it was great! We did the 17 mile loop in about an hour, and 9 min and then hung out in the parking lot listening to music, and enjoying some 2 wheel comradery.

Sunday was Kaz's birthday! I brought over some home made breakfast sandwiches to spec. English muffin (gluten free), fried egg, and cheese, with raspberry jam! My first; one of her favorties, and quite delicious! In the afternoon, we went to Ann and Michael's house for some yard games and dinner with friends. It was great! She had a blast and so did everyone else. We had Volleyball, badminton, bocce ball, croquet, ladder ball and corn hole. Along with great food like Kiki's symphony brownies, deviled eggs, and salmon, as well as Jen's famous goat cheese and pecan salad and delicious ratatouille made from home grown veggies, it was a feast. And the best part, it was all a surprise! Thanks to everyone that helped put it together and keep it quiet. Happy birthday Kaz!