Exciting News!

We have been here about 6 weeks and from previous posts you can see that we really like it. We do however, miss family and friends. So while I was talking to my parents on Sunday, they have decided to come out for Carson's birthday in September. Yeah! Carson is very excited to say the least... he misses his Momo and Papa, says this at least once every day. I have contacted my aunt in Richmond and left messages with my other aunt in Virginia Beach, and cousin in Falls Church. So I get to plan a mini family reunion. I know I am going to need some Eads Steak seasoning and perhaps some Fiesta brand fajita seasoning... I am sure that there are few other spices that I should have stocked up on before we moved.

I am still thinking on what do do to celebrate 5000 posts. I had thought about doing a RAK.... but I have such a broad spectrum of readers, I need to make it something that would appeal to all readers, not just the scrapbookers/crafters etc. So if you have ANY ideas I would love to hear from you. More to come later!

Sunday News

This being Sunday, we again headed up to Fairfax to church. Took another route in, and still made it with time to spare. Wayne was feeling kinda poorly so we did not get to visit too much after services. I had another Craig's List hit to go get and we decided to pick it up and head back to Fredericksburg.

This is the probably the best haul yet from Craig's List. A super heavy duty wicker patio set with cushions. The set consists of a Rocker, a Love seat and an Ottoman. Again, completely free! The price tag was still on the bottom of the rocker and it was $499.99. I couldn't find one on the love seat, but I am sure this was an expensive set. It is very very solid and absolutely perfect, not a mark or loose piece of wicker on it. Most importantly... extremely comfortable! What a Blessing this was! The family was downsizing and no longer had room for it in their new home.

This is the rocker to the set

This is the love seat and ottoman to the side.

So lets review.... in the past three weeks we have found on Craig's List.... a nice chair and ottoman, a futon, a full bed mattress and box spring, two glass top desks, a entertainment center, a computer desk, and now a wicker patio set. I am picking up a small dresser tomorrow (locally). Every single thing we have received has been high end quality furniture, nothing that was unusable. I am still on the lookout for a couple of desk chairs, and bookcases, and maybe an old wooden table or two to replace the plastic tables that are in the basement for my scrapbook room. We could also use some dressers for the guest rooms and maybe a nightstand or two for those rooms as well. Total out of pocket expense.....$85.00. We are not figuring gas into this equation because we are already in the D.C. area for church. I am pleased as punch with my finds... and it is very fun meeting all these wonderful people too! I feel really, really blessed in all this.

Now for the NOT so FUN part of the day... the traffic....UGH!!! We basically have two different routes we can go home on. One is route 1, which can be very congested at times, and has a million stoplights as it hits every little town on the way home. The other is infamous for it's traffic during the week I-95..... but come on! You would think that on a Sunday afternoon, there would not be a lot of traffic.....wrong.... Both this week and last week we have been in bumper to bumper traffic through what is known as the Springfield Mixing bowl. This is where the Capital Beltway mixes in with all the other D.C. traffic and the volume is tremendous. Today for instance the signs said that there was an 11 mile backup...we stuck it out and it took us 57 minutes to travel the 11 miles... and only 30 minutes to travel the final 28 miles home.

This a picture I took last Sunday as we crossed over I-95 to take route 1 instead. Looks like a parking lot.

On the bright side... we see a lot of interesting license plates!

5000 and Then Some

Yeah! It rolled to 5000 this afternoon... and guess what someone from Amarillo did it... Imagine that. Anyway I will have to think of something fun and interesting to post about to celebrate the 5000 visitor!

In other news... it is very common in Virginia to see vanity plates. Wayne actually said that he read somewhere that, Virginia has the most vanity plates of any other state. Anyway we are always seeing them and we try to see who can figure out what it is saying first. Some of them are hard and then are some that are really clever. This one tonight takes the cake!

I laughed so hard reading this one... I just had to take a picture. But it also really makes me want to have one of my own. I need some ideas as to what to put on my plate. Got any suggestions?

Almost 5000!

Wow! I am 12 hits away from 5000. That is pretty cool....I will have to think of something fun to do when the ticker rolls over!

Wednesday Night Dinner

We decided to go out to dinner last night in part due mostly to the length of time that Kari spent in the doctors office getting Carson his complete school physical. So instead of me getting off the train and us taking 2 vehicles to a restaurant we decided that she would pick me up at the train station and then go to the restaurant and then on the way home swing by and get my truck. We wanted to try this Chinese restaurant that we had received mailers for and they offer a diner buffet and since we all like Chinese food we thought it would be worth trying this place. We pull up into the parking lot and walk into the restaurant. It was a little after 7pm by now and we were all hungry. The hostess sat us at a round table for four and we were close to the buffet tables, so that was good. While Kari went to to restroom I took Carson up to the buffet and help him get some things he wanted onto his plate. Looking at the offerings in different stainless steel trays in the two steam tables I should of immediately recognized that something was wrong, but being a guy I was not totally in tune. I got Carson seated at the table and by now Kari had returned and we were getting our plates. The food within the trays on the steam table was sparse, for example I could have put all the rice on my plate, but I did leave some for Kari. Did I mention that we were the only ones in the restaurant. Kari and I both got our plates and sat down and started to eat - well after about 3 bites I looked at her and said to her that this food was cold, and tasted like crap, and that I wasn't going to eat anymore and wanted to go somewhere else - she looked at me and totally agreed so I told our waitress that the food was crap and that give us our check that we were going to leave and I'd pay the bill. The manager came over and said that it was ok we did not have to pay, I insisted and the manager did agree with us that the food was not hot, and that we could leave with out paying which we did. Since Carson loves Chinese foo he started to cry, but we explained that the food might make him really sick. So we left and went to Applebees instead and had a fantastic great hot meal. I really want to say the name of the restaurant but promised Kari that I would not name the restaurant, but do I listen - heck no, the name of this restaurant was FU-KIEN. I found some reviews of the place - AWESOME....http://www.yelp.com/biz/fu-kien-gourmet-fredericksburg

A River Runs Through It....

For all you Texas folk.... This is what a real river looks like.... see they have water in them. You can actually swim in them and even go fishing in it.

One thing we have loved about living here is that we are basically surrounded by water. We have the Potomac River a short five miles away and the Occoquan River is north of us a ways and the Rappahanock River runs right through the middle of town. We cross the river any time we head into town. It is really picturesque and we see people tubing on the river daily as well as fishermen. There is a beachy area that we keep wanting to go to, but I want to get Carson a life vest first. For the most part it is a very calm river, not too deep in the areas that run through town, but a little further south, they run some small riverboats, or tour boats of the historic district of Fredericksburg. I found out today that the county parks and recreation provides FREE swimming lessons to all children, because there is so much water surrounding us. So we are signing up for lessons ASAP.
In other news... Carson had his physical today for kindergarten. That was a true experience. We have to go back to get a cholesterol check done. First time getting a urinalysis done...try talking a kid like Carson to pee in a cup. We are also going to get a referral for allergy testing. We discussed at length the possibility that Carson has some food allergies that may be causing him to react to situations differently than other kids. We already know that red dye affects him, so I won't be surprised to hear that there is something he is allergic to. The Dr. is also sending him to a cardiologist because he detected a heart murmur (this is a first) and because of the medications that he is on, he wants us to have a baseline echo cardiogram done. They want to make sure that his meds are not affecting this or even causing it to worsen.

This was by far the most comprehensive exam Carson has ever had... we were with the Dr. for almost an hour and a half. That is the entire time spent with him in the room. While we loved our pediatrician in Texas, it was really nice that EVERYTHING was addressed. The Dr. was well versed Aspergers, ADHD...and other behavioral issues. This has to be an answer to prayer..we have a Dr. that understands what we are dealing with and completely understood what all the medications were for and how they could interact with his heart murmur.

He also discovered that Carson has some fluid built up around one of his testicles. (Carson is gonna kill me for this when he is older) A concern that there could be a torsion of the testicle, and he will keep an eye on that as well. I never knew all this stuff and will have to research some more to understand exactly what is going on.

Creative Post Coming!

Yesterday, I was finally able to spend some time in the scrapbook room. I churned out 3 two page layouts. Totally complete, with embellishments and journaling. Amazing for me, because I can go to a 12 hour crop and only get 3 done. I will post pictures in the next day or so. I have about 400 pictures that I need to get printed, I am hoping to do that on Friday at Costco.

Tomorrow is Carson's kindergarten physical. Hopefully it won't mean any shots... then on Thursday he has an appointment with his new therapist. I am looking forward to this appointment and getting things geared up for school. I am a little concerned that we may need a medication change. We know that sometimes the efficacy of certain drugs is reduced over time. We are going to address that and hopefully a new plan of occupational therapy.

Next Monday Carson's school is doing the kindergarten screening. I was told that they evaluate each child for speech, hearing, letter recognition and so forth. I can't believe my baby will be starting kindergarten in less than a month. While I am really looking forward to the break that having him in school will offer me, I am sure that I will be a basket case and follow the school bus to school just to make sure he gets there....or that he doesn't hijack the bus to the water park (I jest).

Sunday News and a Cute Video

Another week has started and the three of us decided to head on up to Fairfax again for church. I am really enjoying this church and am thankful for it even though it is a drive for us. There are people that drive from southern Maryland to attend, and we also found out that there are several other families that travel up from Fredericksburg. This church is part of the Sovereign Grace association. Much like Trinity in Amarillo has several churches that have planted off it, so does this church. Today they announced that they are planting a new church in 2009 in Fredericksburg! Yay!!! The church itself is very warm and welcoming and I really can see all of us fitting right in. I am impressed with the desire that the entire body has for outreach and there really seems to be a servants attitude with everyone we have met so far. I have really felt the Spirit of the Lord move in the entire service and it was soo nice to sit back and absorb the Word of the Lord and not have to be somewhere to check on nurseries etc. While I do see me getting involved in the children's ministry at some point, for now I am hungry and I need to be fed....


On Friday, I found a posting on Craig's List for a computer desk. I called and the couple was moving and was going to be giving away the desk. We arranged to pick it up today in Arlington. Again, I totally lucked out! There is not a mark on it, very heavy, and on wheels. It is very modern in design and I feel very blessed that they chose us to take this desk. We gave away so much stuff before the move, it is nice to get a little of it back.

This is the desk we got today......I just realized the picture is crooked behind it... please ignore. It has a filing cabinet and several shelves for stuff....I pretty sure I can fill it up with stuff in no time. I also picked up a couple of glass topped desks yesterday. I am going to use one in the basement and the other I will most likely free cycle. I am still on the lookout for some bookcases and a recliner or two.

This is just a cute video clip of some kids in the sprinkler...Enjoy!

A Funny Story.

Yesterday Wayne faxed off the requests for all my college transcripts. Copies are free with the stipulation that there isn't any hold on your records, i.e. no money owed the university. Well about 4:30 yesterday afternoon I get an email from West Texas A & M University, stating that there was an academic hold placed on my account from the parking dept. I call and speak with a very nice campus police officer and he pulls up my records and sure enough he says I have an unpaid parking ticket from 1995. I am a bit confused and tell him that I never parked on campus, I always parked by the science building which was off campus. Anyway he tells me that I got the ticket on December 1, 1995. He then proceeds to tell me that it was on a white 1997 Pontiac car with such and such license plate. Now color me confused..... if the ticket was issued in 1995, how on earth was it on a white 1997 Pontiac? Not to mention I have never owned a Pontiac. Needless to say they released the hold on my account.

The Dog Days of Summer...

It is hard for me to believe that today is August 1st. Summer is winding down quickly and before you know it school will be starting, and we will be looking forward to cooler days and falling leaves. At least here there are trees and I am looking forward to seeing all the vibrant colors that Fall offers.

Today Carson and I found another pool to go to. This one is brand new and reminds me a lot of the Town Club in Texas. Carson had a great time and was so glad to see that there were swinging dump tanks here as well. He is so easily occupied with those.

He actually spent a great deal of time under these today instead of just watching them. I seriously considered getting under them myself a few times. It was very, very sticky and hazy today.

In other news, Carson has another loose tooth. This is one of the top ones and if this continues, the Tooth Fairy will go bankrupt.

I have decided to get on the sub list for Carson's school and a couple of others that are close by. The pay rate for tier 3, which is with a college degree is 96.00/day and long term subs earn 161.00/day. I am sure I could handle it either way. I am halfway through the 30 page application and have sent off for all my college transcripts.