Disc Golf, Tastings and Teeth, Teeth, Teeth

Having gone over the midway point in summer, it is now "crunch time" to make sure I get everything in before school starts again. With Eric having a more "normal" schedule, we get to do many fun things on the weekends.

This past weekend we avoided the strong summer thunderstorms that blew through our area, and managed to have quite a bit of fun disc golfing, and then later on going to a local vineyard for a wine tasting, some BBQ and a little live music. This summer Eric and I have visited a number of disc golf courses throughout Delaware. Many of the state parks have disc golf courses that host tournaments, but luckily for us, they are also open to the public! Our most recent disc golfing adventure took place at Killens Pond State Park, in Felton (website). We aren't very good (yet!), but we have fun, and we are at about the same skill level, so we typically compete against each other, rather than par. This time I had my camera and so I was able to get a few pictures during our time at Killens Pond.

Eric was the one who lost his discs this time!

He was also our trusted score keeper.

In the end Eric won by one stroke, but we both had fun.

After an afternoon of disc golfing we drove up to Dover (aka civilization) and Eric was finally able to find a new pair of flip flops that he liked. This may seem like a silly thing to point out, but we have been searching for ones that he likes pretty much all summer! After getting Eric some new shoes, we headed down to Marydel for a stop at one of our favorite places in Delaware, Harvest Ridge Winery. 

 

This was our second trip to the relatively new winery, and we were not disappointed. We started with a wine tasting during which we had the opportunity to try a few new wines that we hadn't been able to try last time. This time around we didn't get to take a tour of the facilities, but there were a number of other items on our agenda that needed to be taken care of. 

There was a food truck at the winery that evening serving some very yummy BBQ!

We also got to play some corn hole (we were horrible) and listen to some live music.

After a wonderful day out and about in Delaware we headed home to enjoy the rest of our weekend. Little did I know how much I should have appreciated every second of that relaxation, because this week... it is all about the dentist for me. 

 

Today I had a regular dentist appointment (which was far overdue) to get a check up. Thankfully, because of summer vacation, my schedule for follow up appointments is very flexible. Little did I know how thankful I would be for this flexibility. Over the past two weeks I had been experiencing some tooth pain, which ultimately resulted in me being unable to get hardly any sleep last night. At my appointment today my thoughts were confirmed and I will be getting to spend the rest of the week going to a variety of other appointments. Tomorrow I have an evaluation with an endodontist to address two potential root canals (yuck), then Thursday I head back to the dentist for (potentially) three fillings, and Friday I will be back once again for a cleaning. After that I will likely have more appointments to address the root canal issue, but it sure looks like the rest of my summer will be spent in dental chairs. I just hope that I am able to get everything taken care of before the school year starts.

Thankfully Eric got a clean report and only has to go back to get a cleaning at the beginning of September. We always seem to be opposites of each other, the perfect pair. Like our wine selections last weekend. So here is a toast to the rest of your summer, may it be fair less painful than mine!

Another Summer, Another Move

Well, my initial desire to keep up with this blog has flopped, but I am not going to just give up!

It is nearly the end of July, and since my last post much has happened, and I have even managed to get a few more things crossed of my list of goals for 2014! Let's start with "the list", and then I'll fill you in on what else has been going on. Here is the "updated" list.

1. Eric successfully passing the PT licensure exam

2. Katie's basketball team having a successful, positive season to send her out on a great note

3. Eric finding a good job that he enjoys and can be enthusiastic about

4. Me being able to find a job in the same geographic location as Eric

5. That Eric and I do not have to live apart (we spent 6 months apart last year)

6. Katie finding a good job after graduation

7. Ryan (my cousin) finding a safe place to live in Wisconsin for his new job!

8. My parents smoothly transitioning to Katie finishing her basketball career

9. My students have a successful school year (and semester finals in two weeks)

10. Eric and I can transform ourselves into the healthy people we want to be

11. All members of my family stay healthy and safe

12. All my friends stay healthy and safe

13. That I am able to stay better connected with my friends and family

14.  That in all things I try to stay positive, and find the good even if it all looks bad

So I highlighted the new additions to the "done" list, just so that they stick out and I remember to talk about all of them! I think, for ease on my own part, I will just go down the list and update you on how all of these goals were accomplished.

2. Katie's basketball team having a successful, positive season to send her out on a great note.

I don't know how accurate all of the statements I made in this goal are, but for the most part, each of these happened in some way. After what initially appeared to be a disappointing season, the team pulled it together and won out to make it to the conference playoffs! Bonus basketball, as we called it. Although they lost in the first round, and as a result didn't make it into any national/regional post-season tournaments, it was still great that they made it to the conference tournament again. Katie, and her classmate Jordan, made it to the conference tournament all four years of their careers, and while it would have been sweet to win, finishing the season by winning 5 (I think!) games in a row was great. 

Katie (right), Jordan, all parents, and of course the Eagle on Senior Night

3. Eric finding a good job that he enjoys and can be enthusiastic about.

Eric has found a good job. His first day was Cinco de Mayo and so at this point he is almost three months in. As with any first job, there have been a few bumps in the road, and every day hasn't been rainbows and jellybeans. But, there are days where he enjoys going to work, and he is definitely happy when the weekends roll around. I hope that has he gains more experience, and falls into a better rhythm, that he begins enjoying his work on a more regular basis and can then get more enjoyment out of the other aspects of his life. He is nervous, however, to find out the new company name at the end of the month. When he was hired, the company was in the process of merging with three other companies from around the area, and now that the merger is complete, they will be releasing their new name.

4. Me finding a job in the same geographic location as Eric.

Luckily, this goal was pretty easy to tackle. In fact, before the school year even ended, I had a job just seven miles from Eric's work! This coming school year I will be at Woodbridge High School, in Bridgeville, Delaware. I will again have ninth graders, and I will be teaching Core Plus 1, which is what I taught during the fall semester last school year. One of the most exciting parts of this new job, is that I get to do it in a brand new school. Eric and I went in to see the school on Monday and it is beautiful! Here is a picture of what the new school is going to look like! I will take some pictures of my new room and post them later.

5. That Eric and I do not have to live apart (we spent 6 months apart last year).

I put this goal on here as more of a "gimme" than anything else, because it was very unlikely that we would have continued living apart, regardless of goals 3 and 4. We still live in Delaware, but now we live in "Slower Lower". Our new place is about 90 minutes south of where we were last year, which might not have been my first choice due to the distance from the rest of my family, but it is exciting to get a fresh start. Yesterday we turned in our keys to our old place, and "officially" became Sussex County residents. 

Although I am sad to be moving out of the old place, I am happy that it is over. As a teacher, with summers off, our moves the past two years have rested primarily on my shoulders, and so I am glad that everything is taken care of. Painting and cleaning are finished, and now I can just enjoy the remainder of the summer!

6. Katie finding a good job after graduation.

Somewhat against her will, Katie went back to her summer job again (one last time), but I think that it worked out the best because this week will be her last week there! Next week she starts her first "real" job, and guess what?! She is going back to the place she has so loved for the last four years. Returning to Juniata, she will have two new roles. First (and probably most exciting for her) is the role of assistant coach! Her assistant coach is returning to grad school, and Katie will be stepping in to fill her shoes. It will be a great experience and gain her qualifications that will help her in the future. Her second role will be that of "Resident Director", which comes with housing and food, and only nine duty nights throughout the whole school year. Katie is very excited to start and I am excited for her. Plus, it also means she will only be about half an hour away when I come home to visit!

Eric, Katie, Mom, Dad, and me at Katie's Graduation!

It was a little chilly that day, but all I could think was "When did my baby sister grow up?!"

8. My parents smoothly transitioning to Katie finishing her basketball career.

I was concerned about my parent's transition, although looking back I'm not sure why. They seem to have embraced their "empty nest". They go on "old person field trips" as Katie calls them, with their friends, and now that Katie will be coaching at Juniata, it will be a much smoother transition for them. Also, my Mom has said that they will always have Penn State basketball to fall back on when Juniata is away. Mom and Dad helped us with the "big" move of all of the furniture at the end of June and spent a few days visiting. Then over the fourth we had a mini family reunion at Aunt Joanne's and Uncle Johnny's in New Jersey. Not everyone was there, but it was still great to see everyone. Then at the beginning of August they might becoming down to visit again, but we will see. 

Some of my other goals, I won't be able to "accomplish", they are just ways that I hope to live my life in the future, but I will be sure to keep any updates coming. Other than my goals, here are the "highlights" from the last five months:

• I successfully finished my third year of teaching and, although the new school changes it slightly, I am no longer a "novice" teacher in the state of Delaware.
  
  
• Eric and I spent Memorial Day weekend camping at First Landing State Park with some friends. It was a lot of fun, and we had PERFECT weather.

• We also had a great weekend in June with another set of friends in Bucks county. We went tubing on the Delaware river (I got stuck in the rapids, but it's ok), and played some very intense games, as well as an insane game of badminton.
• Katie came to visit for the week of her birthday and we went to the pool and the beach, and just had quality sister time.
• And of course, I have been trying out plenty of new recipes. Some have been much more successful than others. Here is a sampling of a few of the better ones:

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole (recipe)

Top: Strawberry Lemonade Bars (recipe)

Bottom: Key Lime Shortbread Bites (recipe) ~ These are AMAZING

Left: Peach Cobbler Muffins (recipe)

Right: Pizza Bagels (no recipe required!)

With the first half of the year over, and the last year of craziness behind us, I am looking forward to a calm and "normal" remainder of 2014. Whatever that may bring... I also hope to continue working toward my goals, and keeping up with postings on here more frequently! I think the next goal on my list will be to really focus on becoming more healthy, so I should probably go for a walk now!

~ "Eighty percent of success is showing up" -Woody Allen