Back to School

It's true- our summer of a lifetime is over and school is back in session.  For the first time since we have been married, Nick and I are both doing the same thing for the second year in a row!  It is a really great feeling to have some familiarity.  We are loving Blacksburg and excited about spending another year here.  Nick and I both had our first day of school on Monday.   Nick is starting his second (and last!) year of grad school.  He is really enjoying his classes so far, as they are much more specific to what he wants to do when he graduates, but they are also a lot more work.

I started my second year of teaching.  It was wonderful actually to come back to school and see everyone. I feel so blessed by my job.  I have really loved getting to know my new group of second graders.  They are a really sweet group of kids and I think we are going to have a great year together.  But, whew- the first week of school is exhausting!  It was such a change getting back into that kind of routine and tons of work getting everything ready.   We definitely enjoyed a relaxing weekend at home recuperating!

Camping on the New River

A couple of weeks ago, Nick and I met my dad, my sister Laurie and her bf Pat in Sparta, NC.  We wanted to squeeze in one last mini-vacation before we all started back to school.   My dad and his friends have been camping on the this part of the New River since they were in college.  One of my favorite memories growing up was when my dad would take us camping, close to this same area.  The first summer Nick and I were married we went on a canoe trip with my dad and one of his friends.  So, we have had lots of fun times here. 

We left on a Thursday around lunch and got there in time to enjoy the afternoon on the river.  Thursday also happened to be Laurie's 23rd birthday!!  Happy Birthday Laurie Kate!  We decorated a little bit for the occasion.

We enjoyed a delicious birthday dinner cooked over the campfire-  bbq chicken, potatoes, watermelon, and strawberry cake with cream cheese icing for dessert!  Pretty high class camping.  The next day we decided to tube on the river.  It was the perfect way to relax and enjoy the beautiful weather.   It was another relaxing, wonderful weekend on the New River. 

A Little DIY

One of our projects this summer was to make a headboard for our bed.  It is something that I have wanted to do for a while now but finally got around to doing it.  After reading so many different decorating blogs I have seen so many DIY headboards and decided it couldn't be that hard.  Nick and I went to the hardware store one afternoon and put this headboard together in about an hour.  Not to bad- plus it meets our budget of almost free- haha.  

First Nick build a wood frame from 1x2s 

Next we covered the frame in foam batting that we already had and then fabric.  We used a staple gun to attach it to the frame.

Here is the finished product.  I don't have a before, but its much more grown up and colorful I think.  And it was so easy!  I want to make another one soon for the guest bedroom.

Crows Nest Farm

Nick and I recently discovered Crows Nest Farm- its a little farm that grows vegetables. You can pick your own or buy what they have already picked. We went for the pick-your-own route and it was so much fun. Here I am with my basket of veggies-

Some of what we picked- basil, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, and jalapenos.

It doesn't get much better than fresh, summer, local produce! Here is peek at what we made with some of the goods- grilled shrimp and tomatoes with basil vinaigrette- yum!!

Down by the River

Our summer in Blacksburg - well really our summer in general has been amazing. I know it will be a long, long time before we ever have time like this again. We have been trying to make the most of our vacation before school starts. One of our favorite ways to spend an afternoon is to drive down to the New River which is about 20 minutes away. We have been loving sitting by the river with a good book and jumping in when we need to cool off. Ahh... summer!

One More London Post

From Ireland we flew to back to London for the final leg of our trip. We spent another week there, this time with Laurie and Pat. We had a wonderful time exploring more- there is so much to do in London. One of our favorite stops we made was the British Museum. The part we toured had ancient ruins from Egypt, Assyria, and Greece. They even had mummies- including Cleopatra.

Later in the week we went to see Wicked- which was increadable! We all loved and and it ended up being our favorite thing we did all week.
Nick and I in front of the Tower of London.

Whats a trip to London without tea, scones and clotted cream? It was delish!
Nick and I really loved London and cannot wait to go back- hopefully sooner than later!