Anniversary Weekend

Today is 08/29/2009 and is our 39th wedding anniversary. I was up at 6:30 a.m., made coffee, fed "George' the cat and "Lucky" the dog and came out to sit by the pool. Tropical Storm Danny is just off the coast so the weather yesterday and today has been overcast with intermittent showers. It is really terrific to be up and outside on mornings like this in Ivy, VA and on the patio and by the pool. There is a very heavy low fog that is rolling in the Ivy Creek Valley and the sun is sky is getting brighter so it is a very dramatic morning.

Since this is our 39th Anniversary Weekend and Sue has to work on Sunday, we decided that today we'll take advantage of some of the things Charlottesville has to offer - the Gardens at Monticello, breakfast at the Boars Head Inn, lunch on the downtown mall, a little window shopping at Barrack's Road - and then back to Orchard Hill for a swim and special dinner by the pool. Sounds like a pretty terrific day doesn't it!

Yesterday I had to participate in an all day "Retreat". Following this extended set of faculty meetings, I got home, checked on the work that had been done today at the cottage by the plumber (needed to replace a bathroom fixture), and got the house to enjoy the pool! It was an overcast and rainy day, but in the late afternoon the sky cleared so it was a perfect end to the week.

As kick off to the weekend, we decided to grill salmon and have a quiet dinner poolside since the weather was cooperating. At first we thought we might go out for dinner, but with all the day's activities and the fact the weather had cleared and we could swim our laps, we decided to stay in.

I made two small martinis - one Grey Goose vodka for Sue and one Bombay Sapphire Gin for me using the two wonderful Martini glasses that Keegan got for us in Nantucket (actually he bought one for my birthday one year after he visited Bruce Bell and I bought a second when we went to Nantucket for our 25th Anniversary!). The drinks were great! Dinner turned out to be super and just perfect for the evening. We ate around 8:00 p.m. poolside at dusk and enjoyed the tree and pool lighting and pots of fire that surround the patio!

More to follow as we enjoy an Anniversary Weekend.

July 13, 2008

Since I created this blog in April, we have been so very busy with Keegan & Ellen's Rehearsal Dinner and Wedding on May 2nd & 3rd. I then had final exams and graduation at UVA and my first summer class began on 05/19. That class ran right thru to June 5 and we all have to drive to Fishkill, NY for Amanda and Gerrard's Wedding Event. As soon as that was over I have to plan for my second UVA summer class and Keegan and Ellen's packing and moving to Goeje Island, South Korea.

As a result, I have truly neglected the Reports from Orchard Hill. I will begin now to try to do better updates since I now am more motivated as I will use the Orchard Hill reports to keep Ellen and Keegan updated on events here in Ivy, Virginia.

First Entry

This is my first entry into what I hope will be a set of regular Reports from Orchard Hill. There is quite a bit of background information that I will need to provide so that family and friends can get a sense of Orchard Hill in Ivy, VA and our comings and goings and daily events and routines. I don't have time right a the moment to begin sharing all that information but will shortly so please check in again soon. SPP