the hoppe pad: August 2015

Friday, August 21, 2015

3rd Grade and the End of Summer...

Norah started 3rd grade this week and she was quite excited and nervous the night before. She of course came home the first day saying it was great! I cannot believe how fast she is growing up...I just want it to slow down.

I got to walk Norah in to her classroom on the first day which is something I have not gotten to do the last 4 years since I was teaching. Now that I am staying home this year...it was a special treat for me! I tried to snap a quick pic of her in her room...(I think she is thinking...Mom, it is time for you to go now...) Ha!

With the end of summer here (boo! I miss my days filled with Norah!)...I wanted to try out a few new, quick recipes to add to our choices for weeknight dinners. Here are some winners. If you know me...I actually always tweak recipes and never do them exactly as stated because that is just how I roll so I did alter these slightly when I made them but they are great basic and quick recipes.

Greek Marinated Chicken and Linguine with Ricotta Meatballs

Norah and I had this Tikka Masala one time with chicken (Jeff refuses to eat any Indian food) and we both loved it and it was super easy and quick! (bought this brand at Fresh Market)

We had a water day at our Church and it was sweet to watch all the kids do the activities!

Jeff and I had a date night at home the other Friday night as Norah spent the night out with a friend. We grilled steaks, I made a martini, and we watched the Panthers! I love football season!

We had an impromptu dance party that ended the summer on a great note!

We had back to school river day with friends.

I took the dogs to vet for their annual shots and an additional trip for Darcy as he got an ear infection. Poor thing! (Darcy MIA for pic)

I know we will have a few more fun days on the beach or water since it stays warm here for awhile but once school started it felt like summer had ended. Of course, we are pumped about the Fall/Winter which brings football, cool weather, oyster roasts, etc. I do think this will be the best year and I am looking forward to all of our adventures with our new 3rd grader. ;)

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Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Summer Road Trip 2015

Oh what fun was had on our Farewell to Summer Road Trip! We covered Charlotte, Atlanta, and St. Simons in 6 nights and 7 days. My friends' were beyond generous in treating Norah and I to a beyond fabulous time. Memories were made that will not be forgotten! I just hope we can see everyone again soon! Fun does not even begin to describe the time we had!

We started by heading to Charlotte to staying with Christie and her family. Harper and Norah are only a few months apart and Norah misses her a lot. Perry is only a couple years younger so the three of them are the perfect playmates. Norah has talked non-stop about Charlotte since we left and asks when we can go back to Mrs. Christie's house! We also got all of her back to school shopping done which was so nice. We ate at Chipotle (a must anytime we are near) and hit up the pool that we used to go to all the time when we lived in Charlotte. Christie and I forgot to take a pic of ourselves! Oh how I miss Charlotte for sure!

We then hit the road and headed to Atlanta, GA. First stop was the Georgia Aquarium. It was really cool and we both said we could have stayed longer.

After the aquarium we headed to my friends Meredyth and Tony's house. They grilled us dinner and then the night continued after Norah went to bed with lots of wine! Too fun! The next day we went to the neighborhood pool, out to lunch to Uncle Maddio's which was super yummy!, and then ended with sushi at Sushinobo which was also delicious. What is so cool too is that we walked to the restaurant as it is in there neighborhood...love urban living! Tony also made me the first vodka martini that I actually liked and that was super cool!

We left Atlanta and headed to St. Simons to see my friend Anna! Anna's son is a year younger and they had fun playing together. The first night we went to Bubba's for some mexican and then took kids for yogurt. Everything was awesome. The next day we went to the Cloister's Beach Club since that is where they are members.. The kids had a blast and Anna and I got to have drinks by the pool and meet some of her friends. So fun! We left and hit up the store to grill out. Anna and Matt made a great dinner and Anna and I stayed up drinking and laughing.

Anna will kill me for posting this one...but it was too funny not to! Oh those Clemson days didn't seem so long ago...

We tried for a more presentable one...

We left and headed home on Tuesday and boy were we worn out!

Ok...to sum up a few things. I cannot say how amazing our trip was and how much fun we had. I think I gained 10 lbs and have to detox for a little bit...but I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. We fell in love with all their dogs too and came home with lots of new recipes (made Mrs. Christie's famous pancakes this morning!)...and all I can think about is when I can I see them again!! I miss y'all! :)

Since we were in the car roughly 16 hours we listened to books on "tape" and finished book 3 of the Percy Jackson series...."The Titan's Curse" and loved it.