Fishing for A's...

So much has happened in the past 2 weeks since we last wrote on the blog. For starters, I have started graduate school and am 1/2 way done with my first Research Methods class. In addition, I have completed 2 projects with one more to go and have been reading so much I am pretty sure it's time to get glasses (again). Here is what we've been up to:

Weekend of July 18

Drew spent the weekend off shore fishing with Dad C, Ryan and their cousins in Cape Hatteras. They had a wonderful time out on the sea all day followed by a great dinner and night out on the town. Drew really enjoyed the guys weekend and the chance to get away. I was thrilled with the amount of fresh fish he brought home. We filleted it into smaller pieces and are freezing most of it. We love fish!

That same weekend I started graduate school on Fri night and all day Sat. So far I am really impressed and happy with my program. I am 100% sure graduate school was the right decision for me even though it's a lot to juggle. I was really thankful we were let out of class early enough to drive to Front Royal, VA and camp for my best friend Coll's birthday. Mary, Gia and I shared a tent and were woken up at 4 a.m. to the sound of an animal waking around our tent, breathing heavily. We were convinced it was a bear although Abby says it's not possible. Needless to say, we were scared out of our minds. Thankfully it eventually went away although I don't think we slept much after that.

Weekend of July 26

More grad school for me after a week of feeling under the weather, while Drew cleaned the house before our guests arrived. Bobby, a fraternity brother of Drew's, and a couple of Drew's coworkers came into town to go out to dinner, bars and dancing with us. Kristina also came into town to visit friends and she and Ryan joined us. It was a great night out.

This coming weekend I have MORE grad school and then we are heading to the Klapmusts house at lake Anna on Sat night to join our friends for a crab dinner and then wake boarding and tubing all day Sunday. We can't wait.

Here are some pics from the past 2 weekends. (Fishing pics to come.) -Amanda

Mary and I pre bear incident.

Gia the camping pug.

Kris and I at Europa



Drew and Kris downtown


Cutey

Neckin'

You'll never guess where we were this weekend??? The Northern Neck of course for a weekend of fun and sun with the Findley's before I start graduate school this weekend. On Friday we stopped by Smokin Joes in Kilmarnock to see our wedding band, The Janitors, preform. Drew and I, along with Mom and Dad C and their friends, tore up the dance floor for a good hour. They are such a great band and it was so much fun to see them again. They even remembered us and gave me a free shirt and CD. We headed back to the Christopher's after the show and stayed on the dock chatting until the wee hours of the morning.

Needless to say, it was hard to get out of bed the next morning but we stuck to the plan and were at Lee's Diner at 8:30 a.m. for a home cooked breakfast which included chipped beef and gravy. The food took forever and we were worried the guys would miss their tee time but it was well worth the wait because it was delicious and we made it to Indian Creek just in time. Stephanie and I spent the day shopping while the guys golfed and met them back at Indian Creek afterwards for lunch and a swim. Drew golfed an awesome game which made him very happy. After the swim we headed back to the Christopher's for a boat ride, dinner at the Sandpiper, and were in bed relatively early compared to the night before. (Thank goodness!) We woke up Sunday to a wonderful breakfast courtesy of Momma J and then spent a few hours on Cedars Beach before grabbing crabs for Stephanie and heading back to Richmond so the Findleys could make their way back to Harrisonburg. It was a perfect way to spend my last weekend before grad school!


Drew, Mike and Ryan are going off shore fishing this weekend in NC so I'll make sure Drew brings his camera to take pictures of all the amazing fish they catch :).

-Amanda

Attack of the jelly fish...had to get a picture of what stung me the weekend before. Gross, right?

More 4th of July pics

I just updated our Picasa picture page at http://picasaweb.google.com/amandachristopher1 with pictures from the 4th of July, our recent trip to Scranton to visit family and my 5th year Hollins reunion in Roanoke. Check them out! -Amanda

God Bless America

Happy 4th of July to all! Drew, Gia and I celebrated the 4th this past weekend in White Stone at Mom and Dad C's house. We actually arrived Wednesday evening hoping that by extending the weekend it would make us feel like we went on vacation since there will be no time for that once grad school starts in a week. We were astonished with the progress that had been made on the house! For those that don't know, Mom and Dad C have embarked on a home construction project which is going to completely transform their house on the inside and out. I am really bad at describing these sorts of things so I will have Drew do a blog post about it with pics soon but basically the house is going to be bigger and beautiful. The construction seems to be moving quickly so hopefully we can post some pictures before the whole thing is done.

The weekend was spent for the most part on the water. Drew and I hung out by the pool on Thursday and then joined our friends on Friday and Saturday at Cedars Beach where I am happy to report we got tan! Drew and I are usually the palest people on the beach but the Dominican Republic helped us with a base tan. On Friday night we had a little 4th of July cookout thanks to Mom and Dad C and then watched fireworks on the water with Drew's high school friend Bob and his wife Ashley. We spent time with family on Sat night when the little baby cousins stopped by and also picked crabs for a couple hours and talked politics. Great fun! By Sunday Drew and I felt we had been out in the sun enough and decided to spend the entire day glued to the television watching an amazing Wimbledon match to the very end. I am so glad my Spaniard won! We finished the day with an awesome pasta dish topped with crab meat and love by Momma J. As usual, Drew and I drove home fat and happy, promising ourselves we would work out all week. Of course Drew kept his promise and I haven't seen the inside of a gym yet this week. Gia is the only one who might have actually lost a pound or two. She is on a diet which for the time being means only her dog food. poor girl!

Here are a few pics.

Drew and I watching fireworks

Ryan, Gia and I sitting on the dock of the bay


Ryan and Drew on Cedars Beach

Dwight, Carri and I at Roses Steakhouse

Goodbye June...Hello Summer

Although it has been in the 90's since the beginning of the month, it's only technically been summer since the solstice on June 20th. So, here is what we were up to at the end of Spring...

First weekend of June:

I traveled to Roanoke for my 5th year Hollins reunion where I saw dear friends, professors and spent time on the beautiful Hollins campus. Here are a couple pics. Drew and Gia traveled to the Northern Neck to take Momma J out to dinner for her birthday.

2nd weekend of June:

We spent the entire weekend going through every room in the house collecting items to give to GoodWill or take to the dump. It took the whole weekend and resulted many truckloads of junk gone from our house! We even gave away furniture. I found throwing items into the pit at the dump to be so therapeutic that I accidentally threw away our trash can in the midst of it all - I was on a roll and couldn't be stopped! Drew and a couple of guys at the dump laughed at me. We also made a home recycling center in the laundry room after being frustrated for months that there is no curbside recycling where we live.

3rd weekend of June:

Trip to Hunter's uncles cabin in the woods, on the lake in Lexington, VA. We spent time with friends, including the newly engaged Hunter and Anne soon-to-be Moore!!! It was so relaxing to get away from it all. Gia even took a dip in the lake, in her life jacket of course, and we were shocked to find out she could swim. I've always heard that pugs sink like rocks!

Last weekend:

Billy Joel concert with Stet, Matt, Hunter and Wade in VA beach. We love watching that man preform...he is the best!

This coming weekend we are heading to Scranton to visit the fam. Then, we are off to the North Neck for the next two weekends in the sun! We promise to post more pics soon.

Love, Amanda and Drew

Happy Belated Birthday Momma J

A fun part of this blog is being able to give "shout outs" to our important people. So, this one goes out to Momma J who celebrated her birthday at the end of May. We are WAY overdue on this because of our recent blog negligence but better late then never! Happy Birthday! We love you!




Ps. If you feel you are a very important person and have not received proper visibility on the blog, please feel free to call and yell at Drew. He makes all editorial decisions!

just kidding...

We Are Back!

We are back for good. Sorry for the month hiatus- Drew and I have been really busy and have been experiencing computer issues. The past month has been great though. During our time off from blogging I successfully completed my 1/2 marathon (13.1 miles!) , Drew received his masters degree in Engineering Administration, we vacationed in the Dominican Republic, attended Foxfields and 2 weddings and celebrated our God daughter Mailee's 2nd birthday.

Here is a brief recap of everything we have had going on:

Vacation

We returned Friday from a 5 day trip to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic with Mom and Dad C and our great friends Sarah and Dana. We stayed at the lovely Hotel Riu Palace Punta Cana (http://www.riu.com/en/hotel-riu-palace-punta-cana-dominican-republic.html) which was an all-inclusive resort. Drew enjoyed never having to carry a wallet when ordering a drink or trying the different restaurants on the resort. The beaches were beautiful and we spent a lot of time either in the beautiful blue waters of the ocean or under a palm tree close by relaxing. We did experience a brief run in with some questionable shell fish but other than that it was a great vacation. Relaxation was the goal and that we achieved. The ocean side massage helped too!

A slide show of pics can be found here- http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2012752&l=1aae2&id=62700336. I've also included a few below.






1/2 Marathon

I completed my first 1/2 marathon, with my friends Sarah and Jennifer, just one week before we went on vacation. On hand were Drew, Gia, Mom and Dad to cheer us through the 13.1 miles. It ended up not being as bad as I thought it would be and actually rather enjoyable. I plan on running another one in the fall. Here are some pics.

Birthdays and Weddings

We celebrated Mailee Findley's 2nd birthday on May 3 at Stephanie's parents house in Harrisonburg, VA. Here are a couple of pics of the tot enjoying her barn yard themed party.

Also, here are a couple pics from Kim and Tristan's wedding on May 17 at Mount Vernon Yacht Club. They are high school friends who live in VA beach but came home to tie the knot.

We are off to the Northern Neck for Memorial Day Weekend but will be sure to blog all about it next week. Check back soon. Amanda