Week of Firsts

<-- We picked up the children from school yesterday evening and enjoyed an afterschool ice cream on the beach. Julie has always wanted to live near the beach...she just forgot to mention that she wanted it to be in a tropical climate!

We, as a family, experienced many new moments this past week. Let us share of few of them with you...

1) Nathan was chosen to represent his school in a Rounders Match against another school. Rounders is similar to baseball. His uniform finally came in so it’ll be the first week in his full ‘official’ school uniform. (Jonathan, we looked for a school with your school colors – purple and yellow!) He also had his first invitation to go play at someone’s house after school, a boy named Ben Sparks. Ben has two younger brothers so it’s a total boy house.

The scoring scheme in "rounders" is pretty complicated. Note the picture where Nathan is the first to figure out that his team won. -->

2) Anna Catherine scored a goal in her field hockey game! She’s actually really enjoying the chance to play sports which is not an option at her Fine Arts School in Augusta. Last weekend, she went on an overnight practice run for the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Expedition, an award for service, skills, recreation and expedition. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Duke_of_Edinburgh%27s_Award) She had her expedition which is really orienteering in the mountains near Keswick. This is included in her Cadet Training that is compulsory for kids in her grade.

3) Julieanne got to be in a charity fashion show with some of her new friends put on by some of the upper students at the school. They were helping raise money for a new lifeboat for the water rescue team. That meant we attended our first St. Bees school event. Of course, Dennis and I didn’t know anyone but that was okay. A funny difference at school events here – they serve ‘canapes and wine’. I was trying to picture that one back in the South.

4) Dennis had his first meeting with the county council who are notoriously skeptical and against what goes on at the nuclear facilities even though they are the primary employers in what was once a booming port and mining town. He has had good rapport so far with the local nuclear guys and officials that he’s interfaced with. It appears that the local communities skepticism is a function of years of being lied to by the previous employer. Dennis and his team see this as a great opportunity to show the community what an honest and straight-forward employer looks like. So far so good.

5) When my neighbor heard I didn’t have a job here, she said, “Oh, so you’re a lady of leisure?”. That was the first time I have ever been associated with leisure! Inwardly, I wasn’t sure if I should laugh or be offended but I just responded with a smile and a simple, “I guess so”. So, I’ve spent the rest of the week watching TV and eating bon bons (now that would be a first!). Actually, I started going to some exercise classes at the fitness center a few blocks away. It’s been way too many years since I was able to exercise with any sort of regularity so I’m excited about that or at least I was until I had an hour and half class with Jammin’ Jill on Thursday and Maniac Margaret on Friday. I have muscles hurting right now that I haven’t felt in a while.

6) Another funny first was the company rented us a “people mover”. They assured me it was like a mini van. I soon found out when it was delivered to our door step, that it was a nine passenger diesel bus! I quickly called Dennis and said, “No way, am I driving that monster on these narrow roads.” Thankfully, he made some calls and came home so we could go trade it in. Then I got to drive a stick shift –of course with the gear on the left – another first. I’m not the most coordinated but no accidents or mishaps.