It's The End of Summer!

Wow. Soooo much has gone on since we last wrote. Let's catch you up:

Grandma Left
Well, it was bittersweet. On one hand, of course, we hate to see her go, but on the other hand, it's nice to have some normalcy back in our lives.

Yeast Update
As soon as Grandma left, we went full boar on John's yeast elimination program, which made for a few rough days where he was feeling pretty miserable (kind of like withdrawal symptoms, it's called "die off"--as the yeast dies the body works to eliminate it). You'll recall that John was diagnosed with a systemic yeast infection, so we have had to eliminate all sugar from his diet (table sugar, maple syrup, honey, and fruit), or anything that could be converted into sugar (basically, all carbs--rice, potatoes, bread), and anything that is fermented, fungal, or contains yeast (cheese, mushrooms, vinegar, even tofu).

It's been hard (especially as a vegetarian), but John remains a trooper, and we have settled into a routine that seems to work for now. He has jicama and a protein shake for breakfast (made with unsweetened almond milk and a protein powder sweetened with stevia). For lunch he has a bowl of steamed vegetables and a raw carrot. For dinner Margie gets creative--so far his favorite meal is eggplant balls (made with ground almonds instead of bread crumbs) served on spaghetti squash. Margie has even figured out how to make some yummy "cookies" with coconut oil, crushed almonds, and yacon syrup--a sugar & carb free syrup made from a root vegetable.

Pirate's Cove
We went to Pirate's Cove one more time. We sure have enjoyed going there this summer!

Margie Shaved Her Head!
Yes, it's true. It was something she has wanted to do for years and finally got the courage. You can watch the video and read all about it here:
http://www.YouCanHaveWhatYouWant.com/hair

As a result of her big move, an artist asked Margie if she could paint a portrait of her. She came over to the house and shot a bunch of digital pictures (so she wouldn't have to sit for the painting). Margie will post of those on the blog (link above) in the next few days.

School Open House
Yes, school is upon us. We are excited that John has been accepted as a transfer student to Springfield Estates again this year. He will be in Mrs. Smith's second grade class (she seemed very nice). Lyn will be in Mr. Lockowandt's fourth grade GT class (we hear he's very tough!).

Speaking of school, we got Lyn's SOL (Standard of Learning--required at certain grade levels in Virginia) scores a few weeks ago. Here are the results:

Scaled scores range from 0 to 600. The possible performance levels are Pass Advanced (scaled scores from 500 to 600). Pass Proficient (400 to 499), and Fail (0 to 399).

Grade 3 Reading 540
Grade 3 History 555
Grade 3 Math 592
Grade 3 Science 598

Woo hoo!

Great Waves Waterpark & Miniature Golf
We had planned to try out all the different Northern Virginia waterparks this summer, but we only made it to two of them--Algonikian Down Pour on Lyn's birthday and Great Waves a few weeks ago. Great Waves is actually the closest to our house, but Margie always felt that the kids were too little. Turns out, though, there are FIVE different pools to choose from, and three of them are very tame. The wave pool was the kids' favorite. They have said that they like it better than Pirate's Cove! But Mom is going to veto going there every time next summer, though--none of the pools are good for just relaxing and/or lap swimming.

On a different day we went to the adjoining miniature golf course. Both Lyn and Margie got a hole in one!

Fun for Lyn
Lyn had a pretty exciting summer herself. She went to TWO slumber parties and attended an Activity Day barbeque and swim party.

Los Angeles
Margie went on a VERY last minute trip to L.A. last weekend. Her company was having a big event and she had decided not to go. Literally at the last minute (she bought her tickets on Thursday and left Saturday), however, she changed her mind and hopped on a plane. Her flight took her first to Las Vegas where she had a 10 hour layover. Much thanks to her friend Greg for picking her up from the airport, letting her sleep at his house, and getting up at 4:30AM to take her back.

Margie was soooo glad she went, though. She was able to attend the pre-launch of a brand new company, Polaris Media Group, that Margie is THRILLED to be a part of. Polaris Media Group is creating a positive outflow of media to combat the constant negative news that is bombarding people today and provide people with hope and inspiration to live their dreams. Margie is so excited to be an Independent Marketing Director for the company--spreading the good news of inspiration and motivation through media and educational curriculum. Given her background in both entertainment and education, what could be a better fit?

Please take a minute to check us out (if you order anything, please use the coupon code: 129139.):
http://www.PolarisMediaGroup.com

BTW, Margie is currently building a team of people to help market the products, so if you know of anyone who would like to be a part of such a great mission, please let her know. And, of course, if you know of anyone who could benefit from our educational curriculum, let her know that, too.

Bug Out
Yesterday was the bi-annual "Bug Out"--a chance for everyone with a Volkswagon to show off their cars. Since Dan's racecar has a VW engine, he likes to attend and compete. The first race is a slalom--very similar to the autocrosses that he competes in. He won first place--and this time it really meant something, as there were 3 other guys racing against him.

The second race was a drag race. It's not Dan's specialty, but he decided to compete anyway. He didn't place, but he's done it a couple times now and keeps getting better. Yesterday he said it was the best he's ever done.

Rowing at Lake Accotink
Our last day of summer, today we rented a row boat and headed out on Lake Accotink. It's something Margie has wanted to do FOREVER, as she has fond memories of rowing Lost Lake in Oregon as a kid. It was fun to explore and relax and just enjoy time together as a family.

We saw too many turtles to count; we found an unusual fruit growing on a tree hanging over one of the fingers of the lake; and Lyn and John learned how to row.

Margie was a little worried about the weather. It was supposed to be a nice sunny day, but we woke up to clouds and 40% chance of rain.

We timed it just perfectly, though, as it was not too hot, there was a nice breeze, and it started raining just as we started walking to the car.

A perfect ending to a great summer.

We hope you are doing well!