It’s been the first full week of school, which means the return of daily structure and routine.  I know it’s good to have, I know Edie craves it, but after a summer of no structure, not only does it seem slightly overrated, it’s also slightly shocking to acclimate to.  At least it is for me.

Thank goodness it’s only school this week.  Next week activities are back, with Edie and I having different after school activities this year.

Thursdays, I’ll be assisting Alicia from the PB&J Fund with the Walker after school cooking class. I am besides myself with excitement about this – it’s practically perfect on every level.  I love everything about the PB&J Fund, I’m two blocks from the house with Edie being old enough to come home by herself (although Pat’s often here) and she can always come down and check in with me if she likes.

Edie is taking a dance class on Wednesday evenings with her friend Charlotte. Charlotte has long been part of Edie’s every day world, but since moving out of the ‘hood as well as attending a different school, Edie realized a regular ‘date’ to see her was necessary.

I’ve done that with Betty since she moved a few blocks up the street from two houses down the street.  For a while, our standing date was yoga on Wednesdays, but then that stopped happening and I recently realized I hadn’t talked to or seen Betty in like, weeks. Betty of two-doors-down,we-took-our-kids-to-the-park-every-day,sat-at-the-bus-stop-two-times-a-day, had-countless-impromptu-happy-hours-and-dinner-parties, spend-holidays-and-birthdays-with, my-everyday-for-a-decade friend & neighbor Betty.  Weeks.  I know, right?

Edie actually pointed it out.  She told me I needed to make a regular plan with Betty, like yoga again.  Which is how I ended up playing hooky on Monday and riding up to Wintergreen with Betty.

We dropped some things off at her condo up there.  The whole complex is getting a major overhaul, with new windows, decks, siding and more.  The view from the sliding glass door to go to the currently non-existent deck was blocked by scaffolding, but still pretty breathtaking. It was hard to get a decent shot from up there though.

So the photos of the unblocked view were taken at ground level behind the condos. Still not too shabby of a view, but not nearly as gorgeous as the ones seen three flights up.

It was way too pretty of a day to have spent it doing anything else. Down here in Charlottesville, it was in the 70’s, up there on top of the mountain, it was in the 60’s, with a breeze that was downright cold.  I was happy to have brought a sweater with me.  It was good to spend some time with Betty, knocking ideas around, plotting projects.  The rest of the week has been spent either procrastinating on various projects by doing things like scrubbing the exterior of windows (a feat I have not accomplished in I don’t even know how long) and actually working on said various projects.  Dinner was served at a reasonable hour every night this week, and the pickle subscription list went out (holler if you didn’t get it and want in on it).  All in all, a good finish to a week that started off playing hooky.  Maybe I should do that every week?