Moving along. . .

Well, swimming lessons last Saturday were cancelled due to Hanna. Which is actually probably a good thing. . .Aidan has been suffering from a cold since Friday. He got it from Daddy! Mama is waiting for her turn. . .meanwhile, Mama's hands are getting raw from washing them so often! So, our first swimming lesson will actually be this coming Saturday. I think the cold should have completely passed by then.

Because of his cold and the rainy weather, Aidan got a lot of rest over the weekend. More than he would have otherwise. And it shows! He has been so much calmer this week. . .so far, that is! However, we have decided to not take him out to dinner again for a while. One of the places we like to go is a place called Shenanigan's. They have half price burgers on Monday night. Well, Aidan will be good for about a half an hour. . .just long enough for us to start bragging about it and then wham! The bad Aidan comes out. We have been thinking about looking for the 666 under his hair lately. . . : )

Hanna wasn't as bad as I expected. As I thought, there were several areas here in Northern Virginia that got hit hard due to the amount of rain which did cause some flooding. And there was some evidence of flooding along the small streams here in Loudoun County. But we were spared a heavy hit. Here in Leesburg, we did get a little over 6 inches of rain. But, we actually needed it so it was a good thing. And the wind, to me, did not seem overly bad. We did have sustained winds of 35 to 40 miles an hour for a short period of time, but we get wind as bad and even worse consistantly in the winter time. So, okay! Not so bad! And Ike is going elsewhere (I am sorry for those who will get Ike, though.)

Aidan held his own on Sunday. What a good boy he was! Sunday was the annual Ministry Fair at our church. As the Parish Historian, I was expected to set up and man a booth in order to answer questions about my ministry. The other Parish Historian had a stroke last winter, so it was all up to me. In order to be the Parish Historian, you have to have been a member of the church for 10 or more years (we've been there 15) and you have to have a love of History. . . um, well, I won't comment because those who know me are probably already snickering! Anyway, Aidan helped me set up late on Saturday, after the rain, and then he helped me man my booth for over an hour before church on Sunday. Then, we went to church. He held in there until about communion time and then he had reached his limit. So, we made it through communion and went back to our pew and I whispered to him that we were going home. . .He yelled, "Yah!" and then ran out into the aisle. . .So much for making a quick and quiet get away!

Speaking of communion, Aidan is technically allowed to take communion at our church (All baptized people are welcome). However, because he is only two, I have been teaching him to cross his arms across his chest which signals the priest that he does not receive and then they give a blessing to him. This usually works pretty well and he loves the blessings. I think it is important for him to understand what he is receiving before he actually begins to receive it. Well, this Sunday, I didn't get him to cross his arms fast enough so the priest gave him the wafer. A second later he says, in a very loud voice, "ALL GONE!" Of course, everyone at the alter begins to snicker a little, including both priests. So, smiling, I quietly whispered to him, "Amen." So, then Aidan, clasping his hands, says, "AMEN!" I was able to stop the administration of the wine (Thanks be to God!). Everyone grinning, we went on back to the pew, where the above scene played out.

Well, tonight I will get our pictures finalized and then Kristin, our Social Worker comes on Saturday. Saturday will be a very busy day! First we have swimming lessons, then Kristin comes, then we will walk down into town and celebrate the 250th Anniversay of Leesburg-wow! Then, we're hoping to get a little shopping done for Christmas that evening. Big day! Sunday will be a quiet reflective day spent in front of the TV watching football after church. A day of rest that we will all really need!