End of Summer Family Fun 2025

End of Summer Fun and Taco Casserole

Family Fun usually involves good food and shared recipes. This is one that has been loved by most of my family and guest during our visits, unless they are avoiding cheese. There are many variations of taco casseroles but here's my version.

Ingredients

1 lb. Ground Turkey (chicken or beef)

1 Packet of Taco Seasoning

8 oz. Mexican Shredded Cheese

8 oz. Cream Cheese

8 oz. Sour Cream

1 Cup of Diced Tomato (optional)

1/2 Cup of  Sliced Jalapeno Peppers (optional)

1/2 Cup of Sliced Green Onions (optional)

Brown meat of your choice and follow seasoning packet directions. 

Soften cream cheese and blend with sour cream. Layer on bottom of a  9 x 13 oven bake dish end to end. Cover the ground meat over the cream cheese and sour cream blend end to end. Create another layer with the Mexican cheese covering end to end. The tomato, peppers and onions lay on top. I make variations with these garnishments based on who I am serving sometimes creating a small dish variation. Bake at 350 degrees until the cheese bubbles (about 30 minutes). Cool for 15 minutes and serve. There are many ways to serve it. On a Fiesta Flat, on a bed of Lettuce or just for scooping with your Tortilla chips. Regardless of how you enjoy it. It's delicious.   

View this video for our End of Summer Fun! 

 

  

Summer 2025 Week 1

Summer of Learning and Leisure Martin Luther King, Jr Center

We visited the Dr. King Center for Non-Violent Social Change and Campus.  It’s a place of Education, History, Training, Exhibits and Events for community involvement. Dr. Kings crypt lies in the of a reflecting pool and is guarded daily. Dr King was inspired by the teachings of Jesus Christ and the techniques of Mohandas Ghandi.

We visited with our grand gems who viewing the reflecting pool, church and National Park exhibits. The downtown visit was fun too. They were excited to see their former state Maryland was one of the original states in the Declaration of Independence.  It was just a few days from July 4th.  

 

Walk for Water

Clean Water Is Critical

 The Global 6K for Water invites thousands of people around the world to walk, run or roll (yes Roll in wheelchairs and strollers)or simply donate to make clean water a reality for vulnerable communities.  6K, is a little more than 3.7 miles, and the average distance round trip women and children in the developing world walk for water— water that is often contaminated with life-threatening diseases. 

World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to tackling the causes of poverty and injustices worldwide.

Ireland Castles and Cathedrals Tour

I’ve collected several cathedral bird cages. They are said to be mirrored after the “Sacre-Coeur " which means "Sacred Heart" in English, referring to the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Paris, France. Like the cathedrals my birdcages look a lot alike but have their own distinct features.

I had a trip to Ireland a few years ago. As we drove over the countryside of Ireland there were so many beautiful churches and cathedrals. Throughout our visit noticeable architectural styles of Gothic exteriors of the cathedrals were characterized by pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and flying buttresses, allowing for taller, more light-filled structures. 

European regions developed cathedral variations of the Gothic style with many following the basilica plan, an elongated design with multiple naves-the area for the congregation. The circular form of its dome is often associated with eternity and perfection, as circles have no beginning or end. It’s hemispherical, evokes the idea of the sky, the heavens, and the divine realm. The dome's upward orientation, reaching towards the apex, symbolizes the aspiration for spiritual growth and connection with the divine. It's how I feel about mine. I have added brass birds and additional architectural pieces inside them.  

Black Church History

Virginia Church Black History

Black history is American History and today I’ve chosen to share Virginia Black Church History since some of the first organized churches were here in Viriginia.

The First Baptist Church, founded in 1774 in Lunenburg County relocated to Petersburg after a fire in 1820, is the first African-American Baptist congregations in the United States, and one of the oldest black churches in the nation. It established one of the first local schools for black children in the nation.

First African Baptist Church of Richmond was founded in 1841. The original congregation included both slaves and free Blacks. The church was located on the site of the First Baptist Church of 1802.

First Baptist Church of Williamsburg  was founded in 1776 by free and enslaved Black people.  The first building was a brush arbor at Green Spring Plantation. The second building was a brick church built in 1856. The current church is located at 727 Scotland Street. 

Virginia law required the Black church to retain white leadership which ended post-civil war. Black churches  often accepted financial help from northern white organizations and became dominant forces for civil rights activism, literacy education, and job training because these were the paths to true freedom for meaningful change and reform.

The historical church my family (many still do) and I attended in Alexandria, Virginia is Woodlawn Methodist Episcopal Church founded in 1866.  The Woodlawn area, formerly part of George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate, was home to African Americans who had been free landowners before the Civil War, people recently emancipated from slavery, and northern Quakers who had arrived in the 1840s.  Woodlawn Methodist church was built on land purchased from Quakers, housed a Freedmen’s Bureau school that became a public school by 1871. The congregation established a cemetery and in 1888 built a new sanctuary. When Fort Belvoir expanded during World War II, the church moved to the historically black community of Gum Springs. The  cemetery remains at Fort Belvoir with many of my family members buried there including my grandparents and great-grandparents.

DEI Design Essentials Inspiration

Design Essentials and Inspiration-Pillows

Refreshing a room can be easy. While some pillows have a greater purpose than others, they are very useful to add color decoration and comfort.  They are one of the most inexpensive ways to refresh a room and provide a good night sleep. 

Beds are adorned with multiple pillows to give a rich feel.  Pillows may have to be  removed each night and returned in the morning, but studies show a well made bed promotes a good night sleep.

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Snow Days

If your home doesn't get much snow in an area, you understand how below freezing tempaerature will allow it to linger. Our January snowfall has last for more than 20 days. That may not seem long for some geographical areas, but it's long for Northern Virginia. Watch to see what else it made me awareness of; fading from the sun.

Fading of wood can be corrected without complete sanding with a water-based wood rejuvenator unless it's very excessive. 

 

Store It

Christmas decorations can be very expensive. Taking proper care of them since they are reused each year, is important.  The secret to my abundance of ornament and decorations is after the holiday liquidation sales. 

Purchase clear containers for ease of identifying my ornaments and decorations.  If your containers are not see through or you keep them in boxes for storage, label them.  Store them well and they can last a long time.

 

Three Kings Day

Three Kings Day, also known as the Epiphany, celebrated January 6.  It’s  a Christian celebration that commemorates the Biblical story of the three kings who followed the star of Bethlehem and first saw baby Jesus and brought him gifts.  They traveled a far distance to pay homage to Christ with fine gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  Three Kings Day marks the official 12th day of Christmas and concludes the Christmas season.  It is celebrated in most Latin American and Caribbean countries. It is celebrated for days or weeks depending on the culture.