Sunday, August 30th

Kara has purchased her ticket to Australia, which is officially about as far as one can be from Asheville and still be on our planet (twelve time zones and in the other hemisphere); she leaves Monday, September 21st... three flights later, arrives in Perth that Wednesday! I am very excited for her and know she will be enriched by the experience, hard as it will be to have her so far away!

Another person I've been missing is this little lady down in Jacksonville...
Her school year started the same day as ours, and she's up to her elbows in planning, grading tests and all the other things teachers do to invest in their students...
We'll be in Florida for Thanksgiving and Christmas, but it could be a "long couple of months" til then...

The Calvary Game

Calvary was our most skilled opponent to date, but the result was similar: another 4-0 victory for the Lions, bringing our cummulative record to 5-0. Next week we face the best two teams in our conference from a year ago... 3-A teams against whom we were 0-3-1 on the season.

Tim crashed when we got home... no fever, but he's got something... hope it is of the 24-hour variety...

Thursday, August 27th

This fall, ACA will compete for state championships in four sports: volleyball, soccer, boys and girls cross-country. A year ago, all four teams were in the top five in their respective categories... Honors like those are not won in one year; here are the middle school volleyball team training for the 2014 playoffs, and our soccer team battling the weather to gain an edge on its opponents:

Wednesday, August 26th

Tim and Phil teamed up this evening to tackle the 50 problems they had for AP Calculus homework... don't feel too sorry for them, though... they still had time for foosball breaks!

The Brevard Game

Tim took a shot to the shin five minutes into the game; before we'd had time to assess his ability to return to action, his teammates had gone up 3-0 and were well on their way to a dominant 4-0 win over a team they had lost to by the exact same score at last encounter (two years ago)... He should be "good to go" for next Saturday's match, but the incident gave him occasion to reflect on how he might feel should a worse injury sideline him for the rest of the season... we gave thanks that we only had to imagine that!

First Day of School

Here's a peek at "convo" (the morning assembly that kicks off the school day for our 191 9th-12th graders); Tim is on the far left in the picture in a white polo... great first day, but only a half-day... tomorrow is our first full day of classes...The James' took advantage of the noon dismissal to schedule a 16th birthday golf tournament & party for their son, Patrick (one of Tim's baseball teammates)... catered by 12 Bones Smokehouse no less... Great start to the school year!

Sunday, August 23rd

First Day of School for us is tomorrow... Tim's old classmates from NCA: Jackie Loftsgard, Kyu Hyung Park and Harry Miranda are in Grand Rapids ready to start their fall semester at Calvin College!

High Point Clash - Day 2

We lost this coin toss, but it's the only thing we lost this weekend, today's 8-1 victory over Metrolina capping a great 3-win start to the season... things will likely be a little tougher next week, but there is no doubt we have a very competitive side...

Dinner on the way home (at Golden Corral)

High Point Clash - Day 1

A 4-0 victory over Gaston Day on goals by Jared Robinson (2), Sammy Feinberg and Thomas George... Tim had plenty of shots like the header in the video that were just wide of the net; I'm determined to catch one of his goals on tape... we've checked-into our hotel and are headed to watch the rematch of last year's state championship volleyball game between our girls and Village Christian... (later entry) Both teams had lost most of their starters from the championship game, but ACA apparently has done a better job of "reloading"... we won in straight sets (3-0)!

Thursday, August 20th

Tradition the last few years at ACA, has its principals and directors sharing their visions for the new school year with the board at their August meeting... that was today!... here we are mid-morning of our 3-and-a-half hour session... my privilege to be a part of what God is doing at our school and to hear others share their perspectives!Bumper crop of middle schoolers out for soccer this season; Coach Hughes wants to make two teams out of these boys to try to keep them all in the program and build for the future.
Funest part of my day was getting to talk with this little lady!

Grace has been working hard to prepare for her first day of school (next Monday); her son, Nathan, leaves for Orlando tomorrow to start his freshman year at UCF... Will (her youngest) was on hand to help get her room set up today (and to snap this picture of her in front of her office door)...

Wednesday, August 19th

This was the scene this afternoon in our computer lab... high school teachers busy learning the new school administration software under the direction of our middle school assistant principal, Scott Schroder.

First Soccer Game

Didn't get to see the entire game (administrative responsibilities), but did catch both of Tim's goals in our 9-1 victory over Gaston Christian (a team that lost only 3 games all last year)... converting gorgeous serves from teammates Sammy Feinberg and Steven Forester. Next up is Gaston Day (a team we tied 0-0 at home last year) Friday @1:30 in Winston-Salem. Here's a short clip of today's first half action with our team in white:

Monday, August 17th

Here he is headed out for the "oral defense" of his Senior Integration Paper... came home a couple of hours later thrilled to be done with that particular graduation requirement. I don't have a picture of today's presentation, but took this one at yesterday's rehearsal at the Richardsons...Now he can focus on getting the soccer season off to a good start (tomorrow 4:00 @ACA v. Gaston Christian); Coach Summers is pictured at one of last week's practices in the middle of a heart-to-heart with this year's seniors. (L2R) Jared, Tom, Sammy, TK, Coach, Phil, Harrison, Jonathan.

Sunday, August 16th

Big news of the day is that my wonderfully-adventurous daughter has taken an au pair assignment in Perth, Australia! She has committed to an 8-month term-of-service in which she will live with a Christian family and care for its two preschool children... she is looking at a mid-September departure date!

Saturday, August 15th

My card reader is working again (at least for the moment), so I've got a few pictures to share with you... we got the proofs back on Tim's senior photos; this is a picture of a picture, so the quality is poor, but it gives you some idea... he really has made it to his senior year.

Tomorrow he'll be rehearsing for his SIP oral defense, scheduled for Monday evening...
I took this picture last Tuesday at an earlier practice session:

Friday, August 14th

First day of registration was an unqualified success! About half of our students are ready for the August 24th start to the school year... good to see everyone back!
This afternoon's alumni game (won 8-6 by this year's team) was equally successful; plenty of alums (no need to supplement their side with coaches as originally anticipated)... Tim scored two goals and is anxious to get the season underway next Tuesday against Gaston Christian (4:00 @ACA)

Wednesday, August 12th

We just completed two days of "New Faculty Orientation"... it is a small group of new additions, bringing a wealth of experience to their respective assignments: (L2R) John Fohner, Susan Rich, Megan Blackmor & Terry Heverly.
Our soccer team was on the losing end of two 60-minute scrimmages (5-1 & 2-1) with some of the tougher public school teams in the area (Reynolds & North Buncombe); the games showed us how far we have to go to be competitive at the state level, and also that we have the ability to score on the best defenses.ACA plays an alumni game @6:00 Friday and its first official game next Tuesday 4:00 @home against Gaston Christian...

Monday-Tuesday, August 10-11

Grace and I had a terrific time together this extended weekend... we are pictured at one of the "scenic overlooks" on the way to dinner at the Pisgah Inn (at the top of the mountain by the same name) Monday afternoon.
Grace is back in Jacksonville now to begin her school year... we still covet your prayers for God's will to play out in our lives!

Sunday, August 9th

My Mom is 77 today, and I know everybody thinks they have the best mother in the world, but I really do! The picture is from her grandson Jason's UF graduation yesterday afternoon... Jason was "due" before Kara, but was born 16 days after she was... (L2R) One of Jason's classmates (Glenn), high school sweetheart (Lauren), brother-in-law (Leif), "G-Mom", Jason, sis (Jennifer), cousin (Kara), Dad (Jay) & Mom (my sister Susie).

Friday-Saturday, August 7-8

Grace is here and we were treated to three victories at the Reynolds Jamboree (2-1 over North Buncombe, 3-1 over Pisgah and 6-0 over Polk County)... here we are relaxing in and around the Richardson's pool after the games!

Wednesday-Thursday, August 5-6

Still no progress on the ability to load pictures on the computer... sorry! Tim's done with his SIP (all but the "Oral Defense" scheduled for August 17); Grace will be here tomorrow afternoon...

Tuesday, August 4th

I have a bunch of pictures from the first official soccer practices of the season, but the card reader on my lap-top is "on strike"... will have to solve that challenge to be able to post another picture...
Tomorrow I leave for some overnight camping in Tennessee with this year's student leadership team (the 16 elected representatives of classes 9-12 and the student body as a whole)... back Thurs. night!
Oh, and tomorrow is the first anniversary of the creation of this blog... all 380 posts are still available for viewing by clicking on a year or month in the "Blog Archive" in the right margin of this page.

Monday, August 3rd

Grace will be in North Carolina this coming weekend!;
I'm hoping she'll get to meet as much of my Asheville family as will be around... there will be at least three opportunities:
1. Azalea Park - Saturday 8:00-1:30 (Tim's Soccer Jamboree)
2. The Richardson's cookout/meet-n-greet Saturday 2:00-4:00 (Fletcher, NC)
3. Biltmore Baptist Church - Sunday 9:30-12:30 (Steve Cooper's CG & 11:00 service).

Sunday, August 2nd

Pastor Bruce began a series entitled "Crazy Love" this morning, using Mark 12:28-34 as his focal passage; in it, Jesus answers the question from one of the teachers of the law about which of the commandments is greatest, saying that it is to love God with all our hearts, souls, minds and strength... and (secondarily) our neighbors as ourselves. No telling what God would accomplish through the thousands who attend Biltmore Baptist Church if we made that our highest priority...

Friday, July 31st-Saturday, August 1st

Having Kara here all week was a special treat... she's back in Atlanta now, and Tim is working away on his SIP. He'll be making a PowerPoint presentation to his classmates on Monday, and his official oral defense before a "panel of experts" on the 17th!

This morning we had one of our "ACA Family Workdays"... Classrooms were painted, furniture got moved, flower beds weeded and refreshed, mulch spread and most of the new sound panels installed in the auditorium... all with volunteer labor!