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By: Theresa Coates Ellis — Smiles, grins and key moments were captured during an invitation to meet up with the bulk of our family for one last bonding time in the summer. My only son, Christopher, active USAF, couldn’t go far from his home base, so we went to him and his family. We loaded up the two vehicles with as many bodies, luggage and … Continue reading Getting away with a big family on a budget
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By: Theresa Coates Ellis — My 8 year-old grandson Colby stayed with me last week. He went home yesterday — to Georgia. Today as the lock down at the schools unfolded, my heart dropped thinking about the children, the parents, the teachers and our first responders who were all at the mercy of one person. Last week I had my radar up every second that … Continue reading The worst fear
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My daughter, Kat Coates, and I are exploring an educational business model. Destination Learning. The entrepreneurial spirit has even hit the scientist! Students pay or are awarded to learn and educators are paid to teach all over the world. My daughter Kat Coates, Osbourn Eagles, has been a self-funded or grant-winning student in S. Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Peru, and even Florida. Now that she has … Continue reading From Osbourn Eagle to Indonesia — Destination Learning
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By Theresa Coates Ellis — It was a triple play home run this weekend with my grandson, Jaxon’s birthday; my daughter, Kat’s graduation and Mother’s Day. Jaxon turned 6 years old and is an expert at FaceTime — even while jumping on a trampoline. Even though he is far away in Georgia, we all shared several phone sessions for his big day. Kat was awarded … Continue reading Proud momma weekend
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By Theresa Coates Ellis — Great people have emerged from the City of Manassas to share their knowledge with others. Real estate veteran, Forrest Odend’hal, is a managing broker for Long and Foster Real Estate. He is traveling the East Coast presenting seminars on investments and retirement. He invited me to a local session at George Mason’s Eagle Bank Arena this past week packed … Continue reading Osbourn Alum Forrest Odend’hal’s Passion to Give Back
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By: Theresa Coates Ellis — There are a lot of activities during Easter and month of April in the City of Manassas. Enjoy Spring break and celebrate the Easter holiday! Historic Manassas Inc. welcomes you to hop around from store to store for sweet surprises! For each purchase from a participating merchant, customers get to select an egg from the merchant’s basket and win a prize. Three … Continue reading Easter and April happenings!
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By Theresa Coates Ellis — Local businesses have hummed as our family prepared for our Natalie and her fiancé’s Derek’s October wedding — Manassas City restaurants, stores plus our favorite designer, Xiao Yin Byron, Tang’s Alterations — for the dress. After a few frowns morphed into an ear to earn grin, the many flowing, silky and lacy dresses from Tang’s alternations, Manassas City, brought … Continue reading Going to the Chapel! First daughter wedding plans support Manassas City businesses
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By: Theresa Coates Ellis — What happens when three adult daughters want family bonding time before dinner on a Friday evening? They book a clay sculpture class in Historic Manassas. I love the arts, but never had the chance to sculpt a slab of clay from scratch. My husband wanted to watch, but soon dug right in and took the craft quite seriously. With precision, … Continue reading Messy fun at Manassas Clay
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Summer has been a whirlwind of travel, work and connecting with family and community. But today we are home, digging in and admiring the fruits of our labor. Seeds started in the spring have dotted our yard with color. Grilling out, saying goodbye to carbs — again — and hard yard work are on the agenda. I can do laundry and fight dust bunnies with George … Continue reading Home is where the flowers (and weeds) grow
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By: Theresa Coates Ellis — It was the east meeting the west — for the love of birds. Kathryn, my middle daughter, was eager to catch up with her buddy — Toni — they met in their local High School Nursing program years ago. After Kathryn graduated Osbourn High School, they became Old Dominion University (ODU) roommates and expanded their interests to study Biology. Now … Continue reading Meet “Almost,” the Acorn Woodpecker — Virginia Biologists research a Cali reservation.
