When two or more friends gather

It is indeed time to celebrate.

LADIES NIGHT OUT:

 A few weeks ago these two ladies ~ whom I met through the close relationship of our boys ~ and who have become almost like family, gathered in my home to step out of their comfort zones, learn a new skill and share my passion for paint.  It turned out to be a delightful evening and gave us another reason to get together to celebrate the great friendships formed within our families.

A glass of wine and a few helpful hints were all that were needed to get the creative juices flowing.

Even though our boys are away at college, they are always close by in our thoughts and conversation.  A testament to this is the design and color selection of my friends wine coolers.  Since all three boys attend the same school we three moms were in agreement on the blue and orange "V" composition of one cooler.

Given the fact that our boys and husbands love the beach and enjoy surfing together, we were greatly pleased by the surfboard design created on the other wine cooler ~ And knew it would be quite the hit with our sons and their fathers.

Obviously, one of us (that would be me) was much too busy talking to have either finished sketching or painting her wine cooler!  Coming from an art teacher who was notorious for saying, "When your mouth is moving, your hands are still" this lack of accomplishment was absolutely shameful.

Fortunately the cooler was eventually finished and fired along with the others.  Now all that was needed to christen the coolers was a reason to chill a bottle and raise a toast.  Which, with our group, is never that difficult.

PRE-GAME "TAILGATE" PARTY:

 This past weekend, the "V" cooler took center stage, along with a few other orange and blue accessories, at our pre-game tailgate party held in the boys apartment up in Charlottesville, Va.  The food and companionship was so good it was hard to tear ourselves away for the real reason behind our gathering:

~ U.VA. FOOTBALL ~

The game kicked off with "Cav Man" parachuting onto the football field for a perfectly executed wahoo landing.  Sending up an enthusiastic roar from the crowd who continued to be astonished as the evening progressed ~

Looking over with amazement as if to say "Seriously, have you seen the score?"

Even the moon peaked up over the stands to make sure what was shown on the scoreboard was, in fact the truth.  Yup - check out the numbers...we were actually in the lead!

It turned out to be a beautiful night and a well executed game ~ Spent in the company of wonderful friends and family members and capped off by a team in great form.

At the end of the evening it truly was a time to give thanks for good plays, fair calls, great friends, and the kinship of family.  We all look forward to a reason to gather and christen the two other wine coolers!