Circuit City’s Closing Affects Short Pump Fa...

The news yesterday of Circuit City going into liquidation was actually quite shocking.  Circuit City has always been a part of Richmond and it really is hard to imagine a business which has been around for 60 years not being able to survive somehow.

While employees were told there was a 25% chance this would happen, most everyone was pretty confident an acquisition would come and save the company.  The sad thing is that Circuit City employees worked like crazy to negotiate and finalize a deal only to find out that the banks got cold feet and, at the end of the day, refused to finance the acquisition.

I am sad for my fellow Short Pump family neighbors and friends who are being affected by this.  We know of a family who moved here last year to work for Circuit City here in Richmond.  Both husband and wife worked for them and so now they are pretty much facing the reality that given the local job market, they will need to once again uproot their family.

Then, there is the father of an old family friend of mine who worked for Circuit City for 30 years.  The news is hitting him not only financially but emotionally given his commitment to the company.

Another friend I have is a little younger and has worked for Circuit City for the past few years.  She loved her job and her colleagues and was working hard to make FireDog a success.  She just got married this year and bought a house a few months ago.  Losing her job is a big hit to her and her husband and with a new mortgage, little savings, and little opportunity in Richmond, they are dealing with a lot of uncertainty and stress.

Today, our entire Short Pump community is feeling the sadness for all our friends and family affected by losing their jobs. I have heard that the last few months have really been an emotional roller coaster for those who work there and those who tried to save it somehow.  As with any loss, there is some closure to the final news and so hopefully, this makes it easier to move on . . . to bigger and better things.

Short Pump Trader Joe’s for an Affordable Fa...

Life is so busy and one problem we often face is that sometimes our schedule gets so hectic that it is difficult to find time to cook a home-made meal every night for dinner.  And, given the current state of the economy (which is hitting Richmond pretty hard), we, like many other short pump families, are really trying to be more frugal when it comes to groceries and eating out.

I just cannot justify the costs to eat out at a non-fast food restaurant for more than twice week.  And, I cannot bear to eat fast food for dinner.

One recent discovery I had was that you can feed a family of 4 for less than $10 with some pretty good pre-made food at Trader Joe’s in Short Pump.  Recently, we bought a Chinese mandarin orange chicken and a family size side of asparagus.  The asparagus was steamed without any heavy or unhealthy sauce on it. I cooked some white rice at home and voila- a nice dinner with decent food for very little cost and effort!

We have tried a salmon dish, a few pastas and some vegetable meals and really liked them.  I was not too crazy about their fish taco meal and some of their sir fry meals get a little too saucy.  But, overall, there is a good selection of these meals that I am sure any family will find a good combination of foods for a really affordable price.  The quality definitely beats the typical processed frozen dinners from the grocery store and the nutrition is much better.

I am still experimenting with other meals there but so far, we have all liked the food and my husband loves the prices!

Short Pump Shools Dominate the Governor’s Aw...

Congratulations to Gayton Elementary, Nuckols Farm Elementary, Shady Grove Elementary, Short Pump Elementary, Twin Hickory Elementary, and Pocahontas and Short Pump middle schools.  All these schools were honored with the Governor’s award for educational excellence!

It is no secret that many choose to make their home here because of our excellent Short Pump schools.  I have moved three times in the past 6 years – all in the Short Pump area and each time I had to sell a house, all the potential buyers wanted to move here primarily for their school aged children.

I went to private school so when it came time to send my first born to kindergarten, we were actively looking for a private school and attended orientations at Steward, Collegiate, and Saint Catherines.  All of those schools were excellent and quite impressive.

However, when we visited with our local elementary public school and met with the principal, teachers and other staff, we also realized the great opportunities and potential of our neighborhood school.  So, we decided against the +$15,000/year tuition of private schools.  The administration and the teachers at our school are top rate and even more important, they are dedicated to truly teaching our children and challenging their potential.

While we are still early on in our educational journey with the Henrico public schools, I cannot be more pleased with the progress of my children.  I am happy that our school was one that won the award because I know how hard the staff and teachers work to help our kids each and every day!

Henrico County Redistricting Update- Some are Up i...

Well- the talk of the bus stop is all about the redistricting plans for Henrico country schools.  The initial redistricting meetings took place earlier this week and it generated traffic and crowds.  Many parents are quite troubled about the proposed changes under the different plans.

Many concerns really relate to “change” as change always brings about resistance and uncertainty.  But, with a community like Short Pump and its growth, change is inevitable.  For example, one of the big concerns relates to the move of some neighborhoods from Pocahontas Middle School to Short Pump Middle School. Both schools are excellent in every regard but the thought of friends splitting up when they would not under the current structure just troubles some.

Short Pump’s West Broad Village- Will Reside...

I am sure everyone has been affected by the sheer size of the West Broad Village’s construction activities here in Short Pump. The project is 526,000 square feet which is amazing but is it really big enough to create the “urban village” setting that they hope will attract residents who will want to live in a main street setting with a more city like atmosphere?

To me, it seems strange because Short Pump is not an urban setting but rather a suburban setting. I lived in an urban setting for 6 years prior to moving to Richmond and what attracted me to living in a real urban areas was that the entire area was an urban setting.

I just wonder whether a miniature replica of an urban setting covering a relatively small section of the area is sufficient to be successful for people who want to live in such a setting?

Now, I am not a real estate expert and I am sure the real estate developers did their research.  Perhaps, there will be a group of baby boomers who will enjoy having sidewalks and places to walk to for shopping and eating.

My concern mostly focuses on the residential aspect of the area.  I can see where restaurants like McCormick & Schmicks and Dave & Busters will attract a strong following just as the other main stream franchised restaurants in Short Pump.

I do hope they are successful in selling their 545 townhouse and 339 apartments/condo units as I would hate to see a vacant glut in the midst of the other activity in West Broad Village.  Time will tell!

Short Pump Restaurant Review- Bertucci’s Has...

While I have had several work lunches at Bertucci’s in Short Pump, I have never brought my kids there until this past week.  I was impressed with their kids meal options and actually think families get a better value here than at California Pizza Kitchen which has been our standard first choice for family meals.

At Bertucci’s the kids pizza is larger and it is very good.  Pizza is my son’s favorite food so we have tried everywhere. The meals are very reasonably priced and the food is freshly made. The restaurant is clean and the atmosphere is nice- it is energetic but not so loud and the tables have enough spaces between each other.

They also provide kids not only with the standard crayons and kids book to occupy them but also with a chunk of DOUGH.  The dough kept my kids busy and interested all the way until dinner came- this is always a good plus as it allows my husband and I some conversation time without having to entertain the kids or keep them in order.

Another final plus is that he kids meals come with ice cream so dessert is taken care of!

I have started learning about wines and though they had a good wine list and choices. The Bertucci fish meals are very tasty (I ordered the tilapia and my sister ordered the salmon) and salads are of a good size.  I have had their pasta dishes several times and liked every one of them.

For a franchise, I like this Short Pump restaurant and think it is a nice place for business, couples nights and family dinners.

Short Pump Movie Review- Marly & Me is Not a ...

Well, I finally was able to get tickets and bring my two kids, both under the age of 8, to see Marley & Me. After watching endless promotions of a very cute dog causing al this mischief, my kids were dying to see this supposedly “funny” movie.

The movie is rated PG and all the advertisements were of a DOG doing funny things so I figured it was the perfect movie for our young family.

As soon as the movie started- which opens with a couple scene (lots of kissing), I started to question whether I got the rating wrong- did I mistakenly think a PG 13 movie was PG?  – I quietly whispered to my husband about the rating, checked my purse for the tickets and took out my blackberry to confirm- yes, it was indeed PG.

The movie did have some good fun scenes about cute Marley growing up and being out of control, but the movie does have some language that was shocking at times (the words sex, shit, and bitch). In addition to words, there are a few couple/kissing scenes that while harmless to a PG13 crowd were definitely a little too blunt for children.  Also, there was a scene that involved a stabbing of a girl which, again, really should not have been in there as it was not needed to serve the purpose of having the family decide to move to a bigger house in a nicer neighborhood.

The movie also had adult themes throughout which, in a typical PG movie may be present but not so obvious to the young kid viewers.  Disney does a great job of making movies that have a level 1 kids story but have deeper level adult morals and stories.  But this movie does not hide marital discord from any audience.

I do not want to ruin the ending for everyone, but just know that as with many movies, there is sometimes a tragedy that brings people to the realization of something real or deeper.  This movie is no exception but watching a loved animal get sick, die and be buried physically is a little heavy for kids who love dogs and think only about the fun and love a pet brings to a family.

Anyways, the movie overall was okay for the PG13 crowd, but I am shocked it has a PG rating.  After the movie, I did do some researching on the Internet to see if perhaps I was just overreacting but I found out that I was not alone in my conclusions about this movie.  Lesson learned- do more due diligence before taking any young kids to a movie.

Short Pump Movie Mania Provides Exception to Our E...

Yesterday I thought I would treat my kids to a movie by going to see Marley & Me.  They were so excited to go -I am one who hates getting to the movies at the last minute so we left early enough to get to the Short Pump Regal Cinemas at least 30 minutes before the movie time.

As we turned into the parking lot, I could not believe what I saw.  The line to buy movie tickets was unbelievable.  The entire front area of the theaters was filled with a sprawling line that went back and forth. . . but then the line extends even further and did not end until it was close the new Johnny Rockets restaurant.

I should have cut my losses then but we found a a parking spot and walked up only to hear from people in line that the next two movie times for Marley & Me were sold out.  This was shocking to me. . . not because this does not happen in many cities but because this is not something we are used to in Short Pump Richmond.

One of the best things about our community is that doing things and getting places for the most part is EASY.  While it takes the average mom over 3 hours to go to the shopping store to buy what is needed for one night’s dinner, the average Short Pump mom can do this in only 1.5 hours or less.  This has to do with the many choices of grocery stores in reach of our neighborhoods, the relatively less traffic and multiple roads leading to the same places, and just the smaller number of shoppers compared to larger and busier communities.

So while we were disappointed that Marley & Me would have to wait for another day, the experience of the “exception” to the Short Pump Ease of Life just made us more grateful for it.  Because after the holidays end and life goes back to normal, the lines at movies and for restaurants will again become more reasonable.