Memorial Day Weekend

Matt had a busy work week prior to Memorial Day so he decided to take that Friday off as well to make it a four day weekend... lucky for us because his friend called to see if we wanted to go sailing that afternoon!  The friend and his wife recently completed a rigorous multi-week training course and now they are itching to get as much sailing fun in as they can this summer.  His wife was actually out of town this time, so Matt got to be learn the ropes, literally, while I made sure his two little girls didn't get in the way.  Which was super easy because they were super well behaved.  And asleep in my lap. 

We took one of these little fellows out and had a great time gliding past the Naval Academy and around the Severn River. 

  

  

 

 
Back at home I kept up with our new tradition of homemade pizza for Friday night supper.  This one looks more like pac man than appetizing, but do not be decieved.  The pesto corner was delicious and Matt loved the chicken topping.  

 
Saturday was another unexpected fun time event... free tickets to the Washington Nationals baseball game. Matt, Hillary, Jeremy, his sister Megan and I took the metro out the the ballpark and sat through the rain to watch them lose.  Sounds fun, right?  It really was :)

That evening our pal Tanner got into town and we had a delightful visit with him over dinner at Gordon Biersch.  And of course Menchie's to top it off.

Sunday consisted of the usual church routine, followed by lunch with friends, then home to lounge on the couch where we watched a pretty fascinating documentary on Woodstock.

Monday, glorious Memorial Day Monday kicked off with breakfast at the diner.  Then came the first round of being overwhelmed by paint samples at Home Depot.  Arg.  Better luck next time.  Moving on...

We had dinner here that eveing with Aaron, Angela, Pierce and Harrison.  Crab legs, chicken, veggies and fruit.  Followed by a casual and colorful game of Skittle chip poker and a movie.  Good times!

Andrews Air Show on Pierce's Birthday

Pierce is two years old!  On his birthday Aaron took all of us (minus Matt who had to work) out to Andrews Air Force Base for a spectacular air show.  Hillary captured some amazing photos of the Thunderbirds in action:

Of Pierce eating cotton candy for the first time and LOVING it:

Of happy Harrison smiling, as usual:

 And of the honkin' big airplanes:

Jeremy graced us with his goofiness:

And I suppose Hillary and I graced him right back because nothing says "Texas is special to us because it's where we became friends" like posing with your arms up in the air.    

More good pics by Mr. & Mrs. with their awesome camera lens:

 

With all conditions considered (sun, wind, noise, no naps, Pierce's busted lip) we all had a good time.  Old planes parked on the ground and new planes buzzing past each other in the sky made for a great afternoon of no cost entertainment!   

Lots of shade under the wings.

The Memphis Belle (Movie Version)

A peek into the inside of the Thunder Pig.

More honkin' big stuff.  Propellers this time.

"I love you, Sally.  Those two were for you."

His Signature Look?

As I gear up for warmer weather around here one day (temperature today is still in the 60's) my ironing pile has a theme going on.  Polo anyone?

P & G & Easter

Peg & Greg drove up for their annual spring visit Thursday, April 21st through Sunday, April 24th.    We were pretty much consumed with house hunting and home ownership conversation topics the entire time :o)  More on that later.

Thursday night our apartment hosted its monthly happy hour, this time sponsored by a local bank, and it was the best yet!  Cheese, crackers, wine, beer, crab cakes, mini quiches, etc.  They were even giving out wine bottle stoppers as favors.  To really top it all off there was a drawing for restaurant gift cards, one of which I won!

The Robinsons hold a special place in their tummys for Carmine's, so we took them to the DC location for a surprise dinner Friday night.   Matt told them we were going to a ethnic restaurant called Senimrac (Carmine's backwards, clever guy) and they were so excited when we walked up to the front door! 

Saturday I remember going to the mall, walking around and reading in the bookstore, but I can not remember what else?  Oh yeah, we drove around looking at neighborhoods.  We ate leftovers and snacked at home that night.

Sunday was Easter.  I helped in the nursery and the others went to the 11:00 service.   Afterward we met Hillary, Jeremy and his sister Megan at Brio for a delicious Italian brunch.  We amused ourselves by commenting how dedicated we were in celebrating Easter that we traveled all the way to Italy.  The Easter Bunny was there celebrating too.  Silly us. 

Then on to Menchi's for half price frozen yogurt compliments of my employee discount.  The weather finally took a turn toward spring and was glorious!  (Notice we were wearing coats at dinner Friday night.) 

After that, Matt and I must have started to smell bad or something because everyone left.  The Smiths drove back to DC and the Robinsons drove back to SC.  Haha.  No, everyone had places to be and we are so glad they made time to be with us too.  Happy Easter weekend!

Today

Today was a really good day.
I served Pat Sajak frozen yogurt,
My in-laws arrived,
We all ate free crab cakes and wine for dinner,
I won a $50 restaurant gift card,
And we put an offer on a house.
Now it's midnight and I'm pooped. 
But it was a really, really good day.

Mah-lei-lei

My Mom/Melissa (or Mah-lei-lei as Matt calls her with amusement) drove up for a spring visit April 7-16th.  It was her third and longest trip here, both of which we were appreciative of.

Thursday, right when Matt and I arrived home from work and she drove into the parking garage, the dinner bell tolled so we immediately set to making roasted shrimp and orzo salad, another tried and true Barefoot Contessa recipe.  Yum.  And then we walked to Kohl's to browse.  Why?  Because it's right across the street.

Friday morning was slow and rainy, but we rallied, made a plan, packed a lunch and got in the car.  Destination: any cherry blossom we could find in the DC area.  We drove straight to the gold mine of cherry blossoms, the Tidal Basin.  Though rain and time had done most of the blooms in, we still got quite a show and now know why people flock to see them.  Too bad I forgot my camera.  BUT we had a great time driving around in the drizzle gawking and trying not to hit tourists, most of which we couldn't help but notice were Asian.  I'm just sayin.

For lunch we parked on a semi-quiet street inbetween the river and a green field, directly across from Arlington House and directly underneath Reagan Airport's landing path.  The setting made our leftover shrimp and orzo even more memorable. 

But the day was still young and we had no babies or boys to drag us down (no offense to either) so on we drove to Ikea.  You know, cause it's fun to dream and be overwhelmed.  We both left the Swedish superstore with high hopes for a simple and more organized lifestyle... one day.  I also left with this handy rod we're using above the kitchen sink for hand towels and this machine washable, inexpensive, fantastic warm weather duvet filler.  And we bought a tray of their signature cinnamon rolls.  Which was a good decision, because we needed nourishment while stuck in 5:00 traffic on the way home.  And once there, I made truffled fillet of beef sandwiches and roasted asparagus.

On one of her days here I drove Mom into Baltimore (with no GPS assistance!) for her first visit.  We stayed in the car most of the time, but did get out at Ft. McHenry and to have a pasta lunch in Little Italy. 

Other events include: a visit with Angela on her sunny back deck, shopping in consignment stores at least three times over three days (we became pros and found so many great clothes!), browsing neighborhood antique stores in West Annapolis, the White House garden tour and Blossom Kite Festival, acquainting Mom with neighborhoods in which we assumed we would be buying a house, eating quiche at a local girly restaurant on vintage dinette tables and lastly having a picnic and crepes downtown by the water...

 

 

 

   

 

 

White House Garden Tour

On Sunday the 10th of April Matt, Mom, Aaron, Angela, Pierce, Harrison and I met up in DC for a tour of the White House gardens.  The grounds are open once a year during the Cherry Blossom Festival for ticket holders to get up close and personal with historical buds and blossoms.  The day was chilly and gloomy when we started out, but got more and more beautiful the further we walked the guided path.  Trees planted a particularly long time ago or by specific presidents were noted by signs along the way and an upbeat band entertained our ears on the porch by the "back door."  Now, of course the President's House is not Versailles, but I was told to not expect much.  That made me expect nothing.  So I was surprised by everything!  The grounds were more extensive than I imagined with vast scenic views and little secluded hideaways.  It was such a treat to see behind the gates!

   

Rose Garden & West Wing

Putting Green

The Obama children's play set.

The last remaining blooms on a cherry blossom tree.

The White House kitchen garden.

BEAUTIFUL spring colors!

Afterward we walked to the Washington Monument to watch people fly their kites at the Kite Festival.  Then before driving home we introduced all in our company to the tasty and unique cuisine that is Ethiopian food.  But I'm afraid if I show you a picture, chances are you'll never let us take you there :o)