Sunday: Assateague

On Sunday, Matt and my parents and I drove out to Assateague. This is something like our third or fourth time there, but the scenic drive, lovely beach, and wild ponies just don't seem to get old for us!

As you can see, my mom and dad wasted no time getting up close and personal with the inhabitants!

On the way back, we stopped at Trappe Creek, a little diner-style restaurant we've eaten at before and liked. The food is great, made-to-order, and very reasonably priced; I've had the cream of crab soup more than once now and it's always delicious, with big, fresh chunks of crab in it. Matt likes their Reubens, and my mom and dad got also sandwiches--a grilled chicken and a giant club.

In the car, we enjoyed chatting and listening to music, and on the way home, my parents sacked out in the back seat. It was an interesting feeling listening to my dad's old mix tapes, the ones we used to listen to when he and my mom would drive my siblings and me up to camp. I remembered falling asleep in the backseat to those songs many times, and so it was a real turnaround to be sitting in the front with my husband while my parents napped in the back. Times have certainly changed, but it's also nice that there are still some things--good music, nice summer car trips, and my parents' incredibly cynical sense of humor--that have stayed the same.

At Last, Out and About

Today, we got up and drove out to Mount Vernon in the pouring rain...

we didn't let it stop us!
It was actually kind of nice, because we more or less had the place to ourselves...

...except for George and Martha.

After that, the weather actually cleared up quite nicely. We drove up to the National Cathedral, where we went through the Bishop's Garden--where none of us had ever been before.


Then we came home and Matt and I made (really amazing) pizzas. Now we're rounding out the evening with a few birth videos. All in all, a lovely day!

Just Reston

Ah, the best laid plans. Today my parents and I intended to get up and drive to Mount Vernon, enjoying a beautiful day exploring there. Instead, life (and Virginia traffic!) intervened, and we ended up running errands (three in the front seat, like old childhood days) and just enjoying each others' company. My mom and dad were able to sleep in, then we spent a leisurely morning while everybody ate/showered at a relaxed pace. We didn't hit the road until 11 or so, and then--

We stopped into an Ethan Allen store so my dad could check out his East Coast counterparts...
We stopped at Bed Bath and Beyond to get some corn on the cob holders (unfortunately, they were out of these and these--Iowa, and Wisconsin, baby!--so for now, we had to settle for a set of these)...
We lunched at Panera Bread...
and we managed to pick up one of the few pairs of these in this color left anywhere this time of year (for my mom--Matt and I already have a pair each, and are huge fans).

By that time, it was three o'clock, meaning we wouldn't have gotten to Mount Vernon until after four, giving us little time to look around and placing us squarely in the teeth of DC-area rush-hour traffic on the way back. And leaving poor Matt by his lonesome in the meantime.

No thanks. Instead, we headed home for a couple hours of reading and a nap. Matt will be home shortly, and we're going to grill hamburgers and eat corn on the cob. We're also planning to drive into DC for a bit of a sightseeing tour. And honestly, even more than I would have enjoyed the attractions, I enjoyed having a relaxing day with my parents, the kind that's hard to come by when you live so far apart and it seems like visits are always so jam-packed they leave you exhausted. I couldn't have asked for any more.

The Parents Have Landed!

My parents got in safely yesterday afternoon. So far, we've just been taking it easy and enjoying each other's company; since it's been a busy and rather hectic summer for them so far, we're planning to go pretty low-key. Matt has to work, but my parents and I are going to visit Mount Vernon today, and I think we're all going to head out to Monticello tomorrow. Sunday we're hoping to make it out to Assateague, and then Monday we're planning to head to Arlington. It should be a fun week; pictures to come!

Reduce, Reuse...

Crunchy Domestic Goddess (love her title and her tagline!) is hosting a Ditch The Disposables challenge this month! What a great idea! She lists a bunch of ideas on her blog. So far, we're on board with just about everything (cloth napkins, Keeper cup, cleaning rags) besides the reusable cloth toilet wipes. We've done it in a pinch, when we ran out of toilet paper, but I wouldn't mind making it full-time. We'll probably wait until after my parents aren't visiting (like they are this week!), though...

Last Labor Day We Also...

...went to Shenandoah National Park for the first time. And this weekend, the one year anniversary of our first time there was probably our tenth time there, and the second time staying overnight in the park. Last year when we went it was much busier and all the drive up campsites were sold out. This year we were uber prepared with our overnight backpacking gear. We hiked in a couple of miles, made camp, ate our dinner, and retired to an early and quiet night of reading in the tent. It was a great night, a bit cool, but filled with sounds of millions of bugs, owls, birds, coyotes, and other animals that were heard but remain unknown. It was a wonderful night of being together.

Us in our cozy (camper for very small) tent

This is one of the huts for the Appalachian Trail hikers-not where we slept though

OH, what a handsome couple. I love this lady!

We have had such a wonderful weekend together. Katie and I often talk about how lucky we are in our lives, and how blessed we are currently that we have the gift of time. We know that we will not always be blessed with having free weekends on our hands, but right now when we do we try to enjoy them as much as we can!

Last Labor Day...

We were still in DC, and I was still in law school. But the making tamales and ice cream part hasn't changed that much, even if lots of other things have.