washington d.c.

Terry & I spent last weekend in our nation's capital. It's been on our city-to-visit list for quite a few years now.
Did you know that Greenbelt Park is 3 miles from one of DC's last metro station stops & has a campground? We camped there Friday night, taking the metro into the city for the day. It took awhile to get the hang of the stops, but we did it & I loved it.. being in such a different atmosphere, adding a bit of chaos to our country life.

We caught some of the major outside attractions & then had a late lunch at Capitol City Brewing. After more exploring, we made our way to the Nationals Park for a 7:00 game, which made Terry very happy being a huge baseball nut.

Saturday morning, we drove into the city & parked the car for the rest of the weekend. More walking & sight seeing & we ended up in Chinatown around lunch time. Choosing a place to eat was a rather tough decision, but finally decided on Asian Spice where they had Sapporo on draft. Mmm!

Now I must admit that one of the big reasons why we've wanted to go to DC was because of Marrakesh, an authentic Moroccan restaurant that Terry had been to before & really wanted to take me. It definetly lived up to the years of hype. Seven courses of yumminess, eating with your hands, belly dancing, wines.. it was awesome!


We got up Sunday & made our way to the national mall, where the Climate Rally was taking place. We made a stop at the Old Post office pavilion to climb the stairs up to the top of clock tower, where there was a wonderful view of the city.


We stayed at the rally for a couple of hours, hearing some wonderful speakers & catching a couple of bands who were unknown to us, but seemingly quite popular with the teens. Our last stop was at Dogfish Head in Falls Church, where there were more tough decisions. ;) It was a great weekend!

Tucker Allen Armstrong

In honor of Tucker Allen Armstrong
1.11.07-4.23.10
Rest in peace, little man

This rainbow appeared yesterday & I could only think of him.

New Point Island

Ok, so it's actually no longer an island but I think I'll forever call it one. We packed up the canoe & paddled out to it Friday evening to camp for the night. With the temperature in the lower 80's, you couldn't ask for better weather. And very few mosquitoes, gnats & noseeums! Guess we better enjoy that while we can.
We had seen these two kiteboarding from the canoe landing. By the time we got to the island, the wind had died down & they couldn't get back out.

I spend a great amount of time on this island in the warmer months. On the weekends, it's a popular place filled with families & friends, locals & visitors. Coming this early in the year, it was nice to notice how untouched by people it must have been these past few cold months. I enjoyed walking around alone, taking pictures & soaking up the sun.



Cooking up dinner was rather amusing, as there appears to be no real way to keep sand out of the food we make. It happens every time, but we always just joke about it as we crunch away. The next morning, we awoke to light rain hitting our tent. We packed up & canoed on back.
Like many others, it's been a busy week for me & will continue to be this week. Hope you all have a great one!

Destroyer, I am not

I organized an outing yesterday for a disc golf game at a beautiful park about an hour drive away. A good friend of mine actually helped design the course, which has pretty good reviews but can be difficult for beginners. Most in our group were first-timers, including me, but we had so much fun & it was cheap.. only $3/game & discs are $1 to rent. I got the "Destroyer" and as it turned out, I didn't quite live up to the name. Ha!

I'd say half the course is in the woods, which ended up being where I played better. I've definetly gotta work on my long distance throw.


Everyone seemed really happy about our Sunday afternoon in the sun with a little exercise. Now I'm thinking about the next "adventure" I can plan for us.

Thankful Thursday

Terry has had a strange looking mole on his cheek for well over a year now. Of course, he thinks nothing of it. I, on the other hand, have been examining it a couple times a week, thoroughly checking the size & color. Finally, I made him an appointment to have it looked at, which he reluctantly went to this week. It was his first doctor's visit in 15 years,which was another forced meeting. Are all men like this about doctors? Geez! Anyway, I'm thrilled to say it was nothing serious.. just a little liquid nitrogen & it'll be gone. For this, I am incredibly thankful.
I'm also thankful for:

~ the friends & family who called to check on the outcome of Terry's appointment
~ the family in Mathews who grows asparagus every year. I almost caused an accident on Main Street doing a U-y after seeing that familiar "Asparagus" sign

~ the amazing weather we've had week for plenty of outside lunches

~ my sister, who understands me in a way no one else does or probably ever will
~ being able to take a kayak out & paddle around by myself whenever i want or need


~ Carys hugging me, telling me in her soft voice "i love jen" (Carys is one of the children I take care of)

I could go on & on.. Hope you have a great weekend!

Aloha

Yesterday was a great day all around.. perfect weather with friends & family. Terry & I went to my parents for an Easter dinner around mid-day. My sister, Holly, came to visit for the weekend & both of my grandmothers were there as well. Of course, my mom went all out on the food, which we ate out on their deck. It was quite warm in the sun, but I'm definetly not complaining. We reminsced about our younger days of egg hunts, where Daddy would help us by yelling out "getting warmer" or "getting colder". Being that Terry's family didn't celebrate Easter growing up, our stories seemed rather foreign to him & I think he liked listening to them.

Afterwards, we went to Erica & Doug's for a Tacky Hawaiian shirt party. Erica & I had gone to a couple thrift stores last week & bought the tackiest shirts we could find. There was frisbee throwing, an egg hunt for the kids, roasting marshmellows, music, & canoeing. Terry was cracking me up in his Hunter S. Thompson-esqe getup.


My friend Raquel snatched this classic look on Lilli's face after the eggs fell out of her basket. This was one of 4 different dresses she wore that day. Raquel took some of these photos, by the way.


We had such a fun time dressing up (and dressing some others), we're already planning the next theme party.

Berkley Island

Friday afternoon, a group of us took a short paddle out to a small, remote island to camp for the night. Having an island all to yourself is a luxury that I try to take advantage of as often as possible. We had stayed on Berkley Island last year around the same time, so it's now a Spring tradition.

Terry & I are usually in charge of the food & this night we brought marinated BBQ chicken drumsticks & asparagus. My friend, Raquel, brought zucchini & mushrooms, too. Everyone pitched in on the cooking, even the guys & I guess it's because it involves fire. We stayed up most of the night with lots of laughing, stories, & jokes.

In the morning, there must be coffee. For breakfast, we made scrambled eggs with leftover veggies, turkey sausage, & garlic toast. And washing up in the cold river water is quite refreshing & convenient. We spent most of Saturday soaking up the sun & exploring the island until paddling back. It was a great time & I'm definetly looking forward to more paddling & camping trips in the coming the warmer months.

Growth

This week has been rather productive for me, filled with a few surprises that has in turn, made this one of the best weeks I've had of 2010. Without being too personal (because I promised him I wouldn't), I'll just say that Terry & I had one of those break-through nights, that couples should have from time to time. And it has left me feeling quite giddy. Isn't it so great when it happens? ;) I won't get into the specifics (about house-work he did without being asked or .. oh my gosh! expressing feelings), but it was a memorable night for me.. well, for us.



On a creative note, I've picked up my guitar again. My parents gave me one for my 20th Christmas. The first 2 years or so, I practiced my chords daily & was switching them up pretty fast. How proud my dad was of me, being he had been in a band, Southern Breeze, that my grandfather had created. Time passed & the guitar collected dust, unfortunately. I have to say, the hardest part for me right now is to move past toughening up my fingertips. But how I do love it & remember most chords!
I've also started a new sewing project that I'm super excited about, but won't get into details yet until I think it'll work out. Happy April!