How Much Awesome can you Cram into a Week?

I don't know what your past week was like, but mine felt like it was crammed to bursting with stuff to do! Okay, maybe the week itself wasn't too full...but Friday through Sunday sort of felt like a whirlwind of things to do and friends to see and memories being made one right after the other. Essentially, just the kind of week (and weekend) that I like to have!

Monday morning leftovers...

Rico Suave - the office squirrel. He likes the lay on the sidewalk & lick the cracks in the pavement. Little weirdo.

Cinco de Mayo - you have to eat Mexican food, right??

I had no clue there were azaleas in the front yard - I guess they'd already bit the dust when I arrived last year.

Not sure what this is but it smells amazing!

Our monthly book club meeting was this past week; it meets at Long Branch Plantation and there is something about sitting in a Civil War era home while you discuss books that just takes it to a whole different level. We took the book club outside this week and sat on the back porch to have our meeting. Y'all, there is just something pretty fascinating about sitting on the porch of a house like that and thinking about all the things the house has seen - it's literally a witness to some of the most dramatic moments in American history...and we are just sitting on the porch discussing a book! Soon after we started discussing the book, we heard some squeaking from above our heads and inquired as to if it was birds. Lizzie, who works at Long Branch and is one of the leaders of the group grinned and said "not birds....bats". We continued to hear them for the rest of the meeting...but I never actually saw one. Oh well...

The dining room looked extra fancy on Tuesday night!

Could you just imagine if this was the view from your front porch?

Oh wait - & this was the view from your back porch? Seriously...

This might have been my favorite book club meeting yet - based on the views alone!

A wee storm rolled in on Wednesday afternoon...

I felt like some kind of character in a doomsday movie on Wednesday afternoon - and yes, I know I tend to veer toward the more dramatic but that's completely alright. It had been sunny and still all day long; the kind of weather that you knew was brewing something. Sure enough, shortly before time to go the skies began to turn deep blue and slowly creep in our direction... When I left work the wind was picking up and I always felt like I was just a step or two ahead of the impending downpour. I made it home before it started raining but it definitely let loose after just a bit...and then, within thirty minutes it was all gone and the sun was shining again!

This goofball - always cracking me up!

She's looking at me as if to say "what did you just say?"

Hey Watson...what's wrong with your ear?

This face though - he's so mad that we are going to DC for the day.

So - as I mentioned, Friday through Sunday (okay, maybe Saturday night) were just filled with things to be done. I took the day off Friday so we could all go into DC for the Arsenal of Democracy flyover in honor of VE Day. If you don't know what that is...well, I can't even...go Google that stuff. It's important and historical and we should all know what it is. Anywho...the flyover was made up of multiple WWII era aircraft from the important battles of both the Atlantic and Pacific campaigns and this is the first (and maybe only) time something like this has been done. Saying that a lot of people came to DC for this would be an understatement...and yet somehow, the Metro still wasn't too bad. Ha-ha!

Riding the Metro...

Oh - funny story. When we were buying our fare cards for the ride into DC, I was planning to get a Smart Card so I could just re-load the thing anytime I needed to. You can do that online and avoid waiting in the lines to buy fare cards every time you need to hop on and off the Metro. Weeellll - we maybe pushed the wrong buttons and somehow I ended up with a flimsy little paper fare card loaded with $25 worth of fare. You guys - that will last a little while...a good long little while. So, now I'm toting around a fare card loaded with money and praying I don't rip it or bend it or whatever... Metro newbie - right here.

I mean - you can't be in DC without taking this picture. I'm sorry - you can't.

Talk about a sea of humanity...

I'm not even going to attempt to name the planes pictured here - I'd mess up & between my eagle eyed Dad & sister, they'd be sure to let me know about it, ha!

After the Arsenal of Democracy flyover ended, we decided to hop back on the Metro (it was that or walk two miles) and head to Capitol Hill to get some lunch. We'd met up with some friends we've known since all the way back in the California days and so we all chatted and had a wonderful time over lunch at The Good Eatery. FYI - if you're ever in the Capitol Hill area and want a good burger, you need to get to The Good Eatery asap. Delicious - pretty much the only word I need to describe it!

Ha-ha! These were all over the Capitol South Metro Station...

Finally emerging from the bowels of the Earth....

Row house in Capitol Hill anyone? It will only cost approximately $2.5 mil...*cue hysterical laughter*

Such yummy food - & I do have to say, I love that it doesn't "tow the party line..."

Hehehehe...love it!

The Sochas, the Summerlins & the Manleys - we've all known each other for years & years...

Friday night high school softball with Katie!

I'm pretty sure my high school softball field didn't have views like this!

On the way home from DC on Friday evening, my friend Katie text me and asked if I wanted to go with her to a Warren County high school softball game - her husband is the coach. I wasn't doing anything else with my Friday night, so I said sure and around 7 she swung by the house and picked me up! We sat on the hill overlooking the field and pretty much talked non-stop for a good hour and half before deciding to make a Sweet Frogs yogurt run to end the night. Saturday morning was another day in DC but we started by having breakfast at Cracker Barrel with my Nanny before she headed back toward MS after being with us for three weeks!

She finally smiled in a picture! Maybe it's because I'm in the picture with her? Ha-ha!

Yes...but what is it?? 

And to think - a month ago these were cherry blossoms! :)

I want to ride paddle boats on the Tidal Basin one day. Oh, my list of things to do gets longer & longer...

One of the embassies - couldn't quite figure out which one...

Outside the Embassy of India.

Every year DC host Embassy Weekends - one weekend you can tour European Embassies and the weekend prior you tour some of the other Embassies; they give out bags and tokens of the country as well as food from the area. Well we got the bright idea that we'd try to check out the Irish and British Embassies before we headed to Nationals Park for the baseball game. Ha! There were lines of people literally wrapped around the block(s) waiting to get into each Embassy. We quickly dropped that idea and instead parked at the Tidal Basin and wandered around for a little while. When we wandered over to the WWII Memorial, there were little old men and ladies in red t-shirts; upon closer inspection we discovered they were an Honor Flight of WWII Veterans. You guys - can you even imagine?? There they were, looking at this memorial in honor of those who gave the ultimate sacrifice in WWII and they actually KNEW these battles first hand. It was overwhelming to say the least; there is a reason they are called "the Greatest Generation" and I was humbled to be around so many of them.

Hands down, the most beautiful of the memorials - in my humble opinion.

Wreaths laid by numerous embassies to honor VE Day.

I could have sat here for a good long while & just stared out across the fountains...

And after all that...we went to Nationals Park for a baseball game! And y'all, I guess I've always loved watching baseball pretty well and good, but I LOVE watching Nationals baseball. I've always wondered what endears a person to a certain sports team - when I walked into Nationals Stadium two years ago and realized that the team was lovingly referred to as the "Nats" and to be a supporter of the team meant you had "Nattitude"...well, I was good and sold out as a fan. I mean - how could I not be?

A Nationals game again - after all this time! Yahoo!

Span, Screech & Harper...or as the announcer says "HHHAAARRRPPPAAAHHH"

There is just something about the crack of the bat, the sound of everyone singing "take me out to the ball game" and the smell of nachos, hot dogs and beer (because lets be honest, you know there is always beer at a baseball game - at least until the seventh inning) that I absolutely love. I discovered I might love it a little too much when an Atlanta Braves fan sat next to me and proceeded to be obnoxious and make comments every time a Nationals player was up to bat...because I had the urge to turn and smack her with my hat. I maintained my composure though...even when things looked tense and the game was all tied up going into the bottom of the 9th. Werth struck out with one man on base...and Harper was up to bat. I don't know if you know (but everyone in that stadium did) but Harper has kind of been on a roll as far as home runs go...and he didn't disappoint. He knocked one out of the park, brought in two runs and secured a Curly W for the Nationals. And even though I wanted to turn around and proudly (and yes, obnoxiously) look at that Braves girl and say "well - there you go..." I didn't. Mostly because as soon as Harper hit that homer, they turned tail and ran up the stairs. Ha!

Another Curly W in the books!

Just a little bit excited that the Nats won!

Hey Bryce Harper - you just got selected as player of the game - tell us how you're feeling...

So long for now Nationals Park - I'll see you in July!

Sunday was Mother's Day and so of course, we celebrated my awesome Momma with some presents and a lovely lunch at Olive Garden. The sweetest part of the day for me though; all these goofy kids at church kept trying to give me a carnation and I kept having to say "I'm not a Mom, but thanks", well when my sweet Emily heard me say that, she came and found me and crawled up in my lap and offered me this information: You are a Mom - because you are Watson's Mom and Watson matters. And plus, one day you will get married and have a baby, so really...you are a Mom. So sweet. I almost cried right then and there...

Some delicious Strawberry Passion Fruit drink thing at Olive Garden - so wonderful.

Always some kind of flower blooming.

So - there you have it. A week crammed full of things that happened and all kinds of wonderful memories made. I must say, this was an excellent week indeed!