Girls' Trip to DC

Life has been crazy lately!  And knowing that it's not going to slow down anytime soon, my mom and I decided to take a little trip together last week. 

I grew up as an Army brat, and when I turned 16, we were living in Germany.  My mom took me to Paris to celebrate my birthday, and we had a fantastic time, just the two of us.  So I thought it would be nice for us to take another trip, just us girls, before the baby comes and life reaches a whole new level of madness.

I left last Monday morning, picking up my mom on the way, and we arrived at our hotel (Doubletree cookies -- yum!) with just enough time to relax and get settled before heading to dinner at the Old Ebbitt Grill.  It was delicious!  We even had bourbon walnut pie a la mode for dessert.  Sinfully good.

Tuesday morning we headed to the Newseum, which is dedicated to the news media, and it was fascinating.  They had exhibits on the Berlin Wall, 9/11, Katrina, and a feature on the sports photography of Walter Ioos (one of the primary Sports Illustrated photographers of the last few decades).  There was also a large exhibit on the FBI and its love/hate relationship with the media.  We spent most of Tuesday at the Newseum and really enjoyed it.

In the late afternoon, we headed to Alexandria, where neither of us had really ever been before.  We took a walking tour of the old town area.  Did you know that Alexandria used to be the center of the slave trade in the US?  Or that the oldest Farmer's Market in the country is still operational in Market Square?   You could easily spend a whole day in Alexandria, but alas, time was short and we had more on our agenda.

We headed back to DC to attend Shear Madness at the Kennedy Center.  I'd never been to the Kennedy Center before, and I was suitably impressed.  There was an added element of fun at the show due to the hundreds of high school students in attendance.  Shear Madness is an improv show with audience participation, and the kids really got into it! 

Wednesday morning we got up, had breakfast at a cute local place, and hit the road back home.  I barely made it in time -- MJ and I teach 8th grade Faith Formation at our church on Wednesdays, and I was flying solo that night because MJ had a work function to attend.

Overall, the trip went perfectly.  Even the weather cooperated:  despite the cold, it stayed dry even though the weather forecast for all three days called for a sleet/snow/rain mix.  And best of all, it was so nice to spend a few days with my mom before my life changes forever.  I'm sure we will always remember this trip!