Wow we had a VERY full week of siteseeing / playing / eating!
I picked her up on a rainy Wed night. Thursday morning we had high hopes of hitting the ground running but that didn't happen. We both felt pretty wiped out and decided to lay low for the day waiting for the rainy weather to LEAVE! That night we took to her downtown Bethesda (where Colton grew-up) through the beautiful neighborhoods of Potomac and all around. It was a nice evening and we were both so happy she was here!
Friday morning Grandma and I took the metro downtown to Chinatown to check out the National Portrait Gallery. This has been something she has wanted to do for YEARS but the past 5 years when she has come it was closed for renovations. I have to say this is now one of my favorite museums!!
The National Portrait Gallery is held in one of the 3rd oldest buildings in DC. They built the Capital, White House and then this building which was originally a Patent Office. Pretty cool if you think about it! They have some of the old prototypes from inventors back in that day -- it was very interesting!
This museum was full of stories of individuals...where they have been, and why. I loved it. I love getting to know people, finding out there story and where they have been in life. I find myself trying to hold back all my many questions when I meet a new client or friend....I just find it so interesting, inspiring and intriguing, all the different paths people have taken in life.
So when we got to the museum we decided to take the "Highlights" tour.... ( I would totally recommend this!!) The docent took us around a should us a little bit of every section. The tour was only an hour and was super interesting....straight to the point. Just how I like it. (However, I have to say the really artsy people kinda bug me cause they have to nod or agree or make some kind of noise to EVERYTHING the docent is saying - as if to say "yes yes thats right....oh yes i remember that yes."...probably my issue more then theirs...)
Anyway, Some of my favorite pieces;
#1 Favorite:
This is a painting of Eunice Kennedy Shriver in honor of her work with the Special Olympics. This IS NOT a photograph. I loved the angle of the perspective, the lighting, the detail....everything about it!! Grandma agreed this was also one of her favorites. I wish you could see the attention to detail ...incredible. I may steal this idea for a family photo one day when we have a family. I just fell in love.
#2 Most impressive technique:
I am not a Bill Clinton lover -that is not what this is about. The scale and technique was incredible. Especially when we found out what kind of handicaps the artists had with his hands, legs, and sight. Pretty Big Bill...eh?
Afterwards we had a little soda break before heading to lunch.
For lunch we walked to a place called Matchbox. Sadly it is only here in DC and Palm Springs, but if you are in one of those places you should go! Their stone-fired pizza is delicious.... and the best part dessert!! We almost didn't get it..... but then the waiter talked us into dessert pizza and we were in HEAVEN. Okay let me break this down for you;
Pizza crust spread with lemon and sugar glaze, topped with mascarpone cheese (kinda like a cream cheese) Fresh berries, fresh mint and then drizzled with balsamic vinegar. Heaven. We downed the whole thing and swooned over every bite. One of the best things I have eaten yet!!
So our proud moment of not over stuffing ourselves on lunch quickly ended when we cleared the whole pan. I think the waiter was a bit shocked as well.
Saturday was finally a beautiful day of sunshine and changing leaves! Colton wanted to make sure Grandma could go home with some new experience from her many DC trips... so he took us to the mountains of Virgina to see the gorgeous changing leaves and overlook the Shenandoah Valley. We headed out early and drove thru the national park. Stunning!! Here is a little peak of what we saw on our two hour drive:
Did I mention they have a ORGAN down there that plays some of it's notes off of the stalactities??! The guy who developed this idea when around the caverns with a mallet and hit over thousands of stalactites to figure out the perfect keys for his organ. Now they have built in mallets attached to these selected pieces:
Well that was quite the experience and Grandma was so thrilled because now she didn't have to go to New Mexico to check out the Caverns there.
On the way home we stopped at one of Colton's favorite roadside BBQ's on Virginia. Grandma roughed it with us and ate a BBQ pulled pork sandwich with us out of our laps. Worth EVERY BITE.
You think the day would have ended there after 200 miles of driving and 8 hours of fun... NOPE! Next we took her down to Old Town Alexandria to see the old buildings, and get a taste of pumpkin custard goodness from the Dairy Godmother. After 10 hours of fun we headed home and all crashed out early for the night.
Sunday was a nice relaxing day with church and chilling. Everyone at church was shocked she was my Grandmother - they all thought she looked too young! The YW's president who I work with told colton "Wow Adrienne's grandma is HOT!! Lucky you :)" to which he said "What do you mean??" and then she responded with " Well you can only assume Adrienne is going to look at great one day too!" haha. I can only hope and wish.
Monday Grandma and I headed east to Annapolis to do a tasting of some authentic seafood from the area ( Yes we love to eat!!) We found a quaint little place near the shore that happened to be the local spot for lunch! She took the waiters recommendation on the blue crab sandwich and crab soup (Apparently Michelle Obama had the same thing a few weeks prior... ). Later we walked around the city and enjoyed the beautiful weather!!
That night Colton's family met up with us for dinner at Seasons 52 ( wow we did eat a lot that week haha) BUT this IS a place a can recommend beacause they have one in Phoenix, Orange County and many other places. Nothing on the menu is more then 470 calories! Great atmosphere, good food and good company! It was fun to have my two separate families together :)
Sadly, Tuesday Grandma had to head home. We had such a wonderful time while she was here. She gave us a lot of great newlywed / financial / grandmother advice. She is continues to be one of my favorite people and someone I love and admire very much! Thanks for coming all this way Grandma we love you and miss you!!
No comments:
Post a Comment