DC Trip

Earlier this month (15th - 20th) I took a trip to DC to make a final appearance at the office before I go on maternity leave, and also to attend the bridal shower of my good friend Amber. I took Calvin with me so that he could spend some time with his grandparents in PA, so I stayed with them at nights, and drove back and forth during the day.

Thursday:
I had planned to leave for the airport right after class, and of course it was the one day that I lost my keys somewhere on campus. I had to bail on class early, found my keys in an office where some nice girl had held them for me, met Rebekah and Calvin, and drove to the airport. We got Calvin his own seat this time, which was wonderful. He was great on the flight and loved the airplane. When we went into the back of the plane to use the restroom, Calvin made friends with the flight crew. They loved him and brought him treats from first class for the rest of the flight.

We landed at 11:30pm, picked up the rental car, and then Bek went with her sister, while Calvin and I drove to PA. At about 2:00am my cell phone with the GPS I was using died. I was lost in the middle of nowhere. I had no way of calling my in-laws without my phone, so I pulled off into a familiar city and looked for a payphone. I finally found one (strangely, they're just not as common as they once were), but it had no phone book and their number was on my dead phone. By this point it was 2:20am, it was pouring rain, and the only open place was Walmart. Calvin was sleeping, so after deliberating between being a good or bad mother, I locked him in the car and ran in. I asked several people how to get to their city, and finally found one woman who gave me excellent directions. We pulled up at about 2:45am, and Calvin was beyond excited to see his grandparents so he went straight for the toys and wouldn't go to sleep until almost 4:00am. He finally went to sleep with me.

Friday:
I woke up early, but didn't want to leave Calvin alone to wake up in a strange bed, so I stayed with him until he woke up at 9:00. Then I started to get ready, but then Andy called me from Japan. It was the first time he had been able to call me in a week, so there was no way I was passing up the chance to talk to him. We talked for half an hour before I showered and got ready. By then it was 10:30ish, and when I went downstairs to leave, my father-in-law had run an errand with my car keys in his pocket. I decided me making it to the office was just not meant to be. After I was ALMOST there, I got stuck behind the slowest truck ever on a one lane mountain road. It took me 30 minutes to do what should have been my final 1o or 15 minutes. I showed up at the office at 12:30, just in time for lunch. Brilliant planning on my part really.

My sister-in-law and Bek and my two great work friends, Amber and Monica went to our old haunt, a delicious Indian restaurant close to the office. It was so fun to catch up with everyone and fill up on spicy food. Back at the office, I had a few meetings that went very well. Afterwards, I started the 1.5 hour drive back to PA. It took me much longer because of Friday traffic, but it was good to see Calvin again instead of staying away for the night. He is incredibly spoiled by his grandparents and has the time of his life at their house. They have endless amounts of toys that he loves and they indulge his every whim. He couldn't be happier.

Saturday:
Left early to drive down to northern VA for the 9:30 bridal shower. We had delicious breakfast pastries, and then headed up into the hills outside of Leesburg to this gorgeous old farmhouse. The couple that lives there are so creative. The husband is a photographer and has a pottery studio in the basement, while the wife has several published cookbooks and teaches private cooking classes in her kitchen. Their house is packed with interesting books and accessories from all over the world, and manages to feel comfortable and quaint instead of cluttered. They are artistic and wonderful.

For the bridal shower, we did a private Cooking Class. It was a rainy day, the leaves were vibrant and colorful, and with lots of hot tea, good conversation, and amazing food it couldn't have been more perfect.

After the shower I drove to Winchester to visit my good friend Hannah who I haven't seen in about 10 years. Her kids are darling, her house is adorable, and I love her just as much as I remembered. It was a short visit, but I'm glad I got to see her. I then hit the road for the all too familiar drive back to PA. Got there late, took a short walk with the boy, and then it was bedtime.

Sunday:
Today we took a trip up to Broadtop, figuring that Calvin would love the train so much more now that he's older and really into trains. He was excited when he first saw it, then we got on the train and about three minutes into the ride, he was fast asleep. He slept clear until we pulled back into the train station. It was a cold day though, so maybe it was good that he was just snuggled up by my side instead of running around. Next time I'm sure will be the magic ride that completely captivates him.

Monday:
Today we hung around some more with Grandma and Grandpa, and then went out to lunch at Texas Roudhouse. It's always a treat eating out with Calvin - he lasts about 5 minutes and 2 french fries, and then wants to be up running around. At one point he and I were wandering around looking at the dead animals on the wall when he saw a picture of Elvis and yelled "Daddy!" Maybe it was the bright blue eyes and dark hair, or maybe it was just wishful thinking. We ran to the store to get some things for our trip home, and then watched the boy play the Wii for an hour. I packed everything to get ready for an early morning and then we hit the sack at about 11pm. I think he's still on Mountain time.


Tuesday:
Got up at 3:45 am to drive to VA, returned the car, shuttled to the airport, made it through security, ate breakfast and boarded the flight all in record time. And then Calvin got super hyper. He bounced off the walls the entire flight. Having his own seat makes a huge difference, but it was all I could do to keep him from throwing toys and jumping on seats. We arrived late because the gate wasn't ready for us, and got home just in time for me to drop him off at Grandma's and head for school. It was a nice trip and we both had a great time, but it was exhausting and I think we're both excited to be home.