WR: Visiting Family

Last weekend we went down to visit my family. We got back around 7:30 and had a nice relaxing night in. Adam had worked a 60 hour work weekend so he was beat. And I was exhausted from taking care of everything all week so he wouldn't have to lift a finger when he got home.

Saturday, we went to dear Edgar's funeral. Edgar was my cousin's grandfather, but always there at our family events. He came into our family when my aunt Carey married Bill in 1989. So I've known him for as long as I can remember. It was a sad day but also beautiful to remember what a nice long life he led. My Aunt Carey had a really nice slideshow they showed at the luncheon that she had put together for his 80th birthday. We'll miss you Edgar!

Photo taken by Tiffany Brubaker Photography
www.tiffanybrubaker.com

In the afternoon, the guys headed over to the Bassmaster weigh-in. I made a delicious rhubarb pie.

(photo taken Sunday morning)

 That night, we had my dad's side of the family over to celebrate Grandma's 80th birthday. It was a lot of fun!

The kids -

The grandkids -

The grandkids, spouses, and great-grandkids (Chester wasn't cooperating!)

The little girls really wanted to help Grandma blow out her candles. It was super cute!

Sunday morning, I got up early to go strawberry picking with mom. It was a disappointing trip as the berries were covered in mud from all the rain we've had. We didn't stay long.

Around 11:30, we headed down to the marina for the pontoon. It was overcast and looked like it may storm, so we hung out at the dock for a bit before deciding to risk it on the water.

I'm glad we did because it was a beautiful day! We even came across one of the Bassmaster Pros and watched him fish for a bit.

Then we headed back to the dock so Adam and Dad could go to the Bassmaster weigh-in. For that day they had VIP tent tickets, and Adam very much enjoyed the free food and beer!

They made it back in time for Christine's birthday party at 5 with my mom's side of the family. We stayed for about an hour before we had to leave to head back home.

Adam and I figured out that this was the 5th weekend in a row with my family, and 7th out of the past 9. Now we love the fam, but that's a bit much! We're looking forward to not having to be anywhere this weekend!

DC Day 4: Make-up Game at Nationals Park

Sunday night was our make-up game from the rain out on Friday night (Dad's birthday). We met the guys and Christine at The Bullpen, which is like an outdoor beer and food stand area outside the stadium. Due to the day/night doubleheader, gates didn't open until 6 for the 7:10 game.

 We entered the stadium soon after 6, and were excited to find the Racing Presidents in the plaza taking photos with fans. Score!

Here we are with Tom (Jefferson), 

and Teddy (Roosevelt) with Abe (Lincoln).

They update the line-up with giant baseball cards; similar to what they do in Boston (but I don't think Boston keeps theirs current). That's one of the giant parking structures right there and one of the Cherry Blossom trees.

 We then made our way to our seats with a pit stop at Ben's Chili Bowl to grab dinner. Adam went for the half-smoke again, while I went for the decadent chili cheese fries. They were AMAZING. Seriously. So good.

I was pretty excited about the game since due to the rain-out my guy Deduno was pitching (otherwise he would have pitched for the Sunday afternoon game and I would have missed seeing him by just one game!).

We even got to see him hit, which was pretty entertaining. He had success with a sacrifice bunt though!

Mauer played first since he caught in the earlier game.

And we were pretty excited to see a Florimon home-run! We had great seats; only one section over from the ones the day before. And since it was a make-up game, the stadium was only half full, so we didn't have to look over someones shoulder.

The scoreboard looked especially cool lit up at night!

In the 4th, the Presidents Race was highly amusing. Teddy came out with a giant lead,

only to be swatted down by a giant cicada that came out of the stands (you can see it coming for him on the scoreboard). Poor Teddy!

In the bottom of the 5th inning, it sprinkled for about thirty seconds before turning into a downpour. It happened so quickly that we barely had time to cover up and didn't even bother leaving our seats (though most people did). It was the shortest rain delay ever!

Adam was protecting his phone from the rain!

The grounds crew did a great job of getting it ready and play commenced really quickly. The rest of the night was beautiful.

The Twins made it interesting in the 8th and 9th, but just couldn't get it done. I took the opportunity to wander up the ramp to the 4th level. It was pretty much exhausting. I would hate to have seats up there - the players looked like tiny ants and the seating area had a very steep incline. Scary! I thought there would be an awesome view from the city up there. But there wasn't. I raced down to make the end of the game.

Then we took the Metro back to our hotel and crashed. What a day!

DC Day 4: Holocaust Museum + Smithsonians

I started out Sunday earlier than everyone else. I got up early and got ready, leaving a sleepy Adam in bed. Then I took the Metro down to the Mall and made the short walk to the Holocaust Museum to wait in line. The Holocaust Museum is a popular destination. I tried to get tickets before our visit back in March, but it was full. They hand out tickets the day of on a first come basis.

When I arrived, there was only about 10 people in front of me. The line forms in an alleyway alongside the museum with benches. So I settled in on a comfy bench which would be my home for the next 1.5 hours. The line gradually got huge. The fam met me at 9:45, just in time for the tickets to be handed out before the 10 am opening (each person in line can collect up to 20 free tickets). We got the 10:15 time slot, but they let us into the exhibit right away.

Photos aren't allowed inside. It was a really moving experience. The museum is very well done and follows the rise of the Nazi regime and what they did to the Jews and others that didn't fit in with their "ideal." We took our time in the exhibit and were in there from 10-12:30.

We grabbed a quick lunch at the Holocaust Museum Cafe before heading down The Mall to the National Archives.

We had a 1:30 reservation at the National Archives which allowed us to bypass the long line and immediately enter through security. Once there, we made our way up to the Charters of Freedom rotunda where we saw The Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and Constitution. Pretty amazing. We looked around at other displays but only stayed for an hour.

Next, we made a brief stop at the Sculpture Garden,

photo from mom

 before entering the National Gallery of Art West building. The West Building houses all of the classical art. My favorite section was the Impressionists, of course.

We saw Little Dancer Aged Fourteen by Degas,

Monet's Rouen Cathedral, West Facade in Daylight

Monet's The Japanese Footbridge,

Van Gogh's Self-Portrait,

 Van Gogh's Roses,

Van Gogh's The Olive Orchard,

and Monet's Woman with a Parasol (Madame Monet and Her Son).

On the classical side, I enjoyed Vermeer's Lacemaker,

and Da Vinci's Ginevra de' Benci. The only da Vinci in North & South America!

By then, Dad, Christine and Adam were eager for a break. So they went and relaxed with gelato for Christine and beer for Dad and Adam in the lobby cafe while mom and I checked out the modern art in the East building. I was really disappointed that Matisse's cutouts and Pollock's Lavender Mist weren't on display.

But we did see other great pieces like Braque's Harbor,

Kandinsky's Improvisation 31 (Sea Battle),

Picasso's Nude Woman,

 Picasso's Still Life,

Picasso's Harlequin Musician,

and Mondrian's Tableau No. IV.

After the museum, we decided to split up with Dad, Christine and Adam heading down to the game (with a stop in Maryland!) and Mom and I heading over to the National Portrait Gallery. There we appreciated all the Presidential Portraits. Especially this unfinished piece of George Washington -

Mom and I met back up with everyone by Nationals Ballpark at 6. Once again, I have many photos to share from the game, so I'll save that for another post.