4th of July weekend
Last week Abbi and Marci flew out to Virginia so we could spend an extended weekend together and be there for each other as moral support as we watched Spider-man Far From Home and binged Stranger Things season 3. As the years go by we have really learned that we really just love chilling together, laughing eating and watching movies and shows. Often people will ask me what our planned itinerary is, and it's always "uhh, just hang out and be together?" But truly, that's what we find to be ideal.
Even still, we were able to pack in a lot of fun stuff thanks to Ted having time off of work and always being more than willing to send me off to have fun with my friends. One of the nights I went up to Ted and gave him a hug and said, "Thank you." And he asked, "For what?" And I said, "For always being cool about me having my girl time." He looked at me like I was crazy and was all, "Uh, whatever." He's a good one.
On Independence Day we did some shopping at Madewell and I finally purchased my first pair of Madewell jeans. I totally get the type now. They are so cozy and high quality. We then ate brunch at Ted's Bulletin and walked next door to see Spider-man. After anxiously waiting for a solid 2 years for this film's release, I am happy to report that it exceeded my expectations and I wouldn't change a dang thing. We all loved it and made plans to see it again the next day.
Later that day we made a fruit pizza, per our little family tradition, and then got invited to a neighborhood 4th of July party so I busted out some homemade mac and cheese to bring. We arrived as it started raining, and since we were being eaten alive by mosquitos and we had a newborn baby with us, we only stayed like 20 minutes before had to head out. Luckily I have very chill kids who were completely understanding about us needing to leave and missing the fireworks. We promised that we'd light off some of our own the next day, so we went home and had some fruit pizza and put the kids to bed. Whenever my friends are in town and we all go out together with Ted and the kids, I wonder how many people wonder if we are sister wives, haha.
After the kids were in bed we started watching Stranger Things and WOW, this season sure is gross and intense! We watched 3 episodes and decided to spread it out over the weekend.
The next day we left early and took the Metro into DC, and it was HOT. Like, suck-the-soul-out-of-you hot. And for some reason, my very comfortable shoes that I've never had a problem with started giving me blisters immediately when we arrived in the city, so that wasn't cool. We went to The Library of Congress and The Supreme Court building and were inspired. We then ate lunch at Good Stuff Eatery which is usually a dream, but really wasn't a dream this time. The fries were a greasy, soggy mess and my turkey burger wasn't cooked through, and the AC wasn't working inside the restaurant. As we were eating we decided the heat won and we'd take the Metro back and go see Spidey again and enjoy the AC. Solid choice. We came home and had Ted pick up takeout and we watched some more Stranger Things and got even more anxious from the episodes haha.
On Saturday we went to Vienna and visited Bard's Alley bookstore and charmed the bookstore owner with our friendship origin story that started all because of Hunger Games. She loved it so much she took a photo of us and said she'd be posting our story on her instagram feed soon, haha. People love us. We ate lunch at Social Burger and finally had a great burger experience. The sweet potato fries there are INSANE. The heat continued to drain us, so we all took a nap when we got home and settled in for the night of postmates, lighting fireworks, and finishing out the Stranger Things season. We were all pretty shook by the ending, and I was glad we were together for it.
On Sunday we had a slow morning and then had brunch at First Watch. The day was a lot cooler so we drove to Mount Vernon and enjoyed the experience of walking around the estate. I especially loved that they didn't gloss over the fact that Washington had slaves. It made me uncomfortable and I think that's a good thing. I loved seeing his tomb and the slavery memorial. I can't wait to bring the kids back before we move. That evening I made homemade biscuits and gravy from Joanna Gaines cookbook, and it was so good. After dropping Marci off at the airport Abbi and I decided to be idiots and watch The Impossible and cry. That movie guts me every single time.
The end of these trips used to make me so sad because I hated the idea that it would probably be a year before I saw them again. Now I don't feel that way because we see each other more often and because we talk to each other every day. My mom said it best, my time with them always fills my oil lamp with goodness that helps me power through my day to day life. I'm so grateful for my angel friends!
