Memorial Day Weekend

Ah....summer. Is there anything better than Memorial Day weekend? Patrick got a special treat--Papa came to visit while we went to Chip's wedding. Papa knows all of the proper names for the parts of the bulldozers, front-end loaders, excavators, and more, and was even able to correct Patrick's books about contruction equipment. On Sunday we went strawberry picking at the farm--Patrick got the concept right away and helped us gather delicious fresh berries that he ate over ice cream for dessert. On Monday we made an inaugural trip to Little Hunting Park--our new pool club. Patrick loves the playground and the baby pool. I love the smell of chlorine and suntan lotion and am looking forward to lots of trips to the pool this summer. On Monday night we hosted a BBQ/baby shower for Holly and Amanda. The rain held off, and everyone had a fun time. It was a busy weekend, but a great kickoff to summer!

W&OD Trail

Another Saturday, another bike trip! On the 14th we went out to Purcellville, Va to ride the W&OD Trail. It's another former railroad line, and winds through the countryside and through pretty groves of trees. We saw cows, horses, and even some llamas. Patrick was reminded of one of our favorite stories, and exclaimed "llama red pajama!" when we explained what the funny-looking animals were.

Mother's Day

We did my favorite thing on the Saturday before Mother's Day--went to the beach--and had a great "summer preview" weekend complete with near 90º weather. We took a bike ride in Rehoboth Beach and played on the boardwalk. Patrick loved the basketball game at the arcade, building sandcastles on the beach, and of course getting ice cream. On Sunday we had brunch with Uncle Derek, Aunt Jen, and Cousin Sophie, and tried to re-create last year's Mother's Day photo--what a difference a year makes!

Annapolis Bike Trip

We had a fun Saturday morning in Annapolis riding the Baltimore and Annapolis bike trail 16 miles! What a difference the winter has made--Patrick now keeps his helmet on without complaint and every time we stopped insisted "more, again." We had lunch in historic Annapolis, and went to a little waterfront festival, where we saw some neat boats and Patrick and Donald had a blast riding a giant inflatable slide.

And to Think That We Saw it on DeSales Street!

Patrick and I took the train into D.C. to attend a going away party for some co-workers and got a big surprise: we stumbled right into an Indian wedding at the Mayflower Hotel, complete with a groom arriving by elephant. We watched for an hour as the brightly dressed celebrants danced all around the elephant and the elephant slowly made his way down the street. Patrick even got his own special souvenir: a stuffed elephant, courtesy of Bill in our sales dept.