The National Cherry Blossom Festival

Today is the start of the National Cherry Blossom Festival. It is a two-week event that happens every year in the DC area, celebrating the 1912 gift of cherry blossom trees from Japan. It typically coincides with the beginning of spring.

http://nationalcherryblossomfestival.org/cms/index.php?id=390

Night out on the town

Last night David and I went to the Britney Spears concert in Washington, DC. It was our big night out. The tickets went on sale in December and we decided to buy them - thinking it was three months away and we had plenty of time to get a babysitter. Well, a few weeks ago I realized we needed a babysitter! We asked Auntie Marisa to come down from New York, but since the concert was a Tuesday, that would have been hard. So we then asked Cousin Julie - she lives in DC a few blocks from the Verizon Center, so we would bring Rachel to her and then pick her up after the concert.

I worked at home that day so I could get Rachel early from day care and then we could head into DC to drop Rachel off and get some dinner before the concert. We set Julie up with the pack-n-play, Rachel's pajamas, some toys, books and some food.

David and I headed to the concert which was enjoyable. The music was great, but you definitely don't go to a Britney Spears concert to hear her sing, and her dancing is just not the same. She seems to be really stiff and awkward. They seem to give her simple steps because she just can't move. She definitely lip syncs, but the show was great for entertainment and costumes and the overall music.

We got to Julie's after the concert around 1130PM. Rachel had been fast asleep so we scooped her up and tucked her back in her car seat for the long drive home. Julie said she was perfect - hardly said a word and was really well-behaved. We really appreciate Julie's help so that we could enjoy an evening out - concerts will most likely be a thing of the past, or we'll have to be very selective in the ones we go to.

"All eyes on me in the center of the ring just like a circus..."

The luck of the Irish

Today is March 17th - St Patrick's Day. But besides wearing green and eating corned beef and cabbage, what does it really mean?

Here is a link to an article about the day and its traditions. Now go kiss the Blarney Stone!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Patrick's_Day

Fun fact of the day

YIKES!

http://www.factropolis.com/2006/09/there-really-was-old-macdonald.html

One month older

At this exact moment, 8 months ago, Rachel Charlotte was born.

Happy 8th Month Birthday, littlest! Mommy and Daddy love you very much!

Weekend with Grandpa Tony and Grandma Margie

We spent this weekend with the New Jersey grandparents. We hadn't seen them since mid-December when they came to babysit for my holiday party.

They drove down Friday night so they could see us earlier on Saturday. They brought lots of new clothes and some great toys for Rachel.

We went to lunch and then went to the Udvar Hazy Air and Space Museum. We had never been there before - what a great time we had! There were so many neat planes, including the Concorde, as well as engines, uniforms, ammunition. One of the best exhibits was the Space Shuttle Enterprise - it is placed in the middle of the musum right in front of you as you walk in. It's an awesome site!

After the museum we went to Mimi's Cafe for dinner. It's a new restaurant that opened in the area recently. We hadn't tried it yet, so we decided to give it a try. Our original plan was to go to Sweetwater Tavern for dinner and to go to Mimi's for lunch after church on Sunday. But we were too full from lunch to go to Sweetwater, so we figured Mimi's would have a selection of lighter fare.

It wasn't a great experience - from the waiter to issues with Margie and David's foods - but we survived.

On Sunday we went to church and then Sweetwater Tavern for lunch before Margie and Dad headed back to New Jersey. That restaurant is a favorite of ours - Margie especially loves the crab cakes. As always, the food was great and the service fantastic. Rachel was having a great time bouncing on Grandpa Tony. She was laughing and laughing, making us all laugh.

Then it was time for them to go. We won't see them again until Easter weekend in April when we travel to New Jersey.

Here are some additional pictures from the weekend:

Rabbit, Rabbit

It's March 1st...the first of a new month.

When I was in college, my roommate Susan taught me to say "Rabbit, Rabbit" at the begining of each month. She always told me that it should be the first thing you do.

Of course since that time almost 20 years ago, I think I have actually said it only about 10 times at the moment when you should. Maybe I need to work on that to have some better luck!

Here is a little on the history of "Rabbit, Rabbit:"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbit_rabbit