Back-to-back visitors at the end of March/early April provided a nice break from the routine, even if we weren’t traveling anywhere. First up was a visit from Eric and Melora Shelton and their daughter Margaret, who were visiting from Seattle. (Melora and Elise attended college together at Albion). Margaret is the same age as Henry, and she was a big hit with the kids. Vivi especially enjoyed having another girl around to dress up, play dolls and generally do “girl stuff” (as Henry calls it). Margaret also was happy to dig for worms in the backyard, which impressed Henry greatly. Having three young children in the house certainly made for some exciting dinner/bath times (yep, all three squeezed into the tub together). Fortunately, we had two extra sets of hands to help out. In fact, Eric and Melora were kind enough to make dinner (penne al vodka) for us one night, which was a real treat. Melora also introduced us to some fine Washington State wines. We lost track of how many bottles we consumed during the week, but it was a lot! We’re also grateful to Melora and Eric for giving us an excuse to hire a babysitter and go to dinner at one of our old haunts: Bistro du Coin. We used to frequent this spot once or twice a month when we lived in Dupont Circle, before we had kids—indeed, even before we were married.
Below are some pictures of Margaret, Henry and Vivian decorating Easter eggs in the basement. As you can see, they are quite the creative little munchkins:
A few days after the Sheltons returned home, Elise’s cousins Emily and Alexander visited from Michigan. Elise took some time off from work and planned a fun-filled week of activities. First up was a whirlwind tour of Washington museums, including the National Archives, the Native American History Museum and the National Air and Space Museum. Next was a tour of Georgetown University followed by lunch at The Tombs and (for Alexander) a quick jog up and down the Exorcist Steps. On Thursday, it was down to Kings Dominion (outside of Richmond) for a day of roller coasters and thrill rides. Around noon, Elise called Bryant to say that she was feeling green. For their last day, all three got a personal tour of the Pentagon courtesy of our neighbor Paul Prevost, who works for the DoD.
When they weren’t exploring Washington (or enabling their aunt’s motion sickness), Emily and Alexander provided great entertainment for Henry and Vivian. They brought a Thomas the Train set for Henry and a princess dress-up game for Vivi, and both proved hugely popular. Alexander also scored big points by taking Henry on his first fishing expedition (see Hail the Mighty Anglers!). While the boys were fishing, Vivian had a ball playing princess with Emily.
After two weeks of visitors, the house seemed a little quiet with just the four of us. No sooner had our guests departed as Henry and Vivian were already asking if they could come back. Hopefully Eric, Melora, Margaret, Emily and Alexander will visit again soon for more backyard-playing, roller coaster-riding, museum-hopping good times!
Alexander was determined to take Henry fishing while he and Emily were in town (see Spring Break Visitors). On the last day of their visit, we squeezed in an afternoon trip to Cook Lake in Cameron Regional Park, just around the corner from us. The lake is part of Virginia’s Urban Fishing Program and has a small pier where you can fish for trout and catfish (stocked in the winter and summer, respectively). The Brown-Bakers had already given Henry a Spider-Man fishing pole and tackle box at Christmas. A quick trip to Walmart secured some live bait and hooks. Then it was off to catch some fish. The boys didn’t come home with any trout, but Henry did manage (with Alexander’s help) to catch several small bluegills. It’s hard to say what Henry enjoyed more: catching the fish, or watching Alexander gut them. Henry had a great time and, as you can see from the video below, seemed pleased with his new found angling skills. Thanks to Alexander for pushing us to make this happen. It was a great discovery—so easy, even Bryant could (probably) do it.
