It's Thanksgiving Day morning and the rest of our vacation we will be staying at my son and daughter-in-law's condo in Arlington, Virginia. We packed up the car and set the GPS and we we off on another adventure. We were greeted at the condo entrance by Jake and he helped us get settled. It is a 12-story building in the city and they live on the 11th floor. The new roots that Jake has planted in his new life has grown quite tall! Nicole's decorating style shined in every room and was both tastefully modern and warm and comfortable. Her talent in design was obvious!
Of course, we got Bobi Kitty settled first thing. Their sweet little dog, Cleo, graciously gave up the prime spot at the window for her guest. They got along cautiously at first, then tolerance, then sort of friendly as Cleo was seen licking Bobi's ear for about a minute until Bobi couldn't take the tickle anymore and shook his head which stopped the mood. They both got along fine for a cat and a dog.
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| Bobi Kitty is on top of the world! |
Soon we were given the tour and were quite impressed with all the amenities available in this 400 unit complex. We saw swimming pools, tennis courts, paved walking paths with a waterway and woods, well-equipped exercise room, pool table and game room, huge entertainment rooms for parties which includes big screen TV, and a grand lobby. A really nice place to live!
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| Cleo and her Jake |
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| View from condo looking towards Alexandria where I was born and raised. |
We had a wonderful morning visiting with Jake and seeing where he and Nicole live now. Nicole was busy in her kitchen making the stuffing. About noon, we got ready to drive to Nicole's parent's home in Gainesville to spend the rest of Thanksgiving Day. What a wonderful time we had with such warm and hospitable people in a beautiful home! We had so much thanks to give and we all took turns sharing what we were thankful for and got to know Jake's in-laws a little more in Jake and Nicole's second year of marriage. Keith and I are so happy to know Jake has such a nice family away from where he was born and raised. It is obvious that Esther and Nicole love to cook and put on an extraordinary feast! The rest of the afternoon and evening were just as satisfying as we relaxed and enjoyed each other's company. Our hearts and tummies were full!
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Thanksgiving Dinner at the in-law's - Esther, Nicole, Bill, Gary, Andrew, Jake, Keith,
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The day after Thanksgiving was a quiet one with more relaxation and enjoying each other's company at Jake and Nicole's lovely condo. Later we drove around Arlington and got to see some of their neighborhood. It is a fine neighborhood not far from historic monuments. Nicole is close to her workplaces as she is in the navy. Jake has a 45-minute commute to Herdon where he is an accountant. They are in the middle of everything! We tried a new cafe,
Boccato, and I treated everyone to empanates, coffee, and gelatos. We drove around Shirlington, a place my mother enjoyed eating out in the 1960's. It has been majorly renovated but there are still many modern restaurants to choose from.
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| Keith & Beti at the monument of Iwo Jima nearby |
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| View of the Jefferson Memorial, Washington Monument, and Capital from the Iwo Jima Monument in Arlington across the Potomac River. |
This special weekend is not only for Thanksgiving but also Jake's 34th birthday! On Saturday, Nicole treated Jake and her in-laws to a
Cupcake & Macaron Tour in Georgetown which is in Washington, DC. I had not been to Georgetown since I was 17 and it brought back many memories and made many new ones. The tour started at
The Old Stone House, the oldest (1765) unaltered building in Washington, and we walked about a mile to the different shops with our group of about 10 and informative guide. We saw the tavern where John Kennedy proposed to Jackie and his bachelor's pad. The tour guide had many interesting facts along the tour and e stopped at about a half dozen shops for sweets included in the tour and put us ahead of the long lines. What a fun birthday memory with non-traditional birthday cake!
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| Jake & Nicole and Keith in front of the Old Stone House in Georgetown |
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| Beti & Keith in front of the Old Stone House in Georgetown |
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| View from the backyard of the Old Stone House in Georgetown |
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| Bridge over C&O Canal with the Potomac River and Key Bridge at the center top of photo in Georgetown. |
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| Famous Georgetown Cupcakes - the line was at least a block long! |
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| Jake is eying sweets at Sprinkle Cupcake |
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| This was a fudge shop where the tour stopped and sat for awhile and taste anything and everything! |
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| This is our tour guide as we left Olivia Macaron. The macarons were heavenly with so many different flavors and colors of this meringue almond delight. |
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A little bit of Missouri in Georgetown as about a hundred peaceful demonstrators loudly made their way down the street with police escorts protesting issues related to the recent Ferguson, Missouri events.
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Although we had many sweets this afternoon in Georgetown, we were ready that evening to drive back to Ashburn where my brother, John, and his wife, Corinne, invited everyone, including Jake's in-laws for a lasagna dinner in honor of Jake's birthday. Good food and great company!
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Ashburn, Virginia Birthday Dinner in Jake's honor - Nicole, Keith, Beti, Corinne, John, Gary, Esther, Jake, (Bill took the photo). We also connected by phone with Kristen in California and Ed in Iowa. So sorry to have not heard from Sarah on this special day.
What a wonderful day full of family and food and fun! We made it back to Arlington late that evening and slept well that night. The next day was actually Jake's birthday and our last full day in Virginia before our road trip back to Missouri. The next blog article is about that last special day in Virginia Road Trip - Week 2 - Jake's Birthday.
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