I have to say – the kitchen was a scene of utter chaos. And I absolutely loved it. People moving around, jostling, yelling for space and help. A bustle of activity and collisions and it was just so glorious to witness.
You may gauge the holidays on the meals that are served. But for me, the pleasure and measure of it is in the preparation. A house is full of love when its kitchen is full with motion.
A long day, but faster than it seemed. Despite us being in DC for a few days, it felt like we didn’t have enough time to visit with Kirt, Tricia, Paige, and Lisa/James. It felt like a blur to me, but it was probably doubly so for Liz.
All in all, I’m quite awed by what Liz has done. I know Tricia and Paige also completed the marathon, but for Liz… this was her first. And something she’s been working and training for, for almost a year. I’ve seen the work and struggle up close, and trust me when I say to you: it’s a LOT.
For most of the day, but especially starting from here on out… Liz kept saying “I’m freaking out!”
It got a bit… shouty. And a lot loud. And a lot competitive. But was as raucous and as fun as I hoped it would be. Really a fun, fun game all around.
Back home – Tricia is back home! And hanging out with everyone in the front yard.
Woke up early today, to see Tricia off. She’s heading to training for a few weeks, and was catching an early morning ride to the airport.
Tonight, we arrived in the nick of time… and discovered we mostly had the entire theater to ourselves. The kids got pretty excited, and scrambled down to the front to get seats closer to the screen.
Paige, undaunted and ready to continue on to the finish.
Liz tried at least 20 different Italian restaurants, and nearly every place was booked. Again, we waited too long to try ot get reservations… as everyone and their mother was intent on carbo-loading the night before the race. So of course, every Italian joint was fully booked up.
We ended up getting reservations at a local restaurant, Nella in Hyde Park.
Tonight, we met up with them after work and went out for some tapas. Tricia is a big fan of Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba, but we unfortunately didn’t get reservations in early enough. While looking around, I found Jaleo, which looked pretty great (note: this is a restaurant by José Andrés – someone Liz and I enjoyed watching on PBS).
Liz and I got to watch a really great event: Tricia’s graduation ceremony, where she officially became an Air Battle Manager, for the 337th Air Control Squadron.
Brandon set up a slack line (and is something to behold, watching him run and leap onto the thing).
A big event that many of us were looking forward to this weekend: Tricia, visiting with the kids. It’s been ages since Liz and I have seen Paige, Audrey, and Sebastian… and it was a mini-reunion of sorts when they all arrived.
It’s tough to only see family via video, and doubly so since it’s been harder to see the Fords. But video has gotten better over the years, and while it pales to being in the same room… it’s still something that can connect us, despite our distances.
The ladies, checking out some family photos on Tricia’s laptop. For some reason, my iPhone added this extra blur/gauze to things and this looks like a ridiculous stock photo.