Washington, D.C. Part 1

 We have been trying to do a trip to DC for awhile now and it finally happened! Yay!

Wayne had a conference in Maryland so the kids and I tagged along for the road trip. 9 hours of traveling is nothing compared to what we're used to. What we were not used to was being south of the Mason/Dixon line in the summer. Instantly the temperature rose and we all started to melt. For the first couple of mornings, my teenager kept putting pants on. Maybe I should have let him suffer the consequences of such a foolish choice, but the mother hen in me wanted to spare him from embarrassing chafing. So he heard me say a few times, "We are in the south! It is HOT! Put your shorts on!"

While Wayne was attending his Summer quarter pastor's conference, the kids and I had a few days alone.

Now, I've been feeling a little sensitive lately in regards to maintaining some independence. I have a great husband and we've fallen into each of our roles pretty easily. He drives, I work the entertainment and snacks. He navigates, I point out the restaurants. He fills the car with gas, I go to the bathroom. He pays for stuff, I lead the group in a hearty, Thanks, Dad!. All that being said, I also realize that I'm at risk of getting a little ... lazy. I could maybe challenge myself to step outside of my comfort zone every now and again and gain some self confidence in areas I don't usually pay attention to. And so it began ...

My credit card wasn't working. It must have been flagged for being out of the country. So in the middle of Trader Joe's, I called my bank. And I called them again from Olive Garden when it still wasn't working. I was pretty proud of myself for being persistent and fixing the problem. I even texted my husband so he would know there was a problem and hey - I took care of it.

After a night in a hotel by myself with the kids, we packed up and headed farther south to Richmond, Virginia. This required me to drive through the Washington, D.C. area by myself. If you've ever heard how awful the traffic is in this area, it is all true. So with my GPS programmed and my hands firmly clutching the stirring wheel at 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock, we were off. At some point I some how managed to find myself on some Express Lane that required a special pass that I obviously didn't have but the GPS made me do it.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

We were heading to Richmond to visit friends from college. I couldn't wait to see them again and meet their kids after all these years! I managed to be ahead of schedule and didn't want to show up on Cara too early, so I stopped for gas. It was then that I realized that the credit card that I had spent numerous phone calls on the day before was left at Olive Garden. 

I left the credit card at Olive Garden.

After reuniting with my friend and settling into her home, I was back on the phone with the credit card company and Olive Garden trying to rectify my mistake. My husband received a semi passive aggressive text from me that read something like - 
Me: Left the credit card at the restaurant last night. Whatever. 
Him: Did you get it back?
Me: Nope. In Virginia now. Whatever.

I was feeling a little deflated by my mistake but I was determined to  move on and have a good time. And we did. We had a blast!! Our friendship picked up right where we left off. It was honey. We brought each other up to date on our lives and reminisced about the past. 

 And meanwhile, our kids got to know one another through the typical bonding of the Wii and a day spent at a museum followed by an amusement park. What more could kids ask for? We are awesome mommies. Yep.

 And I just have to explain this next photo because it was hilarious. We went to this particular museum because Cara's 2 year old was telling me about how she saw rat's playing basketball. I thought she was nuts but Cara confirmed this was true. So that's how we found ourselves at this particular museum watching fancy rat's play basketball. It was totally worth it.

Our girls totally hit it off. They bonded over American Girl dolls, clothes and the Wii. At the amusement park, they started off with the mild rides like driving the cars around and slowly built up to roller coasters I wouldn't be caught dead on.  Life was sweet as they stood in lines together, screamed bloody murder as their little bodies were jostled to and fro on crazy rides, and shared snacks and treats. Until Zanna wanted to go on the Ride of Death (that's not really what it was called - like I'd let her go on that, people!) and Livvy did NOT! And the whole Chic-fil-A fiasco. But I won't get into that.

And we ended the day a little crabbier than how we began.
 Zanna: Whatever. (I don't know where she gets this attitude!)

Happy ending! Everyone was happier once the air conditioning kicked in on the van ride home:) 

We have great memories of Cara's someone's Tervis cup addiction, Sonic cherry limeade drinks and a elementary graduation celebration! Will is still talking about how much he liked visiting with their two year old as they chatted it up on van rides. It's comforting to know that even though we change through the years, somethings never change - like her laugh you'd recognize in a crowed room or that her enjoyment of crushed ice is still there! 

After our wonderful visit with friends, it was time to hit the road and go get Dad. Part 2 of our trip was about to begin!