4th of July in DC, take two.

Well my dear ones, a year ago tomorrow, I got on a plane headed to Spartanburg with the knowledge that the next 4th of July, I would spend being the local in DC not the tourist. Did I know because I had a job, or a place to live, or the promise of a future in the city? No, I knew because deep inside my heart I had known all weekend that THIS, DC, was the place that I was supposed to be at this point in my life. And I am so grateful for the wonderful blessings of a great job, a beautiful new home, and friends that care about me. :)

Ok, now that I've gotten the sappiness out of the way... this weekend was fabulous! And last week was too, for that matter. (Sorry no blogs, I was super busy, and didn't have pictures to prove it.) I spent the whole weekend with my friend Valerie and her sweet friends that were visiting for the weekend. Be prepared, this one is long.

Friday night I jetted home from work to get ready to rush out the door to meet Val and the gang at Jazz in the Garden at the National Gallery of Art's Sculpture Garden. I thought it was just a hop, skip, and a jump away from me, but the walk ended up being a good 40 minutes in the heat. Needless to say I was a little wilted when I arrived! It was a packed garden, and the hot salsa music was keeping the crowd excited. Sangria pitchers were flowing, and all were having a fabulous time. Some folks (no one from our group) even ran through the quite wide fountain only to get escorted by security once they reached the other side. The hot salsa night at the garden looks like it might be a tradition for this little lady, but I promise it was just as fun the second time!

Val and I by the fountain

Sarah, Justin, Callan(Sunday dinner regular), Rebecca, Valerie, and I

Notice the folks running through the fountain? This was taken on our way out after about 10 people had already taken the plunge into the water. Hey, it was hot salsa... can you blame them for wanting to cool off?

After the evening of music we took a leisurely stroll (30 minutes) to a not-so-nearby sushi restaurant to fill our increasingly noisy stomachs. I will not eat there again, but the company was fun.

 The famous Chinatown arch by our metro stop for the evening

Saturday morning I woke up to rush off to kayak on the Potomac with the gang and meet the two friends that didn't arrive til late Friday night. However, the sequestered-cabin-on-the-river place that Val's crew chose to go to had me driving in circles on the Maryland side of the Potomac for a good 45 minutes. The blackberry and google maps gave me the exact same directions, but I promise.... the street sign they told me to look for did not exist. I even got out and asked someone to help me, and the woman offered to lead me there... but she drove me to the exact same place I ended up the other three times, the National Harbor NOT the Fort Washington Harbor. I had this feeling the whole time that I was within a stone's throw of the place, and Val confirmed today that we passed all the same landmarks and the same streets, but the last turn I kept missing was into a residential area that was not well-marked. Needless to say... I gave up and went home VERY disappointed that I did not get to go kayaking (which I enjoy thoroughly).

But have no fear, I got to meet everyone later in the evening at Valerie's cookout!

Derrick, Jacob (Sunday dinner regular), Josh, Justin, Trevor, and Ben

The boys are always the grill-masters. It used to be our friend Jordan's job at Sunday night dinners, but we unfortunately will be without him for the next little bit. He was always required to sport an apron, as it improved the taste of our food magically. :) So the boys wearing aprons are part one of the funny picture. Part two... Somehow I always get the kitchen task of making the margaritas, and usually only 2 or 3 people (girls) have one. But on this particular night we bought just enough for the girls and a little extra, and who decides they want one?! ALL the boys, except Josh who said he was too manly for a margarita. Needless to say, the margarita mix was all gone by the beginning of dinner and a picture had to be taken to document the momentous occasion.

 Me, Ben, Rebecca, Derrick, Val, Josh (nice one, Josh), Sarah, and Jacob

After the fantastic burgers we walked to the Dairy Godmother for some frozen custard. Some were a little excited they got to sit in this chair...

I was not one of them for obvious reasons if you know me at all.

Sunday everyone came over to my house in Eastern Market for another cookout and pre-fireworks fun. We had an easy meal of hotdogs, veggies, watermelon, slaw, and baked beans. Dessert got eaten too quickly for me to get a photo of my patriotic decorations. 

What's left of the lemonade pie courtesy of The Neely's on Food Network

We played some frisbee, ladder ball, and scattergories to pass the time until we made the trek to the opposite side of the mall where the Lincoln Memorial is to watch the fireworks. It was so worth it but I do mean long trek....

 We found a great spot with a great view and plenty of space for all of us (11) to eat our Subway dinner, play some Apples to Apples and stretch out for the fireworks. 

Happy Birthday America!

After the fireworks we avoided the metro lines by walking across the Memorial Bridge to Rosslyn to hang out there for a bit before braving the metro lines. On our way we saw a few sights I haven't shared with you before, and one I hadn't seen up close. Unfortunately it's also pitch black most places in DC at night, so the photos aren't so great, but I thought I'd share, then I must cut this off, because I know you're getting tire of reading. :)

 My future place of employment (one day). The Kennedy Center. 

The tradition view of Iwo Jima.

 

 The view that I like. 

It won't be so long next time, I promise. xoxo