Basically, my excuse is that I like to post pictures with my adventures. And I've learned that when you marry a photographer, you kind of stop taking pictures because spouse is doing such a great job of documenting for the both of you.
But I'll see what I can do to get you caught up. It may or may not involve borrowing heavily from said photographer spouse. I hope you've got a few spare minutes...I'm pretty much covering a whole season, here...
Most of my family came out over Labor Day weekend to hang out and explore DC.
(there's more where that came from, if you click on those pics)
More importantly, most came to attend the coveted Boise State/VT game.
It took place at FedEx Field so that the game could be played on what everyone at Tech likes to call "neutral" turf. Hmm. Let's review: VT is a 4-hour car ride. BSU is a 6-hour plane ride (plus layovers) and a 1-hour metro ride. 80-90% attendance being rabid fans from one team (with their band playing the halftime show and their fans monopolizing the jumbotron) don't seem so neutral to me, but whatever. (See that blue section? That's Boise.)
Although I admit, I was pretty impressed with the marching band's mad skills. They actually formed the state of Virginia, with a little star where Blacksburg was.
Not like Boise State needed a bigger fan base to win in the closing moments of the game, anyway. Please observe the faces in the crowd on this one, to get the full effect. (For the record, David cheered louder when he realized he captured this game-winning shot than when the dude actually caught the ball. Can't say I blame him.)
It was intense. It was probably the best football game I've ever seen in person. It made me a believer.
And incidentally, it got us on ESPN.
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David and I also took a trip down to Broadway to party with our newest 2-year-old nephew and his 1-year-old cousin.
The weather was perfect, the decorations were exciting, the food was divine, the scenery was spectacular, and the kids were perfectly happy.
It was a good one.
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I also got a chance to show David the wonder that is the Renaissance Festival, in all its decked-out glory. It is a fabulous mismash of tightrope-walking magicians, sword swallowers, glass blowers, turkey legs, chocoloate-covered cheesecake on a stick, bagpipes, jousting, and everything in between.
The highlight this year: we got to do a little bit of axe-throwing. Huzzah!
(Dude next to us: 2. Us: 0.)
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We wanted to really experience the amazing east-coast autumn this year, so we took a camping trip to the Shenandoahs just as the leaves hit their peak.
The weather was on our side, so we took a leisurely hike through the hills to check out the leaves and some pretty stunning waterfalls. It was a virtual photography wonderland.
We also caught every sunrise and sunset while we were there. I love them. So does David's camera.
But the most fun (besides the campfire and s'mores) was goofing around with David's camera after dark.
Aw yeah.
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Sarah-Dawn came out to visit, which gave us an excuse to wander around the monuments and eat at some of our favorite places she'd never been to, like Dangerously Delicious Pies and Rita's (ice custard happiness!).
Check it out - I flashlight-graffiti'd David's shot. I'm such a nice wife.
We also visited the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. Best part of all: reading everyone's signs.
Other favorites: "Zombies for education! ...We love bigger brains!" "I enjoy pancakes." "We're in DC, Charlie!" "I want more tortillas when I order fajitas at a restaurant" and "Is this the line for Justin Bieber tickets?"
S-D was with us over Halloween, so on Saturday we got ourselves all dressed up and hit up Georgetown (we'd been told the people-watching opportunities were substantial).
It was amazing to see how creative everyone out there got with their costumes. Popular recurring themes this year: Where's Waldo?, Mario and Luigi, and Alice in Wonderland.
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Leslie, Alex, and my mom were in New York last weekend, so you know we couldn't resist heading up there to join 'em. We jumped on the Chinatown bus right after work and were on our way to the Big Apple.
Don't worry, we all crammed into one teensy NY hotel room, family style. Which worked very well, because we just wanted to be together. We were having such a good time talking and laughing (did you know that my mom has an extremely contagious laugh?) that we kept it up long after we turned the lights off. Family is so awesome.
It was a whirlwind trip, as trips to New York almost always are. We did some people-watching around Times Square in the morning rain and caught the tail end of Good Morning America.
We walked across the Brooklyn Bridge and ate pizza at some famous place under the bridge that I can't remember the name of (awful darn pizza though!).
We also tried (and failed) to win the Wicked Lottery, and ended up seeing the Rockettes Christmas show instead (so refreshing to see people who will still say "Merry Christmas!" and talk about the Savior's birth in a public, non-religious setting. It is virtually nonexistent in PC DC anymore. Two words: Holiday Tree.). We also ate at my new favorite Indian restaurant called Tadka (it's near Lexington and 53rd. If you're in NYC, go there. Just go. Please. And you're welcome.).
Of course, a trip to New York just isn't complete without a stroll through Central Park.
It never fails me. I just adore that park.
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Finally, I went to Raleigh last week for some work training. Totally a worthwhile trip, and it made me all sorts of excited to pass on my knowledge to my customers. Also, as you may or may not recall, one of my best friends, Lauren, lives in Raleigh. Of course, I stayed with her and got to catch up, admire her mommy skills, and oogle over her adorable, happy baby. I was too busy living in the moment to take any pictures, so you'll have to settle for a shot from May.
To sum it up, all is well on the eastern front.
