Back home...

We're back! And it was a really nice, relaxing trip. We spent most of Wednesday at the place pictured above, talking to old friends, eating Christmas cookies, and watching the clerk's tight and bow tie wearing children crawl in and out and around the tables. We feel that its important for us to take the time each year to go to this party. It means something to the Justice to see his clerks, and its a small thing we can do to say "thank you."

And this year, it was also a time away for me and David. 3 days of childless time! We hardly knew what to do with ourselves. So we wandered and talked and wandered and talked some more. We know our way around downtown DC pretty well at this point. We don't get lost, and most of the places we go have significance from one of the two times we've lived there before.

For instance, we went in the parking entrance for Union Station that was near the bridge I walked across every day when I went to work at the children's museum. We ate at Johnny Rockets. I'd forgotten that I metroed there once just to meet David for dinner. He was metroing from work. Sometimes, very rarely, he would get on my car when we were both coming home from work at the same time. The car might be so crowded that we couldn't get to each other, but we could exchange smiles and silly faces. =)

So... some highlights from this trip:

- Sitting in the National Gallery in the solarium, listening to the trickle of the fountain. Talking while they set up for a concert rehearsal. Watching David help them move a harpsichord. Listening to the discordant sounds of violins all playing their own thing while looking at Madonna and child art. and child art.

- Cuddling adorable Eva at Ed and Ruth's house. Good, healthy breakfasts. You don't get a loaner baby with your continental breakfast if you stay at a hotel.

- Catching up like we'd never left. Picking up right where we'd left off. Looking around and seeing ghosts of myself, David, and a Seth that never got older than 6 months everywhere we went.

But I must draw this post to a close. My big Seth needs some mommy love. =)