NBC-10-Philadelphia-kimwolterman

Leavin' on a jet plane

When Jim and I were first married we alternated holidays with our parents on Thanksgiving and Christmas. We did not live in the same state as them, so both trips involved fairly long drives. The weather was often a problem for us. A few years after we had Andy, we decided it was too much to make both of those trips, so we stopped traveling on Thanksgiving. Sometimes whichever set of parents was not going to see us at Christmas came and visited us for Thanksgiving.

Andy and Megan have had the same tradition going since they got married, except they would normally fly home for Thanksgiving since it is a long drive from the Washington, DC area. This year they decided to stay in DC for Thanksgiving, as they will have a longer break at Christmas and will be able to spend several days with both families at that time. Jim and I flew out to see them instead. We have never flown on this holiday before, and so we were part of the 43.5 million people flying for Thanksgiving. Somehow we were given TSA pre-check clearance for the flight, and didn't have to stand in the long security line.

Since Katie is relatively new at her job, she did not have any time off accrued. But her boss said that if anyone wanted to work Thanksgiving day (it is an international company so their customers would not be closed), they could take Friday off instead. So she worked that day and then took a red eye from Los Angeles to DC, arriving around 6:00 a.m. Friday morning.

Washington Memorial

We got in Wednesday around dinner time, so Andy and Megan picked us up and we went out to eat. We decided to celebrate Thanksgiving on Friday when Katie could join us, so on Thursday we went downtown to look around. It was surprisingly busy considering most people should have been at home making their turkey dinners.

Friday was kind of a lazy day. The kids hit some door buster sales, but didn't really find too much. Jim and I took a long walk on a wonderful trail that is right by Andy and Megan's condo. We came upon a dog park that had to be five acres in size. It was amazing to see all the dogs playing with each other. For our Thanksgiving meal, Megan prepared Cornish hens with dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, a lettuce salad, and green bean casserole. For dessert, Katie made sweet potato cupcakes with toasted marshmallow frosting, and Megan made a chocolate mousse pie. Delicious!

Thanksgiving Dinner

On Saturday we went back downtown to the United States Botanic Garden Conservatory. None of us had been there before. Part of the gardens are outside, but most of the displays are inside. As it was quite chilly, we were thankful for that. It was very crowded, but we managed to enjoy the experience anyway. From there I had suggested that we go see the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, which is across from Catholic University. I had seen reviews on TripAdvisor that said it was nicer than the Cathedral Basilica St. Louis, and I just couldn't imagine that being the case. I also commented on the fact that we always seem to seek out churches when we travel abroad and never take the time to see the ones here in the United States. Am I glad we went to see it! It is truly beautiful, and is at least on par with the cathedral here in St. Louis in the interior anyway.

Immaculate Conception Interior

Immaculate Conception

That night we had pizza in the condo, and played Five Crowns which is a card game. Jim and I played it for the first time this summer, so I picked up the game for the trip. We had a lot of fun playing, but I am just going to say that my family is pretty competitive!

Jim and I had a noon flight on Sunday, so after breakfast the kids took us to the airport. It was an easy traveling experience, despite the crowds. Katie's flight was early Monday morning, so the three of them had some time alone together, which was nice. They went to see the new Hunger Games movie, and then played cards that night.

It is hard to believe in a few short weeks Andy and Megan will be driving here for Christmas. We will miss Katie this year as she is unable to get any time off, and that makes me sad. Sounds like we will be having a non-traditional Christmas this year, too.

Southwest Airlines

With the continuous reports about the severity of Hurricane Sandy, AKA Frankenstorm, I was getting a little nervous about our Monday noon flight. Surprisingly my husband was pretty lackadaisical about it. He wanted to just wait and see what happened. But Andy and I were pretty convinced that if we did not get a flight out on Sunday, we probably would not be leaving before Wednesday at the earliest. When I checked with the Southwest Airlines website, they were strongly suggesting that if you had a flight out of the East coast on Monday or later you try to schedule an earlier flight.  And they were offering to change flights for free. That was the clincher for me - the airlines don't give you anything for free any more. We were scheduled to fly out of Reagan National Airport, but a quick review showed that the only two flights to St. Louis on Sunday were already full. Same with the Dulles International Airport. It appeared the flights out of Baltimore were still available, so at that point we called Southwest to make sure that they would allow us to change to a flight from a different city. Surprisingly we were able to get through to an agent. The only direct flight that still had two open seats was the one leaving Baltimore at 6:50 a.m. The agent said that flight was still pretty open. Since beggars could not afford to be choosers, we booked that flight.

Andy woke us up at 4:00 in the morning (3:00 St. Louis time) and drove us to Baltimore. At that time of day it only took 45 minutes. We arrived with plenty of time to check our bags and grab some oatmeal for breakfast. Keeping a close eye on where the families and all their children sat on the plane, we settled in seats located in the middle of the plane. Apparently many others ended up taking the storm seriously, as it was 100% full. We left Baltimore a little late because the plane had too much fuel on it (and how does that happen?) and they had to unload some. But we arrived in St. Louis just a bit behind schedule, and at any rate that was no big deal for us.

Andy and Megan ended up losing power in their apartment on Monday, and the airports did indeed close that day. I doubt that we would have gotten out of the DC area until late in the week. So while I am sad that we did not get to spend the last full day with Megan and Andy, I am vastly relieved that we heeded the suggestions and got out on Sunday. I am pretty sure that the kids are glad as well. There is a reason for the adage that fish and guests smell after three days.

Inn BoonsBoro

Last Christmas Jim won the husband of the year award for presenting me with a gift certificate for a night at Inn BoonsBoro, located in Boonsboro, MD. For the uninitiated this inn is owned by Nora Roberts, who is my favorite author. I have read every single one of her books, and own most of them. I also have consumed all the books in the In Death series, which she writes under the pen name of J.D. Robb. Nora's latest trilogy is centered around the renovation of a 1790's inn located in Boonsboro (which happens to be near Nora's home town), as well as other business located along main street. I believe I mentioned in passing to Jim that Nora had restored an old inn and turned it into a Bed and Breakfast. He latched onto it from there and contacted them for a certificate.

We decided to go and visit Andy and Megan for a long weekend, and tie in a night at the inn for my birthday. When I called for the reservation I requested the Eve and Roarke room. Each of the eight rooms are named after fictional literary couples, but the one I chose is the only one representing a couple from Nora's books. Actually Eve and Roarke are the main characters in the J.D. Robb books. Plus that room is on the back side of the inn, which is always a consideration for a light sleeper like me. The inn sits right on Main Street, so there is a lot of traffic passing by.

We flew into Washington Reagan on Thursday afternoon, and the kids picked us up. From the airport we went out for dinner before heading to their apartment. The next morning they left for work and we took off in Andy's car. We stopped at Harpers Ferry on our way to BoonsBoro. What a wonderful place! It is a national park, and great pains have been taken to preserve the town's predominantly early 19th century buildings. We spent several hours here and easily could have stayed longer.

St. Peter's Catholic Church

Harpers Ferry

Inn BoonsBoro

From Harpers Ferry it was a short 20 minute drive to Boonsboro, where we were cordially welcomed to the inn and shown around the building. Guests have the run of the house, so to speak, and can help themselves to drinks in the dining area, cookies (that were to die for), and Jameson from the decanter in the Library. They also offer a wine and cheese gathering at 6:00. After unloading our suitcases we walked around photographing the inn and the town. Several of the area businesses appear in Nora's books, so it was fun to get to see how close my imagination matched the real thing. We also went to Turn the Page Bookstore, which is owned by Nora's husband and is home to her book signings. She is having a signing there next weekend for the release of the third book in the Inn BoonsBoro trilogy, but by the time I got around to making reservations the inn was full for that weekend. I was able to pre-order the book however, and it will be signed and mailed to me. So that is something I guess.

Dan's Restaurant & Tap House

We met two of the other couples staying at the inn while we enjoyed the wine and cheese reception. Following that we had dinner next door at Dan's Restaurant and Tap House, which is owned by Nora's son and daughter-in-law. As guests of the inn we were able to get reservations instead of having to wait the hour and a half that is normal on the weekends. The restaurant is quite historic as well, but we were floored when we opened up the menu to find that it was back lit like an iPad for easy reading in the dim light. What a sight for aging eyes! Very cool... The bartender poured a wonderful gin and tonic, and we very much enjoyed our meals. After a pleasant stroll down Main Street, we began to look through the day's photos while indulging in a Jameson before the fire in the library at the inn. What a wonderful ending to a great day!

The next morning breakfast included cereal, fresh fruit, French toast, bacon and sausages, homemade rolls and a made-to-order omelet if you desired. Everything was quite tasty! Then we packed up the car and headed off to Antietam National Battlefield, location of the bloodiest day in Civil War history where over 23,000 lost their lives.

Soldiers at Antietam

Cannons at Antietam

We spent several hours driving through the national park and stopping to hike to the various points of interest. It is amazing to see all the history on the East coast since we do not have this type of history that is preserved in the Midwest.

We got back to Andy and Megan's around 5:00, which left us with enough light to drive around and see the bridge project that Andy is working on in DC. I took some photos as I know his Grandpa will be very interested to see the new construction. Then we went out to celebrate my birthday at a restaurant before heading back to their apartment to enjoy the chocolate birthday cake Megan had made for me.

It was our plan to fly home on Monday so that could spend all of Sunday with the kids, but we were all keeping a cautious eye on the weather. Frankenstorm and an alert from Southwest Airlines caused us to change our plans. More on that in the next post.

I can't believe I forgot to mention a low-light of our DC trip. Andy lent us his car to get to the Metro station on the days he was at work. When we tried to leave the parking lot at the Shady Grove Station on Thursday, we soon found out that you needed a Metro Card to exit - no cash or credit cards accepted. Jim had to go back into the station and purchase a Metro Card, which required a minimum amount of $10 to be loaded onto it. Interesting, since parking for the day is $4.25. The card worked fine upon leaving the lot that evening.

On Monday Katie, Maggie and I went back to DC on the Metro, parking again at the Shady Grove lot. When we arrived back at the station that night, I pulled up to the automated gate to use the balance on the Metro Card. At this point I had one car in line behind me. Holding the card to the magnetic reader, I got nothing but beeping noises. I pressed the card this way and that way to no avail. I'm starting to sweat (okay, I was already sweating from a day of tromping around in 90 degree heat) and I look in the rear view mirror to see about 30 cars behind me. By now the horns are starting to honk. There are no attendants in either of the two booths at this exit to help me out. There is no way for me to back up. It is starting to get ugly. "Get the fuck out of the way!", I hear yelled at me. Well, since you asked so nicely, let me just move out of the way - not! The man behind me was waving to the people behind him in an attempt to get them to back up. More horns begin honking, because that always helps. Additional slurs are shouted at me.

Finally, the man behind me manages to maneuver his car off to the side enough so that I can back up. I sheepishly crept over towards the other exit line, which does accept credit cards, oddly enough. The line at that exit was also backed up 20 cars or so. Do you think any of them would take pity on me and let me into the line? I guess that is what happens when you have a car with Maryland plates; everyone thought I should know better.

We finally escaped and headed back to Andy and Megan's house. My son then informs me that there is a $5 service fee to get one of those Metro Cards (because you can keep adding money to them), so that is why there was nothing left on the one Jim had bought. Oh, and by the way, you can check the balance on the card inside the station. Thanks for telling me now, son. Doh!

Katie, Maggie and I flew back from DC today (Jim came home on Sunday). The flight left on time, there were no crying babies, and we even arrived on schedule. I was a little (okay, a LOT) amazed when the flight attendant announced not once but twice that we should pick up all our trash so they could be ready for the next flight, and then proceeded to ask us to lower the window shades, turn off the overhead lights, and open up the vents before leaving our seats. REALLY??? Is this my job now? Pay more for a ticket, pay to check my bag, receive no pretzels much less a meal, no pillow or blanket and then be expected to pick up the plane for them too? Unreal... Why don't they just pass the Dust Buster and we can vacuum on the way out.

We had a nice vacation though. Yesterday I headed to the National Archives to do some genealogical research, and the girls went to the Crime and Punishment Museum and then to the Spy Museum. It was hot but not super humid, so I did a bit of hiking around on my own when the archives turned out to be a bust for me.

Coming back to reality bites though. Listening to all the voice mail messages, going through a 5 inch stack of mail, watering the outdoor plants and getting started on the laundry took my vacation mood away pretty quickly. On the plus side, we got a 3 bedroom apartment lined up for Katie and her 2 roommates today, so that takes a big weight off of all of our shoulders. (Long story - the one we thought we had lined up all summer was snatched away from us.) Now if we can just convince the landlord to let us move in before the 6th since the girls start school on the 7th.

Back to the daily grind...

Jim, Katie, Katie's friend Maggie and I are in Washington, D.C. to visit Andy and Megan. We arrived Wednesday night. The girls are staying with the kids and Jim and I are at a local Comfort Inn since Andy and Megan don't have a guest bed in their townhouse. There was a heck of a storm at 6 Thursday morning, with thunder, lightening and heavy rain. We heard 3 separate car alarms going off from the thunder-boomers.

Thursday the four of us went down to the city (Andy and Megan live in Gaithersburg, MD) for the day while Andy and Megan went to work. Jim and I went to the Mall to photograph the WWII Memorial for my dad's book while the girls did their thing, and then we met up after lunch at the Holocaust Museum. Wow - what can you so about that museum? Doesn't seem right to say I "enjoyed" the museum, but I can say unequivocally that it is very sobering and thought-provoking. After that we went to the Smithsonian Visitor's Center as I had always admired the brick castle-like appearance of the building but had never been in it. It is beautiful inside, and we also found some great ice cream. Good pick-me-up on a really hot afternoon. We also hit the Air and Space Museum before heading back towards the train. Unfortunately it began to pour, so we ducked under a building overhang for a bit. It was a soggy 45 minute train ride back to the Shady Grove Station where we had parked Andy's car.

Friday Andy took half a day off, so we drove first to Georgetown to try to score some Georgetown Cupcakes (made famous from the cable show DC Cupcakes), and found a several block long line waiting to get in. Passing on that idea we went on to Alexandria to have lunch at one of Andy's favorite restaurants. We stopped at the Jefferson and Roosevelt Memorials on our way back. While the day was cloudy and not great for picture-taking, it was pretty cool with a nice breeze. This time we hit the Georgetown Cupcake location in Bethesda about 4:30. There was still a long line at this location and it took us 40 minutes to get our dozen cupcakes. Wow - people here haven't heard that cupcakes are "out". I will say that the cupcakes are very good, but they have a cream cheese frosting, which is not my favorite. Pretty much ruined the cupcake for me.

Yesterday was spent at Gettysburg. Unfortunately we had to take 2 cars since there are 6 of us, and it is about 1.5 hours from their house to the visitors' center. We spent 4 hours driving the auto route, and it was fascinating! Again we had a gray day, but it was a comfortable temperature. Beats the heck out of the 97 degree temps back home. Today we intended to go to Mount Vernon, but it is very rainy again. Since it is nearly 2 hours away, we didn't want to gamble on doing a walking tour in the rain. We are going to play Yahtzee instead. Jim flies home at 6:55 today to rescue the dog-sitter, so we can't go too far anyway. The girls and I are coming home Tuesday.

On a side note, the storm I mentioned on Thursday apparently resulted in a lot of damage in Gaithersburg. A fairly significant number of people were without power. Lightening struck a tree which crashed on top of an apartment complex and caught on fire. At our hotel are a number of refugees from the complex. It has been heart-wrenching to listen to their stories in the breakfast room each morning. Today the Red Cross arrived as it sounds like the people have only been given rooms through tonight.