Falls Church, VA and Washington D.C.

We arrived in Falls Church, VA on a Friday afternoon…

Although Matt and I were there until Tuesday morning, it was too few days!

We had a great time with Sandy, Marge, Mandy, Zahra, and Des.  (Not to forget Marge and Sandy’s fun and fabulous friends—George, Margie, Mary, and Tom.)

Jen and I met Sandy and Marge on our trip to Tanzania.  I hadn’t seen them since…I think we figured out that it was about 5 years ago. 

It was a wonderful few days!  It will NOT take me as long to visit again—a promise and a threat!  SMILES!

Our first dinner--YUM!

Matt and Mandy...sharing food

Sandy and Marge at the ponds in their backyard

Birding and walking the wetland park

Sandy and Marge

Matthew celebrating his 28the birthday with Marge, Sandy, Mandy, and me.

Unfortunately, I do not have a good photo of Mandy, Sandy and Marge's beautiful dog.  She was a huge part of Matt's joy while visiting.

On Saturday, Matthew and I went to brunch with Zahra and her significant, Des--yet another "opportunity-gift".  We don’t often see Matthew’s cousins on the paternal side, so it is an especially happy time when we do. 

Thank you both for spending your Saturday with us!  (Des, I am very pleased to have met you.  You get a “thumbs up”!)

Zahra—WOW!  You’ve grown into your brilliance and beauty.  I love you, dear niece!

Zahra and Des

The Washington Monument and ice cream trucks--smiles!

Matt and Zahra 

The "new" Martin Luther King Jr. memorial

We are now in West Point, New York…the place that spring forgot.  There are, as yet, no buds on the trees, and it is COLD (upper 30’s lower 40’s).  It hasn’t stopped raining since we drove into the campground yesterday evening (Tuesday).  Our joy this week will be seeing another of Matthew’s cousins, Julie and her husband, Mike.  (Photos to follow in the next blog.)  I cannot remember the last time I saw this wonderful niece!

However, I do have a photo…(I figure I am safe.  She doesn’t have the blog address, yet—smiles!)

Thursday morning...a waterlogged West Point, NY campground

1984

Julie is the cute young girl standing on the chair with her hands on her hips.
(She had strength even then!)
Sam, Matthew's father, is the man on the left.
Amber, Matthew's second aunt, is sitting in a chair on the far right.