I go through brief periods where I am very prolific here on Bad Sentences, but lately I’ve been playing a serious game of catch up. These recaps tend to sneak up on me out of nowhere, but I always enjoy writing them and reflecting back on all the fun things we did during the month.
July started out with a bang – our New England road trip. I still have at least two posts left to write about our vacation (and a dozen other things that have happened since then), but it was definitely one of my favorite trips of all time. Spending time with friends and family and ample time by the sea is as good as it gets.
It was also one of the longest vacations I’ve taken in a while, so I’ve been struggling to catch up with my life ever since. The month went by far too quickly, as usual, but we made an effort to stop and enjoy the beauty of summer as often as possible. The Sunday after we returned, we had to get our Eastern Market fix, starting with a much-needed Vigilante iced coffee.
We had breakfast at Market Lunch, located inside the market. This no-frills eatery is a DC classic, and for good reason. We each had egg platters, mine with fried green tomatoes Tom’s with a crab cake and both were outstanding at an awesome price. There will be many repeats of this situation.
After a quick workout, we kept the Sunday Funday going with a long walk around the neighborhood and a drink and a snack at Whaley’s.
Whaley’s is quickly becoming my favorite neighborhood spot. We sat at the bar, made a couple of new friends and noshed on shrimp stuffed squash blossoms. I love that you can sit at the bar, in the air conditioning, and still have a direct view of the river and Yards Park right outside.
The next week we had a fun, sugar-infused night at Bonfire and later took advantage of a gorgeous day and explored the Fresh Farm Market in Ballston.
We loaded up on produce, listened to a little live music and managed to talk ourselves out of spoiling our dinner at the Timber Pizza Company stand (I doubt we’ll be so disciplined in the future).
The next weekend was one we’d long been anticipating. We finally got to properly celebrate our future niece with a beautiful baby shower at my in-laws house out in Vienna.
Everything went so well and it was really nice getting to spend time with some of Jen’s family. I was in charge of the mocktail, so I made a faux pink champagne that turned out really well. My mother-in-law did everything else and really outdid herself. It was a beautiful shower.
I can’t wait to watch as these two take on parenthood, it makes my heart so happy watching them experience this exciting new phase of life.
The Sunday Funday tradition continued the next day with brunch at Central followed by a trip to the Air and Space Museum.
I made a goal to visit all of the Smithsonian museums this year, and so far am failing miserably at it. But this was a fun one, and a great way to spend a steamy DC afternoon.
The following week marked a big step in the life of… my hair. I finally bit the bullet and got it colored to hide some pesky grays. I’ve always liked my natural hair color and had never colored it before in all of my three decades of life, so it kind of felt like the end of an era. In reality, it looked exactly the same when I was finished, just a little less gray. I didn’t take any pictures of my hair, but did snap a shot of this awesome Paul Lawrence Dunbar mural on my walk back to the metro.
We don’t do very much hosting these days, since taking on a smaller apartment, but when we do we tend to head straight to our apartment’s rooftop. I had my friend Lauren over one night for a healthy dinner (and wine of course). I made a big kale salad with watermelon, feta, basil and almonds and we grilled chicken kebabs and salmon. We’ve got to do more of this throughout the rest of summer and into Fall.
One of the great things about working within a few blocks of my husband is the opportunity for lots of lunch dates. Our latest and greatest was a trip to Big Buns for giant burger bowls.
I’ve been trying to eat fewer carbs, but definitely wouldn’t go so far as to call this meal “healthy”. It was delicious though, and super filling. Big Buns should definitely be added to my list of places to eat lunch in Ballston.
A less glamorous part of an otherwise awesome July was the insomnia that plagued me pretty much the entire month. I’ve always had trouble sleeping, but it’s been even worse lately. In the midst of all the fun, there were a lot of sleepless nights, headaches and loads of coffee. My current favorite way to caffeinate is with a mint mojito iced coffee from Philz.
These are so refreshing! I order them light sweet because I don’t like really sugary coffee, but every now and then this is the perfect jolt of deliciousness to get me going. In this particular instance it was to fuel me through one of the hottest Nationals games I’ve ever attended.
At least there was a pretty rainbow? It actually turned out to be a really fun night, despite the profuse and unattractive sweating that occurred. It was my company’s yearly work outing and we had a great time getting to know some of my coworkers a little better and watching a Nats win.
The following morning, we were off to the winery for our monthly dose of wine chatter and scenic countryside.
After a relatively uneventful week, our last weekend in July was jam-packed with good stuff starting with a day out in Adams Morgan.
For some reason, I’ve spent very little time in this neighborhood. When I first moved to DC it was the hottest spot to party on a Saturday night, but I rarely party on Saturday nights and missed out on that experience. Saturday afternoons, however, I’m totally down. We checked out a few spots that have long been on my radar. Our stops included coffee at Songbyrd Music House and Record Cafe…
Brazilian food and Brazilian nostalgia at The Grill from Ipanema…
And beers and kitsch at Pop’s Seabar…
All three places were great for their own reasons and I want to go back to all of them to further explore their offerings. And that was only a scratch off the surface of places I want to try in Adams Morgan!
We concluded the month much like we started it, surrounded by water. We took a lovely day trip to Annapolis, and I can’t wait to tell you all about it eventually. Until then, here’s a sneak peek.
Remembering July
Best Meal: The relaxation we felt having our first vacation dinner at The Copper Grouse in Vermont stands out above the rest.
Best Drink: This delicious Piria 2015, Paltrinieri Lambrusco di Sorbara.
Best View: So many to choose from this month, but the view from the top of Cadillac Mountain couldn’t be topped. Scenery is so much sweeter when you have to work for it.
Best Gratuitous Photo: These guys waiting on me to get ready for work in the morning. It may also tie for best view.
Looking to August
While I’m hoping August won’t be quite as busy as July (and hopefully there will be more sleep), it’s still going to be an exciting one since it’s our Anniversary Month. Tomorrow we celebrate five years of dating and later this month is our three-year wedding anniversary. We’ll also be taking a trip to New Jersey to visit Tom’s family and possibly one other quick getaway. Sprinkle in more farmer’s markets, happy hours and nights up on the roof and it’s looking to be another beautiful month.
That’s awesome that your company took you out to a Washington Nationals game as part of your annual company outing. Do they always arrange a sporting event like this for the annual company social? Or do they mix it up every year?
It varies, they usually cycle between a baseball game and having a holiday party every other year. It’s a big company, so I imagine the expense is significant. It was probably the best event we’ve had so far – great fun!