Biking in DC

Yesterday I went bike riding through Washington, DC.  It was a blast.  I have not been on a bike in probably 20 years, maybe more.  The cousin that I am staying with thought it would be a great idea to bring bikes into the city and use them to get around rather than try to drive it and walk around.

My kids really wanted to see the Martin Luther King memorial.  So that was my only destination.  My cousin had other thoughts.

There is so much to see and do in DC for free is truly does amaze me.

We drove down to my other cousin’s place who lives in downtown DC.  From there we biked to the general area of the majority of the memorials.

We went directly to the MLK memorial.  Neither of my cousins had ever been to it.  It was quite a sight.

  

It was a calm place.

From there we went to the Korean War memorial.

It was a different energy.  It is awesome that there are so many memorials to see.  Great starting points for talking to the kids about it.

After that we went for fro-yo and then eventually back to my cousin’s place in DC.

Her building has a roof top pool which the kids made use of.

We stayed up on the roof for quite some time relaxing.

My body is feeling the effects of biking around.  Diva enjoyed the biking so much she has asked for a bike.  I will look into find her one for cheap when I get back.

Retail Therapy

Yesterday I shopped until I dropped.

In the morning I went to Home Goods which is such a fun store for me.  I walked around looking at everything, like a kid in a candy store.  I found dishes!!  I have been looking for dishes for years.  I am not one of those people who co-ordinates naturally.  I need to buy a set of dishes so that they all match.  My cousin can put these plates with those bowls and it looks like it should have gone together all the while.  That is not me.

The set I bought is white.  I had been shying away from white for the longest while but the set I bought change my mind as it is 24 pieces.  Each place setting includes a dinner plate that is not super-sized, a side plate, cereal bowl, pasta bowl, soup bowl and a mug.  All for $35.  I can’t go wrong with it.  Did I also mention it is porcelain?

In the evening I took the girls to Target and it was a long trip.  I was not wearing a watch but it was close to 10 when we finally left.  It was daylight when we left the house.  My girls went a little crazy so I had to rein them in.  Since we inventoried their wardrobe before we left I was in a position to veto a lot of their wants.

So far this trip has been great.  My only issue is that we are not going to bed in a timely manner but since we are on vacation it’s “okay”.

Live from MD …

The Drive

We left more than 1.5 hours later than I would have liked.  In the week, I bought what I figured would be more than enough gas to get me across the border so I could fill up with “cheap” American gas.  It was very close.

As I was getting to the Queenston/Lewiston bridge there were a couple of flashing signs that warned of a 30-60 minute wait at that bridge.  The same sign also told me that there was no delay at the Fort Erie bridge.  So we went to the Erie bridge.

There was a line.  It was moving but there was still a line-up.  It was longer than the bridge itself.

Just as I was about to get on the bridge the gas light came on.  We said a little prayer as I think it would have been a tiny bit embarrassing to run out of gas on the bridge.  The total wait was a little over 30 mins.

A short drive around to find a gas station that didn’t look like it would steal my credit card information was in order.  I found a Sunoco that didn’t look like it was on the verge of going out of business.  I swiped my credit card and was told to see the cashier.  This is not a good sign.  The cashier walks me back out to the pump like I have trouble understanding English to walk me through the process.  Again I get the see cashier message.  I felt a little vindicated at this point.

Needless to say we had to walk back into the station where he decides I look trustworthy enough to let me fill up without paying first.  So back out to the pump I go and fill up.  $50 later my car is full.  In Toronto, it would have been $65-ish.  Anyhoo, I walk back to the cashier to pay my bill.  I swipe my card and this time he gets a please call a 1-800 number.  It is at this moment that I start to think about whether or not I have activated the card. *hanging head in shame*

I paid with a different card and go on my way.

Much to the annoyance of my Aunt who lives in Maryland, I tend to take the smaller highways that take me through a lot of small towns with tiny speed limits.  I like to look at more just trees and highway on my drives.  Well this time it bit me as I went through 2 towns that were have festivals and traffic was a nightmare.

Traffic coupled with a bungled stop for food and a washroom break added almost 2 hours to my travel time.  But we made it to my cousin’s house safely which is really all that matters.

Sunday

Today my cousin & I hit the local Staples to pick up a few back to school supplies that were on sale for cheap.  We also did a bit of grocery shopping.  I bought some notebooks, glue and folders for my kids and some Chobani for myself.

In the late afternoon, I went to see my Aunt.  When I am in MD is usually when I see my family that lives in T.O.  My other Aunt who lives down the road from me was visiting.  So we had a great time catching up.  It was not all good news as a family friend died Monday. This was very shocking to me as I just saw her in January and she looked so good.  2 months ago she was diagnosed with liver cancer and now she’s gone.  It still seems so strange and a bit hard to comprehend. I can’t imagine the sorrow her husband and children are feeling right now.

1 more sleep

Diva found her iTouch!!!  I’m so glad, she was very upset about it.

I left work at 7 tonight.  Still feel behind but no long my problem.

I have yet to pack.  I am really looking forward to my vacation.  I am trying to get on the road before 7 am.  Did I mention I have yet to pack???

There is no rest for the wicked.

What a week

This week has been extremely busy.  Work has been beating me up big time.  Couple that with a lot of errands that I want to do before Saturday morning and you have one tired lady.

On Tuesday, Diva lost her iTouch. She thinks it’s in the house somewhere but I don’t think so.

Princess has been questioning how it is that people go to work 5 days a week.  She’s tired and she took Wednesday off to go to the zoo with Diva and the summer campers.  I hope this motivates her to save her money and get a job she enjoys so it doesn’t quite seem like work.

I can’t wait until tomorrow.  Mentally I’m ready.  I still have to pack and tidy up the house before we go.

Only 2 more sleeps.

Sorry I was MIA

I had a great post roughly written out in my head to recap my vacation but I have yet to get around to putting it together.

Basically the most important part is I was UNDER budget!!!  WHOO HOOOO!!!!

First. Time. EVER!!!

I left Toronto with $648 US and an empty credit card, just in case.  I returned home with … $67 US and an empty credit card!!!

It is so nice to know there will not be a bill coming in the mail next month from this trip.

Because the minivan we drove in was already full on the way down I restrained myself a lot.

Last week work was kicking my behind.  I am no longer built to lounge for a week on vacation then get 5 hours sleep the night before coming home and function at work for the entire week after that.  It was brutal.

I think I am back on track, life-wise, for this week.  Spending recap to come later tonight.

I’m so behind on my blog reading it’s sad.  I hope all is well with all of you.

 

Traveler’s log – Day 10

Today I went to Home Goods & Marshall’s with my cousin.  I love going shopping with her as she has great design sense.  She can look at a comforter and build a whole room around it with ease.  I am not that creative.

Things in the States are so much cheaper than they are in Canada.  It’s insane.  I think if I lived here I could definitely get sucked into the consumer lifestyle.  There are a lot of pretty things at very affordable prices.

Being around my cousin does inspire me to try to make my place a little more personal.  Too bad for me the feeling only lasts while I’m with her.  But that’s good for my bank account.

I am chilling at my Aunt’s house, up way too late.  Tomorrow is our journey back.  Hopefully it will be an easy ride.

 

Traveler’s log – Day 9

We got up early.  We left 1/2 hour before the desired time.

We spent the day driving to MD.  Nothing exciting at all.

I decided to sleep at my cousin’s house tonight as it will be a tight fight at my Aunt’s.

My cousin & I enjoyed a grown up girls’ night out at a local seafood restaurant.  We only had appetizers as it was almost 9 when we got to the restaurant.  It was nice to catch up.

My girls are in heaven playing with their cousin.  Since they all have an iTouch, they are sitting in her room face timing each other.  Ahhh to be young.

I have yet to see my watch.  But my cousin did tell me that when she received it she forgot all about me and since it was recently her birthday she spent some time wondering who would send her such an expensive gift without a card. LOL

 

Traveler’s log – Day 8

We got a wake up call at 8 AM this morning.  Too bad no one moved!!

It was another lazy day.  We didn’t leave the unit until after noon.  To go to another pool in the complex.  A couple of hours were spent horsing around in the pool.

We came back had a late lunch and relaxed some more.  It’s a hard life but someone has to do it!!!

In the late afternoon, we went back to the Outlet mall so my Dad could exchange some sandals he purchased.  We spent over 1 hour there.  Princess and Diva picked up some gifts for their friends.

We went back to the burger place for dinner, then a stop at a souvenir shop, of which there are plenty.

Then we came home to pack up as tomorrow is going to be very early for us.

Strangest thing, earlier this week I bought the Whitney Houston’s greatest hits CD, so we could have something to listen to on the drive back.  I can not find it anywhere.  Most annoying.  I’m pretty sure I brought it to the unit but it is nowhere to be found.

 

Traveler’s log – Day 7

Yesterday’s wake up call was at 10 again.

After breakfast, everyone picked up an electronic gadget and that was that.

Eventually we wound up at the beach. We took a short walk along the beach.

 

It would have been a long walk except Princess was on a seashell finding mission. There were lots of colourful shells.

 

She had a whole collection of them which I think were left by the poolside. I don’t want to ask just in case they were. We also saw what I can only assume is a dead jellyfish.

 

After the walk on the beach we went to the infinity pool so the kids could swim. I can hear my Dad saying in his head “These Canadian children … a perfectly good ocean available to swim in and they choose the pool”. Mind you the water in the ocean was refreshingly cold.

The kids were in the pool for a good long while. Only when hunger called were they willing to get out.

Lunch was had around 5 PM. This vacation is so off-schedule. Monday morning is going to be ugly.

After lunch we all got back on our electronics until the promise of a trip to Target got our attention.

I went to Target!

I went to Target!

Yes I know I’m a 5-year-old child!

At Target I restrained myself and only picked up a few things. I did manage to find a microplane zester/grater for $1.03, considering I was looking at one on sale for $4.99 I thought that was a great deal!

On the way home from Target, it was decided that we should stop for pizza.

Dinner was had after 10. My body is not liking me very much.

When I tried to log on last night, the internet was not working.  So there were 3 young ladies (not including myself ) who were not happy.