Our highly anticipated weekend got started on Friday. One of our favorite shows, Jeopardy, was taping episodes in DC and we had tickets to two tapings.  It was fun to see the behind the scenes action and listen to Alex Trebek answer questions from the audience during commercial breaks.

Saturday we woke up early and headed to the White House. Twice a year the White House offers tours of the grounds. We were able to walk right up to the White House and stand just a few feet from the Diplomatic Reception Room.

We also saw the Rose Garden, Jackie Kennedy Garden, outside of the Oval Office, pool, putting green, the White House kitchen garden and the entire south lawn.

(Rose Garden)

 

(Oval Office)

(Oval Office again)

They identified many of the trees on the grounds that were planted by former Presidents. Next to the trees were photos of the tree ceremony. In addition to trees planted by Presidents Obama, Bush I, Bush II and Clinton, there were trees planted by Eisenhower, Truman and even Andrew Jackson.

 

It was a great tour, however our day was just beginning.  Even though Ben was on crutches and rain was in the forecast, we decided to head up to Pittsburgh, PA. The combination of the Pirates playing the Cardinals, an interest in seeing a game at PNC Park and "free umbrella night" provided the motivation we needed for the four hour drive.

(There were a few moments when we weren't sure if it was a good idea to make the trip to Pittsburgh.)

Before heading to the game, we decided to hit up an what was described as a Pittsburgh culinary institution.  Primanti Brothers sandwiches are "almost famous" because they feature fries and coleslaw on the sandwich itself rather than as a side.  

The concept seemed pretty fabulous, but the product left something to be desired.  In the end, the sandwich was improved with a little addition of another Pittsburgh institution... Heinz ketchup.

After dinner, we headed for the stadium area.  To get to PNC park, you have to cross one of Pittsburgh's many bridges.

Before heading into the stadium, we walked around to check it out from all sides.

Once inside, the rains returned.  Luckily, it was free umbrella night.

(Even the parrot mascot had a rain slicker)

With the rains, we relocated under the covered seats and enjoyed the start of the game.  Unfortunately, the Cardinals did not capitalize on a 1st inning bases loaded opportunity.

The stadium was very impressive, particularly its use of the city skyline.  PNC park is certainly in the running for the best stadium we have been to.  Speaking of running, despite the Cardinals inability to score we stuck around to see "The Great Pittsburgh Pierogy Race."     

While mildly entertaining and probably delicious, the pierogis lacked a certain something that we have grown accustomed to in Washington with the Racing Presidents. 


With the game winding down, the Cardinals unable to put together a rally, and a four hour drive home ahead of us, we decided to head out.

Overall, we were pleasantly surprised by Pittsburgh.  Hopefully we will make it back during football season.

We got home in the early hours of Sunday morning and were happy to be home.  Sunday was spent running errands and catching up on some chores before it was time for another work week.

A Few Small Steps...

Since Ben hurt his knee, he has had to put in some quality couch time.  On Sunday, we watched a few movies. 

(The dogs have been helping take care of Ben)

Ben's knee was still pretty bad on Monday, so in order to stay off it, he worked from home for a couple of days.  Mo was less than impressed about this because she considers the couch to be hers during the week.

On Tuesday, there was a special treat for Washingtonians, especially those who are passionate about the space program.  The space shuttle Discovery was flown in on the back of 747 to be housed at the Air & Space Museum Annex by Dulles Airport.  On the way in, the shuttle circled around the National Mall and downtown DC a few times.  Kelly went down and watched in fly over.  Ben heard it above the apartment and watched in on the news.

On Wednesday, Ben had acquired crutches and headed back to the office.  It was the first time we has been on the bus in a while.  From the glass half full perspective, crutches significantly help one get a seat on the bus.

.

(Mo's glass was totally full as she got the couch back for the rest of the week.)

While Ben was able to make it to work the rest of the week, it left Kelly to take the dogs for walks.

Egg Rolls: More Than Just An Appetizer

Monday Abbey and Steve took Jaxon and Layla to the White House Easter Egg Roll. While they didn't roll any eggs, they enjoyed all of the other activities, including posing with the Washington National Presidents.

After an early morning, the fam went back and rested up while Kelly and Ben went to work. We met up later at Pi for dinner. Pi is a St. Louis based pizza restaurant with many menu items named after the Gateway to the West. Since it was the last time the fam will be together before our birthdays, we headed back to the apartment for birthday cake. Katie had stayed up late the night before baking a cake, inspired by the White House, that was delicious.

Everyone except Kelly's mom and dad headed back on Tuesday. Kelly took the day off from work and took her parents to Annapolis, MD. On the way, we stopped at the National Arboretum to see the Azaleas in full bloom.

Our first stop in Annapolis was the state capitol. For our loyal readers, you may remember how much Ben and Kelly love this city, especially the capitol complex.

Next up was the Naval Academy. It was a school day so the campus was full of cadets walking to and from class in full uniform. We went into Memorial Hall, the Dry Dock and the Cathedral before heading  for lunch. We walked around Annapolis's great downtown business district before grabbing a sandwich from a local pub.

We headed back to the district and had a relaxing evening at home. They headed out early the next day and made it home by late evening. It was a great visit and we are glad they came.

The week was spent recovering from an exciting weekend. We decided to celebrate our 6 month wedding anniversary by playing paintball. A few months back we bought Groupon deals for a day of paintball in Virginia. 

At first it was a lot of fun. Rolling around in the dirt and shooting paintballs at folks was very entertaining. Kelly got off to a good start. Of the 10 minute game, she stayed "alive" for about 8 minutes before getting hit on the head. 

Ben didn't have such luck. He was eliminated so quickly he didn't get to shoot his gun. The second game didn't get much better. After a few minutes, Ben limped off the field after injuring his knee. 

Despite the battle wound, he continued to play three more games before calling it a day. Overall it was a fun experience, but its safe to say we have officially retired from the dangers of the paintball battlefield.

We spent all of Sunday and most of the week resting and recovering from our numerous paintball injuries.  

Easter Weekend

(We have been slacking on our posts lately.  Sorry - we blame the dogs.)

When we last posted, we had just run the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler race on April 1st.  The next day, we discovered the joke was on us as it was hard to get out of bed. The 10 miles had taken its toll, but we managed to make it through the work day. While a relaxing evening and early bedtime was what we needed, instead Ben went grocery shopping, Kelly did a weeks worth of baking (english muffins, pizza crust, bread), and we stayed up until midnight watching the national championship game. 

Tuesday was a big day Mosely. She had to get a haircut and the groomers is located near our office, so she got to walk to work with us. We dropped her off before heading to the office. She got to spend some of the day in "doggie day care," where we are sure she thrived with all her new found friends. After work we picked her up and headed home. 

Approximately 10 minutes after getting home, Mo passed out on the couch. She is not used to having to be awake for more than 4 hours a day, so all the activity had taken it out of her.

The rest of the week passed fairly quickly.  We started utilizing Capital Bikeshare even more, which sped up our commuting considerably.  That gave us a little extra time in the evenings to get ready for the Friday arrival of the fam.  

Everyone arrived on Friday afternoon.  After the long drive, everyone was ready for an early evening.  It was nice to catch up and plan out the weekend ahead. 

Ben made biscuits and gravy from scratch on Saturday morning.  After breakfast, he headed to work and everyone else headed to Eastern Market, which is always a good Saturday morning destination.   

After leaving Eastern Market, Kelly and the fam headed out to the Air & Space Museum Annex.  Even the second time around, Kelly was still impressed.  

The fam seemed to enjoy seeing all the aircraft on display.  Steve took a particular interest and probably would have stayed longer, but the twins were ready to go.

After the annex, it was back at the house for the evening.  Our plans changed a little when Layla's developed a fever.  Steve and Abbey took Layla to get checked out and the rest of us hung out at the apartment and then went for a walk up to the Capitol.

(Uncle Ben keeps an eye on Jaxon)

Easter Sunday started at the apartment.  There was a lot of cooking followed by a lot of eating.

Full, we headed out to walk a bit of lunch off.  The fam went to see the MLK and FDR memorials, while Ben and Kelly staked out a good spot in the park. 

After seeing the monuments and the tail end of the cherry blossoms, everyone was excited for the traditional Easter egg hunt.

(Mo did not understand the Easter egg hunt)

After the Easter egg hunt, we played a round of croquet.