American Girl whirlwind / the District / Ikea

Alrighty then...I am happy to report that the Bennett's are back in N.C. safe and sound. I am totally and completely exhausted...but home:) Our trip started at the American Girl store at Tyson's and what a trip it was. All 45 mins of it. Girlfriend blew through that place like a cheetah. She knows what she wants! We then proceeded to attempt to find our way to Alexandria where we were staying. Driving in D.C. is totally and completely anxiety ridden madness. I couldn't get my Pinot fast enough by the time we got there. LOVED the place we stayed though. Lorien Hotel and Spa. Fa-ha-haa-bulous! Cute shops and restaurants around and really family friendly. We cruised around the neighborhood that night and then crashed early:) Those of you who know me well know that I am very germaphobic so the next part is a bit tricky. We woke early on Thursday and by 5:30am I was lying there dreading the day ahead....THE D.C. METRO!!!!! However, I was determined to expose Ella to the experience so off we went. Buying tickets was like freakin rocket science...I felt so incredibly stupid. Thank goodness a very nice Metro dude came over and explained the whole shabang and off we went. The first part wasn't so bad since we were above ground. T.H.E.N.....the ears popped. I knew from experience (and the pitch blackness) that we were in subway hell. The heart was racing, palms were a sweatin', and breathing was fast. 7 stops later we arrived at the Woodley Park/Zoo stop and off we went to get on the longest freakin' escalator I have ever seen in my whole life. Mind you...my daughter loves every second and is doing everything but licking the windows so by now I am in desperate need of a Xanax:) I am happy to report that we made it safely to the zoo in a very non-eventful manner. We had a great time there and then of course we returned to the Metro to head to Georgetown which was a very easy thing to do. Georgetown is one of my MOST FAV places ever. In a weird way it reminds me of Winchester England which is my most favorite place in the U.K. :) We ended up at Thunder which is a SUPER cool restaurant on M Street. The decor was amazing and the owner told us it is the 3rd oldest building in Georgetown which is way cool. It had original beam ceilings and really unique artwork and character! Then of course I stopped by Zara, Lush and a few other hot spots before we headed back to the hotel....on THE WRONG LINE. We were headed for Maryland before we knew it (with LOTS of police officers because of rush hour) so I was in complete freak-out mode. Thank God the hubs if from a big city so he took control and we made it back. Luckily it was right at the beginning of happy hour at the hotel...HOLA! We rested a while and then cruised over to Del Ray in Alexandria and had a fab Mexican/Salvatorian dinner at Tio's and then Artfully Chocolate for desert:) We started the day today at IKEA which is never, ever, ever a bad thing:)  All and all it was a great trip. I guess I'm just a southern girl at heart..which isn't such a bad thing, right? Hug those babies and squeeze your peeps! xx

Hi-ho, Hi-ho, off to the American Girl store we go!!! I am so stinkin' excited about this trip! I need to consistently remind myself that it is NOT ABOUT ME! This is for sweet Ella's 5th Birthday. But I am SO EXCITED! If they had this when I was a kid I sure didn't know about it :) We have so many fun things planned for the next few days. Of course, first and foremost is Kit. Kit Kittredge to those of you who may not know about the whole American Girl Phenom ;) We have an appointment at 3pm manana to meet with a "specialist" and tour the store. In retrospect...this was most likely a bad idea...I'm a sucker. And I love my girl. What else can I say??? I am wondering if we should have possibly taken out a second mortgage on the crib to fund this trip:) THANK GOODNESS for really generous grandparents!!! (that was a shout-out) After the purchase of Kit and all of her goodies, we have plans for The National Zoo which I am super excited about because I have never had the pleasure of meeting a Panda. I was told this week by a client that they smell terrible, however I will endure the eau de par fume for a good look at them:) I kinda hate zoo's really. But how else can we see these amazing creatures??? I'm personally NOT planning any trips abroad except for the obligatory trip to the U.K. that we must take soon. On that note!!! Looks like we will be heading to the U.K. next spring. Don't get me wrong...I LOVE it there. But that is one looooooong plane ride for a 5 year old. If I was independently wealthy and could shop (and look) like Gwyneth then things would be different. I mean, come on. London is one crazy expensive place. However, it is necessary under the circumstances. I will shut the pie-hole now about that! We will hit the road early tomorrow...I am praying that the hubs will drive the first part because it is THE MOST boring drive between here and Richmond. As I write this he just "burped" a sentence to me that he was going to gas the truck up. I love men. I mean really??? What if I did that? He would dry heave for heavens sake! Anyway, hopefully the ten years he has lived in this country will serve him well and we will end up in D.C. instead of Philly. Cross your fingers people ;) Kiss your babies and hug those peeps!!! xx

Update ;)

I haven't written in a bit...so here we go! What a Labor Day weekend we had at the Bennett house!!! Sounds exciting, huh? Not so much. Unless you are Ella and then you would be super excited. She got her room painted pink this weekend:) She gives a shout out to Daddy for that one;) Mama don't paint. I do however cook frequently and LOVE throwing things away! I have been in crazy psycho organization mode for a few weeks now so watch out!!!The best part was the down time we spent together eating, playing, eating, snuggling and just being together:) The other cool part was when Ella informed me that "Daddy recorded the crocodiles eating the canteloupes!"...that would be antelopes:) I love that kid.

Otherwise things have been a bit ho-hum...which isn't always a bad thing! Getting back in the swing with school, dance, gymnastics etc. is a little tough at first but I thrive on schedules and an orderly life. That makes me feel old saying that and oh how I wish I could have figured that out earlier in life:) Ella just asked me if I thought the prince in Ella Enchanted had a nice butt...really??? From my 5 year old? I asked her where she heard that and she didn't remember. I'm sure it was from overhearing her mommy talking to her daddy;) Oh yeah!!! Her teacher told me today that she overheard a conversation about True Blood and announced that her mommy and daddy watched that show too but she wasn't allowed to...I must be doing something right!!!

I am looking SO forward to fall:) My favorite time of year. Ella's Birthday, our anniversary and Halloween! We are taking Little E to D.C. for her birthday...American Girl, here we come! And I am super excited about the hotel I found in Alexandria. It's the Lorien Hotel and Spa and it is SO cute:)  I'm really looking forward to hanging out in Alexandria:) Then on to Halloween when E will be Wonder Woman! HOLA!!! And Steve and I will once again dress as bacon and eggs. Yep, you heard it here first. We are BIG on breakfast at the Bennett's! At least Steve isn't pushing the "English breakfast" which consist of blood pudding and baked beans. UGHH!!! That would be a significantly harder costume to come up with! Anyway, I'm off to dinner and then give Ella a "medicare" as she calls it. That would be a pedicure. Should I tell her that this medicare will be the only medicare she will ever get??? Oh heck...we won't go there tonight;) Hug your babies and squeeze your peeps! xx