They say it's your birthday

If it was my birthday again, that would mean I'd passed out for six months or just a lot older than Nate...silly. Nate's birthday was last Tuesday! I was able to get off work at 2:30, so we had some additional birthday celebration time. I couldn't help but remember that last year's birthday was overly Liz centered with all that car accident business. I'm happy to report Nate drove me around all of the 22nd, and whether it was just the lack of people finding flies on their leg whilst driving, or just the fact that I wasn't driving, I'm happy to report we are both safe, sound, and a bit older. After I got off work, we had a late lunch at Chili's. We had a gift certificate and the place practically to ourselves; it was very nice.

Festivities at home:

Party goers

More party goers

The guest of honor lighting his cake...that he made. We had run out of eggs, so he ran to the store, then finished the job while I was working on one of his presents in another room.

I did pick up the cake mix and frosting, however...

Taken seconds before the cats were shoved away so we could consume our cake and ice cream.

Birthday Nate! Doesn't his new haircut look cute?

Nate showing off how much he doesn't need the new weights he received.

The after party show...

Jamaican Me Crazy

If we hadn't gotten married prior to our first Jamaica trip, I would say that Nate married me for Jamaica. I'm kind of kidding. We had a great trip on our honeymoon, and Jamaica has served as a sun drenched carrot for Nate during law school. I am happy to report that we both found said carrot just as lovely as the last time.

See? Look how happy we look!

A few items:

We checked out sunscreen application. Nathan and I will never be called anything other than: ghost legs, pasty, "you look ill"...actually that's my list. We'll never tan and we've stopped trying. We used tons of sunscreen and we got away with only a nasty heat rash (heat rash belonged to me...think of Bermuda and my burn victim face, Ruth).

I learned/remembered that snorkeling will always scare me to some degree. It's not the being in the water, it's the my face being in the water. I get incredibly claustrophobic and took a good 5-10 minutes to calm down. Oh wait! I also learned that people that announce they hail from Ft. Lauderdale....Florida (as if that explains why they have no need for fins or a life vest) really bother me. This couple also kept getting in the way, but it's not a vacation unless I can find someone to get bothered by, right? :) P.S. One of the intelligent questions from Ft. Lauderdale's mouth to another honeymooning couple was "Did you get a lot of good presents??". Ya, skip that boring "how did you meet" story...we want to know what blender you got.

I also learned that I smile when I have fire placed near my face. Even after seeing this guy not shove the fire down several people's throats, when he stopped at me and went for it, I had a silent panic attack that looked a little like the picture above.

We learned that Nate's facial hair grows like a WEED in Jamaica. Okay, it really grows like Spanish Moss that feels very much like a loofah. Nate took it home to try out the natural alternative in the shower, but chickened out seeing as he had no idea what was living in the moss.

As much as falling into water (especially with my nose unplugged) doesn't agree with me, our tubing adventure taught me that: falling into really clear, non-chlorinated water with a life vest and a Jamaican guide to pull me in the right direction is just fine. In fact, I was happy about the whole thing.

Early into our stay we learned that the ownership of this hotel would be switching from Sandals to someone else...never said who. We were sad to hear it; Dunn's River is a great property and I'm so glad we got a chance to stay there before someone else takes over.

We learned that Kathryn and Mal sort of missed us. Or our luggage. If the world was covered in canvas, magazines, food, and blankets, the cats would be more than okay with it.

D.C. is Deelightful

A recent long weekend gave us the opportunity to visit Washington D.C.! Neither of us had been before, and we wanted to squeeze it in while we had the chance. So squeeze we did.

Wednesday night, after a long day at work, a long (er than we expected) night of packing, we were finally on our way to Pittsburgh (our halfway point). Apparently getting to Pittsburgh takes even longer if you leave much later than you expected to. Apparently McDonald's shakes are gross enough to warrant a visit to the side of the road...for one of us at least.

After a long night of traveling, a short night of sleeping, and a bit more driving, we'd made it! The first night we stayed in and made pizza; our room had a kitchen so we took advantage of it. And...HGTV. :)

Our first day:




We went through the National Archives. This place is so cool. So cool that the line was tremendously long. So much that elementary school children seemed like the enemy. It was very exciting to see the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights (faded as they are), with a surprise of one of the last remaining copies of the Magna Carta. This visit took a long time, but I'm glad we stopped in.

Nate is glad that the Onion is offered free in the D.C. area. Here he is showing his love for his country and his newspaper.

Our next day we ventured out on foot. Our first stop was the Capitol Building. The Capitol is such a dramatic landmark (among many) in the area and it was exciting to walk around and experience a bit closer.

Nate and the Supreme Court building. Yes, he had a few nerd moments, but why not? He's fallen in love with reading these judges' opinions, why not get excited about seeing the building where they hang out?

Nate and I in front of the White House. This is monumental because it's the White House...and someone offered to take a picture of us together!

At the Natural History Museum. Honestly, this visit was a bit of a low point...this picture represents one of a few embarrassing moments. I was getting hungry (therefore mean) and wouldn't pose by this rock. There's a sign that clearly indicates you can touch said rock. Nate, unaware of the sign, went ahead and reprimanded a few annoying boys for touching the rock. For some reason, I was incredibly embarrassed by this and wanted said rock to swallow me. Frankly, Nate didn't care either way, but I made up for it by caring too much. :)

Speaking of caring too much, my policies are strict, but I get results.

This guy on the other hand...was only elected for his commanding presence and voice quality...

Iwo Jima Memorial. James, our expert tour guide (and friend) took us around to some monuments at night. This is one of my favorite pictures; so thanks to Nate and James.

Speaking of friends, we had a chance to spend Sunday with Nate's cousin, Bret, his wife Erin, and the cute Spencer. It was lots of fun to catch up with them and to meet the fair Spencer.

Our last day, we spent the morning at Arlington Cemetery. We arrive at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier(s) just in time for a changing of the guard. I was surprised how seriously the guards take their position, but I thought it was refreshing to see an individual show such respect for something so fully.

Arlington was one of my favorite places we visited. It was overwhelming to be there because it brought many things to life that I've only read about. It was a great place to experience, especially right before Memorial Day.

Looking out from the Lincoln Monument.

Vietnam War Memorial. This was another moment for us that was overwhelming. It's a beautiful memorial, but it was sobering to realize all of the names on the wall belong to someone's family.

Speaking of family...our last (and very late stop) was the Washington D.C. temple. Our camera was almost dead and we were ensuring ourselves a very late night home, but the quick visit was well worth it. It's a beautiful temple and it was yet another reminder of how blessed we are to live where we do.

I know I say this after every trip we take, but we really did love D.C. We loved visiting our friends and family, and we loved being able to learn and visit so much history all in one stop. One stop shopping. I love shopping.