Journey to Hamilton!

In October of 2015 all of our musical theater friends started deliriously ranting about a musical called "Hamilton," which we thought was a little silly given the fact that it was a musical about a treasury secretary who wrote a lot and was killed in a duel (which I only knew from a 90's "Got Milk" commercial).  Then we started listening to the music.  I bought the album almost immediately and started my own delirious ranting about the musical.  I also bought tickets for the next available (at normal ticket prices) weekend show in NYC, which happened to be in July 2016.  So that's where we went earlier this month.

Used credit card rewards points for a first class ticket from DC.  It did not get us there any faster than taking a bus, but now both of us can say we've flown first class exactly once.

And other credit card points for two nights at the nicest hotel I've stayed at in NYC and probably anywhere else.  Kelsey complains sometimes when I hand her a new card to use every few months, but I think she is starting to appreciate some of the benefits.

Hotel bathroom, with heated floors...

...and a TV embedded in the bathroom mirror so you could watch TV while taking a bath...

...and a little place to hold your tea.

On our way to the show!

Kelsey said she was not throwing away her guac, which was both funny and topical.

Finally outside the Richard Rodgers theater!

A picture of the set!

This also happened to be the day that many of the original cast were starring in their last show: including Lin Manuel Miranda, Leslie Odom Jr., and Philippa Soo. We were so grateful to see all of them live!

Set at intermission.  People were hugging strangers and crying.  Kelsey was already out of tears at this point.

And that night we went to see Waitress, which probably would have won Best Musical had it been competing against anything other than Hamilton.

To sum up, we are super spoiled and all of our coworkers and friends hated us for very legitimate reasons.

4th of July Weekend

The 4th of July weekend, Mike was on duty and, while we couldn't travel far, we did have time to take a quick trip out to see my family. 

We woke up early to get on the road and were treated to a....flat tire.... as soon as we got on the highway! We were also in a rental car which complicated the situation. 

Fortunately, things that would normally overwhelm me and send me into meltdown mode, are where Mike excels. He immediately started calling our roadside assistance which we didn't even need because VDOT showed up right away and fixed us up...for free! I'm not sure if they always do that or they just had time and felt bad watching js trying to use a baby car jack, but so grateful for their help. Taxes in action!

When we finally made it to Warrenton, we were a little late for brunch with my dad, but met up with him, my sister Courrney, and my nephew Ashton for now lunch at Hidden Jules, a hidden jewel on Main Streetnin Warrenton. They have the best "healthier" food. I think I had mango chicken salad on rye with a giant fresh pressed juice and Mike had a Reuben with a ginger kombucha (carbonated fermented tea) from on tap. The kombucha will play a role later in Saturday as well.

After lunch, we walked around a Fair Trade store we definitely want to visit again and got coffee and free samples from Great Harvest. Yay for almond milk lattes and free samples. Then we headed back to my mom's house in Bealeton. We watched some tennis (Wimbledon), Ashton went down for a nap, we hung out with my grandma and ate wasabi peas, then Mike started trying to talk me into going kombucha tasting at the brewery that had made our kombucha. Apparently they had a tasting room open nearby. We looked up the location and hours, found it wasn't too far, and talked my mom into joining us (since Rick (my stepdad)) had graciously offered to stay with Ashton.

We had to drive several back roads to find a little spot in the country where a winery, brewery, some antique stores, and markets had all set up shop. Then, if you know Mike, we tasted everything. It was delicious, and cheaper than the kind we usually buy in Trader Joe's, so we walked away with two gallons (thanks Mom!). If you're still wondering what kombucha is, it tastes kind of sour like apple cider vinegar, but you can also brew different flavors. It's extremely refreshing and has a very tiny alcohol content.

When we got back to the house, I had plans to make a potato salad, but Ashton was also up from his nap, so we figured it might be fun to get him involved. I need a quarter cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice, so Mike took a lot of careful time to engage Ashton in the lemon squeezing and getting the seeds out. Even though we ended up having to supplement the lemon juice because a lot of it got spilled, it was worth it to see him feel so accomplished and get these great pictures out of it:)

Knives are for grown ups!

Tiny hands are best for getting seeds.

We ended up spending the night and leaving early the next morning to get some work done before the 4th of July holiday the next day!

We were fortunate to be able to join Absi and her family in their apartment in Rosslyn where you have a great view of the fireworks. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate and most of our pictures were hazy, but that's often how it goes with DC summer. We also brought some of our kombucha to the party because now we're owning our weirdness apparently:)