this past weekend was our big trip to baltimore to see family and friends and have will’s second opinion appointment with johns hopkins. the trip to nova was not too bad on saturday, and we did not reach screeching halt traffic until just after stafford. it’s amazing to me how tolerant we used to be when we lived up there. now we can get anywhere in town with little to no traffic and we are a lot more impatient with traffic woes. however, once we arrived in nova we made a pit stop at ikea. here we scored some frames for the nursery room as well as some other household items that were at amazing prices. after our shopping stop we headed to herndon to meet up with will’s sister and the kids.
the kids came flying out the door to greet us and show us their latest tricks on their bikes. we watched while ethan raced up the street and showed us how fast he could pedal. then he offered merri a rideand they rode tandem style around the cul-de-sac. lynn reminded the kids that we were going to the park, so if they wanted to come with, they had better get in the car. we met up at a local park and played on the swings and monkey bars for a few hours. it was good to see them all and catch up. lynn was throwing mike a celebratory wine and cheese dinner later that evening so we said our good byes and headed on our way.
we made it to md before sunset and checked into the aloft hotel. the hotel is very modern with a lounge, bar, and all kiosk check-in and check-out stations. since we were a gold rewards member they checked us in at the desk. (don’t ask me how i got this, they just sent it to me in the mail.) anyways, we had fun at the hotel and enjoyed all of the out of the ordinary stuff including the neat-o elevator floor. the next morning we woke up early to head into baltimore’s inner harbor area to grab some breakfast and go to the aquarium. the breakfast spot was one that is a local favorite on yelp and has been picked as having some of the best breakfast food by food network – miss shirley’s. we really enjoyed our breakfasts and then headed over to meet melanie, nick, and laura for a day at the aquarium. we all got our tickets and headed into the dolphin show. will and i had seen it before, but it had been some time ago, and i have a much better camera now! we were amazed at all of the people there that day, it was jam packed! however, we all had fun as we made our way around the entire aquarium. we all headed to lunch afterwards and then the three of them had to head back to va and we stayed and walked around the harbor, had a glass of wine and some dessert, and toured a lighthouse before the rain settled in. on our way out of town we grabbed some cheeses at whole foods to make a cheese plate for dinner.
the next morning we braved more rain for yet another foodie adventure. this time it was the blue moon cafe – as seen on “diners, drive-ins, and dives”. here they feature captain crunch french toast. if you know will and i we love sweet things and breakfast food is one of our all time favorites. this place only had 6 tables, and after you put your name on the list you had to head back outside in the rain to wait for your turn. we waited patiently – with grumbling tummies – for our turn at the crunchy toast! finally we were called! we wiped the drizzle from our brows and took our seats right by the front window. the waitress came and told us about specials and took our orders. our crunchy toasts were out in no time flat. we both loved the french toast and just wish we could have had room to finish it all! yummo!
after breakfast we walked around fell’s point and visited all of the local shops and walked up and down the cobble stone streets before heading on our next great search. we were on a mission to find “charm city cakes”. we’d read online before going that you are not to come on the property and to not even think about ringing the door bell or knocking, but all we wanted was a snapshot! we followed the garmin to the building which was in the middle of a downtown area with abandoned row homes on one side of the street and a car repair shop on the other. we made our way to the corner and husband stood for his photo. he said – duff is right there! i did not see him at first, but then i told will to scooch over so i could get him in the shot. by the time will took my photo duff had moved behind the girl with the hoodie, but we totally saw him – which was neat-o in my book. it’s funny how some people love movie stars, others love people who write amazing books, others love famous musicians, but will and i – we love famous foodies!
after the stalkerish acts at charm city cakes we decided to go to the art museum. well, one thing we learned about baltimore is that just about EVERYTHING is closed on monday! how rude! we got to the museum and found it was locked up tight on monday and tuesday. husband said – what now. i said – ellicot city. i’d read on the new york times that this was a must see stop while in md. we made our way to the historic area and parked the car for a charming little afternoon. the town feels super haunted and amazingly deja vuish. it was kind of dreamy like and a little erie as we walked the streets. i saw a few things i wanted to buy as we traipsed in and out of little antique stores, but i was scared to bring any of that stuff into our house. spooktacular. gives me the willies just thiniking about it!
tuesday was the big day for the johns hopkins appointment. will was a tad bit nervous so he had me driving us to the office. i was a tad bit nervous that we were going to be late, so we were in a bit of a frenzy. however, we made it there just in time and sat patiently in the waiting room until it was will’s turn to go back. the doctor was in quickly and chatted with will about how he was doing and what issues he had had etc. he took lots of notes and then did a phyiscal exam of the area. he confirmed that he thought he was healing nicely and he saw no reason to have any further surgeries, if everything stayed as it was. he suggested will get a baseline mri within the next few months so he would have something “clear” in his file for comparison sake if it was ever warranted. he asked if we had any other questions and gave will his business card. he told will to call him if he ever had any questions etc. and told us he wished we had a safe trip back to nc. just like that – it was over – case closed – final chapter written. will and i gave each other hi fives, hugs, and a celebratory toast for breakfast afterwards. we confirmed that now we really could move full steam ahead with our adoption plans.
