Weekend Recap: Celebration!

Hi everyone! What an amazing weekend! It flew by, but I have no complaints about that. I’m hoping your weekend was awesome. This weekend was filled with some of my favorite things—food and fun! Saturday was my sister in love’s birthday celebration. Her husband, my brother in love, hosted a girls’ night out weekend for her. It was so sweet.

I arrived at their home at 3:30 (in the pouring rain because…the weather was WOW!). She had no idea and her face was so surprised when she came downstairs and saw me! We waited a few minutes and her best friend walked through the door and also surprised her because she’d originally thought it was just a date night. My brother in law then chauffeured us to dinner with reservations at Smith Commons in Washington, D.C. If you’ve never been, GO! It was our first time and man was the food amazing.

We started with appetizers and my sister in love and I enjoyed the beef sliders with the chipotle mayo on the side. Guys, they were SO amazing. They practically melted in my mouth and were seasoned to perfection. Seriously, it was amazing. My SIL’s best friend had the baby back ribs and said they were really good. Our plates were cleaned rather quickly.

While I stuck with water for the evening, they both had apple martinis and said they were perfect. Right about of alcohol without being overbearing and the serving size was generous. We followed up with our entrees. I tried the Butternut Squash Ravioli. IT WAS SO GOOD! Seriously, I could have licked the plate if I had no couth. It was such a great dish. Flavor in every bite. The pasta was perfectly done. My SIL and her friend both had the butter chicken and LOVED their dish. I’m telling you, I told S. when I came home that he and I would be going here for a date or I’d just go solo. My other SIL surprised us and joined in for dinner as she couldn’t stay for after-festivities as she had 4 parties to attend in one day! (A mommy’s life is never done!). It was fun catching up with her. She also had the butter chicken dish and demolished her plate. Seriously, it was gone very quickly!!!

The only pic of the food I took because it was just that yummy!

We were about to try their dessert when we realized we were dangerously close to starting time on a show that my BIL had graciously purchased tickets for. Fortunately, we were in walking distance and walked to the Atlas Performing Arts Center to see Step Afrika’!

I’ve always wanted to see their performance as I’ve heard great things about it. We were not disappointed. This was their Magical Musical Holiday Step Show. The show was nonstop entertainment from the time we entered until the time it was over. We danced, clapped, encouraged, and celebrated a great evening. There were wonderful decorations and costumes. You could tell the performers really enjoyed what they were doing. It’s the group’s 25th anniversary and I am absolutely taking Bug and Honeybee next year, as the show is very kid-friendly. They encourage the kids to make noise and to help them perform. It really is a great show and I highly recommend it.

Waiting for the holiday performance to begin.

After a fantastic night out, my BIL drove us back to his home, where I bid adieu to everyone. I promise you, it was a great evening and I was glad to celebrate my SIL on her special day.

The next morning, we woke early as it was the annual Christmas concert for our music and performing arts ministries at our church. Bug and I would be singing with the choirs and I was so excited at just how handsome he looked in his suit.

We arrived at church, went over another rehearsal, and then sang to the heavens. It was a beautiful concert and a wonderful experience. There is some great video out there that I hope to capture and share with you, but if I can’t…trust me…I’m so proud of everyone. They did such an amazing job!

Preparing for the concert

Post-concert pic

I can never catch them in a good pic 🙂

Afterwards, I was pretty exhausted and asked S. if we could just grab dinner and eat at home. He obliged and we stopped by Chili’s To-Go and came home to a yummy after church meal…and a nap!!

I rounded out my day ordering our family’s annual personalized Wall Calendar from Shutterfly and addressing our Christmas cards. If all goes well, I’ll have all of my Christmas stuff done by Tuesday…including the grocery shopping. Remember…35 people are headed my way next Monday and I definitely need to be prepared.

That’s about all on my end. I hope your weekend was stress free and enjoyable. I’ll talk to you again soon!

-K

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