A series of bests

If I can't be back home, I am thrilled to be here.

Since our January return from the Midwest, something has happened. A steady stream of friends has poured into our little DC row house. And I'm not talking about folks dropping by from the neighborhood. I'm talking our best man. My maid (um, does she have to be called a matron when she's married with children?) of honor. Back-to-back-to-back-to-back Iowa Staters.

Seriously, I couldn't be happier. I'm realizing God placed our family in a city where people visit.

The guest line up -

• January 19-20: Inauguration - Kurt's best man, Nate, with wife Violi and son Elliot, here from a very Republican San Antonio.
  

• January 18-22: Inauguration - Libby: Iowa Stater, 2nd floor Willow resident to RA Tara, good friend to both Kurt and Tara, Obama campaigner.
  

• January 29-February 1: Tara's 30th birthday present from Kurt - Anna Pearl, also about to turn 30 and 7 months pregnant (with # FOUR!), in from Iowa.
  

• February 16-18: President's Day - Jen: Iowa Stater and hot New Yorker, coming to hang with the Tara (what, doesn't your husband have the day off and volunteering to watch the children? Did I mention I have an amazing husband?).

• Mid March: conference and Spring Break (well, not for us, but for some friends of ours) - elementary TAG buddy and Senior Prom date, Jason and his wife Natalie, here from IC.
  

• First of April: conference - Terri Ann, good friend, Iowa Stater, doctor-in-residence in New Jersey.
  

Now don't get me wrong, we've had visitors in our year and a half here. Just not this kind of pace. The Hotel Lewis (okay, maybe it's really more like The Hostel Lewis, but hey, very pregnant, and thus often wakeful, Anna slept through the night thrice in a row on our futon...) is most definitely open.

Libby and Tara before heading downtown.


Waiting in line with Violi to get their tickets to the swearing in, Capitol behind us.

The papas and the progeny.

Anna and I at the beginning of our 3.5 hour, we're-here-without-children, tour of the National Portrait Gallery. Very cool to see this portrait up close - includes newsprint, origami-like paper, paint...great multi-media detail.