So this week has been a whirlwind.  I think I’ve spent more time in my car in the last 7 days than I did all of last month.  As you know from my last post, I just got back from NJ last weekend, just in time for the lovely wedding of my beautiful sister-in-law (Brandon’s sister), only to turn around on Monday and drive to DC.  The purpose of this voyage was work-related, but the added bonus was purely sister-wife related.

Yes that’s right, I got to see two of my faves while in town.

Kelly, Kacy and I enjoyed a lovely little dinner at Old Ebbit Grill, along with 2 bottles of wine and lots of catching up.  We ate, we drank, we laughed, we made our waiter blush, it was fab.   (I had the lentil veggie burger, and it was really tasty, but nowhere near the amazingness that was the crab artichoke dip.)  Kacy was gracious enough to let me crash at her apartment, which was just 3 minutes away from my destination the next morning.  Unfortunately I think I may have enjoyed one or four too many glasses of Malbec and didn’t get the greatest nights sleep.

This made my surprise encounter the next morning even better, as you can see by the enormous bags under my eyes, when I got to meet the renowned…

Reverend Jesse Jackson!  As I explained on Facebook, the best part of this photo is just mere moments before  it was taken, I actually went to put my hand on his stomach  a la high school prom photos, and then realized “OMG WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” and quickly retracted and went with this awkward stance.   I’m kind of channeling a pregnant Angelina Jolie, yes?

Always so graceful, I tell you.

After my return from DC, I re-packed my little pink polka dot suitcase, and headed out towards one of my favorite cities:  Philadelphia.   Brandon and I took my parents to a Phillies game, my very first one, to be exact.  And even though we lost, essentially mathematically taking us out of the running, it was still really cool to see Citizens Bank Park and take in my first Phillies experience.

Before heading to the game,  we made time for a few cocktails and a quick nosh at the ridiculously beautiful XIX restaurant, located at the top of our hotel (the Bellevue- which is AMAZING, btw.)  They had really great happy hour specials, and their flatbread pizzas were quite tasty.  I’m sad we weren’t able to take in the spectacular views via the rod-iron balconies due to the light drizzle, but I’m sure you can imagine, they are pretty insane.  There was actually a photo shoot taking place on one as we left, which I momentarily considered photo-bombing.

It was a great opportunity to spend some time with my parents after a chaotic week with the entire family, and I’m so glad we were able to sneak away mid-week for a little trip.

The next morning my mother and I did a little retail damage (H&M- bought ALL THE THINGS, and Anthro, aka heaven), followed by an amazing lunch at El Vez with the men, which I’ll get into another time.   But let me just say that I’m still dreaming about the guac.

Tomorrow I’m headed to Pittsburgh for another work event, but just wait until I tell you guys who I get to meet there… I’m kind dying over it.  Stay tuned…

Have a great weekend and I’ll be back next week to finally reveal my social experiment for October.   Peace out, girl scouts.

xo J