Christmas Tea in DC

I've gotten into the bad habit of a one-week delay between a fun event and a blog post!  My goal this holiday season is to update more and more, because there is a LOT going on and we are feeling quite Sassy.  :)

Last weekend, James and I were in DC for the annual tea that my dear friend, Andrea, hosts each year. It's the way I kick-off the season, because it represents so much of what the holidays are about:  friends, food, and cheer.  This year, Andrea hosted at the Mandarin Oriental, which was a happenin' place among both our group AND the celebrities.  We ran into both John Lithgow (bringing back some sweet childhood memories of watching Harry and the Hendersons - one of my favorite movies as a child), and Florence Henderson.

Miss Andrea

All the gals at the Mandarin

 After the tea, James and I met back up and prepared for a night out in Old Town.  Old Town will always hold a special place in our heart, mostly because it's where we spent most all our early days together and fell in love (awww!)   We had a wonderful seafood meal, complete with raw Atlantic oysters and steamed mussels, and then headed over to Murphy's for some Irish music and cider.  Murphy's is another favorite, and I think it may be the best Irish pub outside of the Emerald Isle.  (Funny story:  when we were in Ireland last year, we were chatting with a great Irish duo in a pub in Kinsale.  They had just returned from the States, where they had actually played at this Murphy's!  Obviously, the place has some street cred if the Irish themselves come there to play.)

On Sunday, James and I battled a terrible head wind and some very cold temps to complete a long (7-mile) run.  From Old Town to Arlington National Cemetery is exactly that, so after finishing up we jumped on the metro and headed back.  Although James had to leave the DC area early that day (training in Vegas - rough life!), it meant I got to spend the rest of the day/evening catching up with Andrea.  I miss seeing her all the time terribly, so that quality time was a perfect way to round out the weekend.

For those of you unfamiliar with the story and the annual tea, this first weekend in December will also ALWAYS be special for another very important reason.  Two years ago (this year) James choose the night after the tea to propose.  It was very cold, very snowy, and I was not cooperating with James' plan to propose at the National Monuments...but fortunately I got the "yes" part right and we got to start our happily ever after.

Engagement Night at the National Tree, December 2008