Washington D.C./Boston

In our most ambitious trip since we retired, Gailee and I embarked on an eleven day trip to Washington D.C. and Boston with our good friends, Bob and Toni Bowers.  We lucked out by getting adjoining rooms at the Westin, Georgetown.  We kept a busy schedule over the next five days in D.C. visiting the Lincoln Memorial, the Smithsonians, the Washington Monument, Arlington Cemetery, Mount Vernon (Washington's home), and the National Archives.  Prior to our trip, my mother arranged tours of the Congressional Library, the Capitol Building, and the White House through her congressional contact in Congress, Representative Richardson.  We attended a live musical (Liberty Smith) at Ford's Theater, sitting not far from Abraham Lincoln's shrine.  The restaurants were excellent including Rugby, Glory, Ebbit's and Grille Fish with the most popular beer consumed being "Blue Moon."  A highlight was taking a boat cruise up the Potomac from Alexandria, Virginia, to Georgetown.  After five nights, we flew to Logan Airport in Boston and took up residence in adjacent rooms on the 27th floor of the Boston Sheraton overlooking the Charles River!  We purchased two-day tickets on the trolley, which got us around the city.  Our itinerary included walking the Freedom Trail through Boston while observing historical landmarks.  We found our way to the Paul Revere's House and a nearby Italian restaurant (Ristorante Euno), where we enjoyed perhaps the best meal of the trip.  The also took a harbor cruise and a tour of "The U.S. Constitution" aka "Old Ironsides."  More culture awaited us at the Museum of Fine Arts and the Boston Public Library.  Fearing becoming overly cultured, we took in a baseball game at Fenway Park between the Red Sox and the Detroit Tigers.  Favorite Restaurants in the area included Legal Seafood, The Bell in Hand (Boston's oldest tavern), The Green Dragon, and Whiskey's.  The trip concluded as the four of us were exhausted, sore from walking, uncomfortably full from constant eating and drinking, and happy to be heading home and into more promising weather.  All in all, it was a fantastic trip giving rise to a ton of wonderful memories.

Easter Followed by Palm Desert

Mike and Christy Berberet hosted Easter in Fallbrook.  We arrived around noon in the company of Ryan, Cathy, and the Ward Family joining the Fallbrook Berberets and the Yorba Linda Berberets.  Christy put on an amazing meal featuring wonderful homemade Italian food.  The annual Easter egg hunt was a hit.  Then it was off to Palm Springs/Palm Desert for a week of fun and relaxation.  We had two connected rooms at the Westin Desert Willows in Palm Desert.  Ryan, Cassie, Camille, and Mason were our guests on Sunday through Wednesday.  We enjoyed a trip to the Palm Springs Zoo (the Living Desert), a lunch at Sherman's Deli, and plenty off pool time in the mid-90 degree heat.  Mason was active playing basketball, pool, ping pong with anyone who would join him.  Camille was mainly interested in swimming, testing herself and proclaiming success with, "I didn't drown!"  The drinks flowed including strawberry smoothies for Camille and Mason which were topped with their beloved cherries.  The crew departed on Wednesday afternoon and Rich and Peggy joined us for the remainder of the week, beginning with the Palm Springs Street Fair on Thursday night.  The food vendors supplied us with barbequed brat sandwiches, egg rolls, and tacos.  Highlights of the next couple of days included shopping at El Paseo, lunch at Sherman's, the Palm Desert swapmeet, plenty of pool time, and a wonderful birthday dinner for Rich at PF Changs followed by a trip to the Gelato shop in town.  All in all, it was a great week of fun and sun.  In fact, Gail and I purchased a third timeshare to keep the good times coming in even more abundance!