Dumbarton Oaks

I had wanted to see the preColumbian exhibit at the Dumbarton Oaks for months, and suddenly today, the opportunity presented itself, and I took advantage of it. I had volunteered to take care of Maya's friend Nathan for the afternoon, while Emily and Robert went to DC for a fundraiser. Emily had called yesterday to suggest we all drive to DC together, and while the children and I visited the museum, Emily and her husband would pursue their agenda.

Belina and Maya woke up early and were out playing in the snow before 7 AM. They built a fort and complained that the snow had changed from hardpack and heavy a few days ago, to powdery and absolutely useless for snowballs. They used a cardboard box to sled down the slight incline at the front of the yard. They would have preferred to spend all day in the snow, but I insisted that we meet Emily at a 9:30 yoga class. Belina was not thrilled, but once Maya got on her mat next to Sid, she was delighted. Belina left to read a book after a good 20 minutes of sun salutations, which is great, considering that the temperature of the room was almost 100 degrees! She read her novel (Twilight) and was happy enough.

Maya had a session with Jake while I drove home for a shower and Julien and Marius picked up Belina. Julien shamed me when he pointed out that I had yet to remove the snow and informed me that I was lazy and expected Eric to do these tasks. For an hour after Maya fell asleep, I used a regular shovel to remove show for most of my front walk so that the mail can be delivered. I did get sore by the end of the hour.

We arrived at Emily's in time for our drive to DC. At Dumbarton Oaks the children saw the collection in ten minutes while I took my time and absorbed every word of the explanations in the precolumbian section. The pieces were gorgeous, perhaps the best collection in the area. I was in heaven. The children were bored too soon and found games to play while waiting for me to finish.

WE arranged to meet for dinner in Arlington at Ron's favourite Indian restaurant, a strip mall take out place with amazing Indian food. I took a taxi with the children and almost missed the restaurant, which no longer has this long yellow awning it used to, which was much more identifiable. The food was delicious and generous, and everyone was happy with their choices.

The drive back is long and tedious, but Maya entertained us with Chinese stories she had heard in Ecuador and the time passed quickly.

I feel very accomplished now that I have removed so much snow from the walk and that people can now walk up the walkway and deliver mail.