Chasing Waterfalls at Patapsco Park

We are busy soaking up the last bits of summer here. I know everyone says it, but time is so crazy right now. It simultaneously feels like it was just March and also like it's always been summer. 

We've been doing our best to explore the cool towns and gorgeous parks around here. This week we explored Patapsco Valley and its Cascade Falls. We've heard great things about this park from others, and the pictures were enough to convince us to give it ago.

Apparently everyone else also had the same idea this weekend; we had a hard time getting into the park. First, the Google directions led us to a private driveway, then, when we finally found the correct entrance, the park ranger had just closed the park because it reached capacity. Thankfully, there was another entrance on the other side of the park that was still open. We raced to that entrance and crossed our fingers it would still be open when we got there. Thankfully, it was!

This entrance was a mile from the falls and the swinging bridge, whereas the other entrance was right next to them. Thankfully, though the terrain was pretty rough, the kids did amazing. I'm a week behind in our country week reports (asynchronous learning, right?), but this week we're in Tonga. We pretended that we were exploring one of the 170 islands that make up Tonga as we hiked through the dense jungle and swam in the waterfall and river. 

It took us an hour and a half to hike one mile, but honestly, I'm so impressed with the kids. There were no complaints, only joy. To say Zahara is not a walker is an understatement, so this was a big deal for us.

The walk was totally worth it. We got to the waterfall and were able to swim and take some pictures. The water was pretty chilly, but we all had a good time. 

After chilling in the waterfall for a bit, we climbed down and across the swinging bridge and down to the beach. 

This park used to house the Orange Grove Flour Mill, but it was destroyed in fire in 1905. Today, red bricks from the mill are scattered around the beach and in the river. The kids loved building structures with these bricks and the rocks they found in the shallow, warm waters.

The hike back took us around an hour, and the kids mostly did well. There were a few well-timed bribes of lychee fruit (which is apparently Asher's new favorite fruit). I'd highly recommend this park to anyone who wants a lovely day out. Have you been? Where else around Maryland should we explore? Leave me a comment below!

Fruit Picking!

This weekend we had a fun outing where we went fruit picking at a farm near us called Larriland.

It was the perfect day to go since it was finally under 90 degrees. Still humid as heck, but at least it wasn't too hot. 

Larriland has a lot of different crops you can pick, but we chose peaches, blueberries, and blackberries. Zahara went here last year with her camp, but for the rest of us, this was our first time picking these particular crops. We usually pick apples in the fall, and we've picked raspberries from our garden in England. I was expecting the peaches to be like apple picking and the berries to be like the raspberry experience. But they were different. 

The peaches were on short trees that were full of ripe fruit. But unlike apple picking, the ripe peaches don't just fall off when you twist them. You still have to give a slight yank to get them off. The way you tell if a peach is ripe is if it is uniformly pink/red, versus yellow. The side with the dimple, or cheek, will get red first, but you need to check the other side for ripeness.

I'm not usually a huge fan of blackberries. I find them a bit tart. Zahara really wanted to pick blackberries, but Asher and I wanted to pick blueberries, so we decided to split up. Dan and Z went to one field, and Ash and I went to the other. It was actually really nice to get a little alone time with Asher. He's so funny and interesting at this age. He never stops talking, which can sometimes be a lot, but I'm grateful he wants to share his thoughts with me.

Blueberry picking was not nearly as thorny as raspberry picking. I was surprised that the berry bushes were at eye level, so I didn't need to bend over to pick, but berries were low enough that Asher could easily reach as well. The berries come off very easily, and you're looking for berries that are uniformly blue. These are so sweet! I can't wait to snack on these all week.

Zahara and Dan had fun with the blackberry patch too. Dan said he was surprised that they weren't very thorny either. And these fruit are enormous! They are much sweeter than I've had before, so they must be perfectly ripe.

We'll be turning the peaches into ice cream and eating the other fruits as is. I'll let you know how it turns out!

Annual Holiday Party 2019

Winter was a whirlwind! Only a few days after I got back from my short trip to England we hosted our annual holiday party. This has become such a fun tradition that I look forward to each year. 

We try to make this as easy as possible, but you know Dan and me. We sometimes go over the top with food and decorations. Still, we limit the food to mostly Trader Joe's goodies and use decorations we keep from year-to-year. I think they skew a little Christmas-y, but, they sure are pretty.

Not pictured, the rest of the house full of food and drinks!

The best part of the evening, other than the company of course, is the white elephant exchange. A white elephant, also called a Yankee swap, is where everyone brings a gift and you pull numbers to determine in which order you select a gift. Gifts can be stolen and re-stolen, leading to a fun, but controlled chaos. 

We ask our guests to bring a silly gift under $15. Dan is one of the best gift-bringers, and each year he outdoes himself. I still wear the personalized socks he had made with his face on them--hilarious to open when no one was expecting it. 

This year he had a custom pillow made with his sleeping face on it. It is equal parts horrifying and adorable. It made it's way to our friends' children's bed. Not sure if that's a good thing, or future cause for therapy. 

Other great gifts this year included the horse head mask (pictured on me, above), the full-sleeve super realistic fake tattoos, and a couple of chia pets. 

I'm so lucky to have an amazing group of friends to share these memories with. Until next year!

Rose's Luxury

As part of my birthday celebrations, Dan and I went to Rose's Luxury for a fancy meal. You know how much we love a fancy meal, right?

The thing with Rose's Luxury is that it is a Michelin one-star restaurant, and they take very few reservations. Doors open at 5pm, and people generally start lining up around 4 or 4:30 to snag a table for that evening. Normally, we aren't able to get there that early and wait (because of kids and jobs--silly life responsibilities). But, today, on my birthday, I had the day off. I figured, I'll grab a book and a drink and wait in line for what promises to be an awesome meal. And you know what, it was worth it!

The line ended up not being bad at all. Granted, it was a Wednesday so crowds were smaller than they would be on a Saturday. I got there early--around 4pm, and there were already two people ahead of me. But thankfully there were chairs, so I went next door, grabbed a sangria, and came back to wait. By around 4:45 there were nine people/parties in line. A few had reservations, and a few didn't. As far as I could tell, everyone who was there by 5pm got a seat for that night.

Let me start by saying the restaurant is gorgeous! It is very unassuming from the outside, but inside it is so well decorated. In particular, I loved the warm string lights, which created a cozy atmosphere; the soft, blue velvet couch in the bar area; and the neon sign which simply said, "awesome." The service was impeccable, and exactly what you'd expect from a Michelin-starred restaurant. But, of course, the food was the star of the night.

We sat at the Chef's table, which I'd highly recommend. Dan and I sat side-by-side just a couple of feet away from the kitchen watching as each dish was meticulously prepared and then inspected by the owner before being sent out. We tried to decipher the kitchen's system, affectionately dubbing one of the chefs "tweezer man," after watching him delicately place each item with his long tweezers. 

We decided to order ala carte, vs. the prix fixe menu, and it was definitely the right choice for that night. We basically ordered every pescatarian small plate, and it was more than enough food. Here's what we ate:

• Cacio e pepe monkey bread 
• YUM! This was so salty and peppery and buttery. Really great start
• Green tomato panzanella with anchovies
• At first I was confused as to why this was called panzanella, but then I found the cubed bread underneath. This was really light and refreshing. I liked the saltiness of the anchovies
• Popcorn soup
• I had no idea what this would be when we ordered it, but it is exactly what it sounds like. It's soup that tastes like popcorn! It's really salty and creamy with bits of popcorn blended in. I loved it, but the small amount I had (Dan and I shared one portion) was perfect. I'm not sure I'd want a whole bowl of it

• Lychee salad
• This is one of their best-sellers and has been on the menu since they opened six years ago. We were told by our server that we had to mix it up to eat it properly. Dan and I planned to, but first wanted to taste the different components, like the coconut cream and peanuts. Then the chef came by to reiterate the point about the need to mix it up. Message received. Either way, it was delicious
• Strawberry pasta
• Ok, this one was weird,  but I really liked it. It is a freshly-made pasta with a 60% strawberry and 40% tomato sauce, served with a big dollop of ricotta. It is definitely on the sweet side, but I found it refreshing for summer. Dan said he probably wouldn't order it again though
• Sweet Pea Primavera 
• I really liked this dish too, but was starting to get pretty full. It's a nice, light pasta flavored with fresh peas and mint. I liked the egg and horseradish that topped the dish. And it was just so pretty

• Cacio e pepe pasta
• Dan's favorite dish of the night--and a strong contender for mine as well. It was perfectly seasoned with just the right amount of bite. This was compliments of the chef, which was a nice touch. I know we're paying for it one way or another, but I love the service in fine dining where you feel like you're getting value for your money. It's nice to feel taken care of
• Dessert
• We ordered the aged rum banana pudding, which was delicious! Tasted just like an adult Nilla wafer pudding. So tasty we forgot to take pictures. Oops! But, the servers/chefs brought two extra desserts for my birthday! One was a coconut sorbet with lime zest and caramel. I loved the sorbet, but the lime was a little too sour for me. The other was a vanilla ice cream in the cutest little cone you've ever seen, with sprinkles and a sparkler. So fun! 

Another epic meal in the books for us! What a treat!

Apple Picking

It's fall!! I couldn't be more excited. I love this time of year, especially in Washington, DC. The humidity finally breaks and we can enjoy the glorious weather. It's time to break out the sweaters, fall boots, and pumpkin spice everything!

One of my favorite fall traditions is apple picking. This year we went to a new place, Waters Orchard, with our friend Dani and her daughter. This was a no-frills orchard; no hay rides, pumpkin patches, face painting, or apple cider donuts. But, the trees were full of delicious apples that were ready for the taking. It was perfect.

We picked a total of around 20 pounds (a bushel). I'm making apple butter with some of my lot as we speak. I can't wait to spread it on toast or put it in my morning oatmeal.

After apple picking, we all went for ice cream at Bruster's. My pumpkin pie flavor was my favorite, but the death by chocolate was a big hit too.

What a fun day! Do you have any fall traditions that you love? Can't wait for pumpkin picking and carving soon, too!