thatcher in dc, sickness already, friend dinners

 last tuesday, thatcher left dark and early to fly to washington DC for two nights for an event he was invited to speak at. ashford was feeling under the weather when he woke up (hello school germs), so i let him stay home from school and rest. it was the perfect day for my annual fall viewing of 'you've got mail'. even though it was 90 degrees outside. ha! ashford had his zoom piano lesson. my brother came over in the evening and he, azalea, and i went to 'edina grill' for dinner. it has been a staple at 50th and france for over 30 years and it's closing, which is sad. we wanted to go for one last meal. we also ran into a childhood friend of my brother's, and it was fun to see them reconnect. 

wednesday ashford woke up feeling worse, so he stayed home again. i had an appointment at the government center to get my minnesota real ID. that went smoothly, but i won't get it in the mail for another couple of months. thatcher had his speaking engagement. i'm so proud of him!

in the evening, my friends anna and michelle (who i've known since middle/high school) came over to see our house and go out for dinner. we went to 'rosalia pizza' in my neighborhood for the first time. it was a great place, and it was so nice to catch up with them. 

thursday ashford was able to go back to school. woo hoo! i went to the gym and drove down to burnsville to pick up our new pendant lights for the kitchen. thatcher flew back in the afternoon, and i picked him up at the airport. in addition to speaking at his event, he got to see cedar and family who are living in DC for the year, as well as a couple friends. before dinner, we headed to azalea's school for an open house/meet the teacher night and we got to meet one of the new friends she's made. i took an updated picture of our bedroom because we now have a rug and i love it! 

friday morning my friend bridget (who i know from work going back to 2006, though she doesn't work with me anymore) came over to see the house and then we went to 'picnic' in my neighborhood for lunch. it was a good week for trying new restaurants near me. we loved it! we also visited her son's apartment, which is right in the middle of the business district. azalea got a babysitting gig for my friend caylia's kids on friday night, which was great for her. i picked her up at 8pm and we just had a relaxing night at home listening to the pouring rain. 

saturday morning i met up with my friend caitlin for coffee at 'jones coffee'. her daughter is also a 6th grader at ashford's school. then i took azalea to mall of america for a couple hours. going there on a saturday is crazy, but she had been asking for a while. we had fun together. thatcher volunteered for 3 hours at a 'trucksploration' kids event through community ed. in the evening, we all headed to our friends karen and will's house for dinner. both of their sons were there (the older one is in college), which was really nice. we had carnitas tacos and chatted for a couple hours. 

sunday we made a big breakfast and then my mom picked up azalea to take her to the 'cat video festival' at riverview theater and out for lunch. they said the show was so great! ashford and i had a shopping date to get the last few items for his room: a rug and a nightstand. he also talked me into another lamp and a new clock. thatcher worked on building azalea's ikea bedframe for a lot of the day. then his parents came over for dinner. a good end to the weekend. i've noticed when driving around minneapolis after dark since we've been back, i feel like i'm 16 again. time is pretty wild! 

today is thatcher's first day of work in minneapolis. he's doing consulting, which is new to him, but i know he will be amazing at it.