charlottesville.

it started back in january, when we had an itch to get out of town. 

there is something about being in one spot for too long.

 and there is another thing about, well,... winter. (you know what i mean.)

...

sometimes, i think you just need a little mini getaway. so that's what we did.

 we left for 48 hours and pretended like we were on a vacation. 

i insisted that caleb call it a vacation and we had to treat it like one

- which means for me, 

calories don't count, 

sleeping in, 

absolutely NO working out,

 and dessert- every chance possible. 

oh caleb, he is such a trooper. he played right along. he even insisted on soaking up every minute and not missing any historical opportunity (which he knows i love)

so here's a little sneak peak of our vacation.  

p.s. never knew central virginia had so many wineries. apparently, becoming its own east coast napa. 

our personal fav.- king's family. 

polo events on sundays this summer. umm. yes. we are there. 

our b&b.

 so even though, we only were in charlottesville for one morning, we seemed to eat a lot of breakfast food. hmm. weird. 

^^ king's family

^^i'm obsessed. thanks caleb.

 ^^ the way coffee should be, with cream, of course.

 ^^^ breakfast at the inn

^^^^ chocolate made from wine... umm... yes. 

 ^^ there is something about mountains. as well as sunrises. combination of both, delightful.

richmond.

virginia. there are so many things i like about you. 

as many of you know, i like history. i actually majored in a social studies composite. 

i love the stories that roll out of our past. the romance, the miracles, the personalities.

...

there are so many towns, here in VA,

 where i feel like i am walking in a different decade. 

last weekend, caleb and i joined friends to tour the town they call home, richmond. 

we had a wonderful time

 chatting at lunch,

had a cupcake at a place called pearl's (umm.. love)

 walking the river, 

and trying a great new brewery 

(caleb's collection of beer glasses is becoming quite eclectic)

i can't wait to go back. 

thanks for being great tour guides, jessie and josh :)

 

painting and wine.

Sunday afternoons. Why not paint? 

i have never found myself as an artist or even slightly artistic.

 i always thought of myself as a communicator. 

But sometimes, after a long work week, it's nice to.... well... not communicate. 

------

when first entering the painting room, i didn't really know what to expect. 

a blank canvas, colored paint, and an apron. 

three hours later, i found myself completely lost in my work. almost finding myself competitive for the "best" painting

 (also a new thing for me- competitive?! what is going on?!)

i found my arm swishing back and forth, and looking for the sunlight to shine through.

i'm now a believer in art therapy- forget running (just kidding). 

caleb and i had so much fun and actually were both runners-up in the contest (we were kind of excited about this, naturally)

...

we quickly ran home, grabbed a bottle of champagne to celebrate our "masterpieces" and searched for the most perfect spot to hang our work. 

come visit and see if you can find them :)

superbowl.

in the summers family, super bowl is kind of a big deal. 

sort of like a national holiday.

my dad had it on our calendar for months and started to look forward to it the minute we put our christmas tree away.

if you know anything about my dad - 

have seen the basement of my parents house or can remember the red chiefs mobile

... (arrowhead decals and all)... 

then you know what i am talking about.

every year on super bowl sunday, my parents would have enough food to feed for the masses

 (while usually it was only the core 5 of us)

...

this year, i was not close to home. 

so caleb and i thought we would carry on the tradition. 

we had so much fun planning a food menu for our friends, trying wings from different places and going to breweries to pick the best beer to serve.

i hope i made you proud-

here's to you, dad

                                         

we did our best in alexandria. 

who says you can't have champagne while watching football. 

cheers to you, beyonce

i think i like him ^^

oh america.

wow. what a week to be in the capital. 

little did i know when i moved here, i would see the president and vice president, view the white house at christmas, stroll around the gardens of the first lady, and be surrounded by so much history. 

i couldn't help myself by going to the parade on monday. i squeezed into a tiny spot so that i could catch a view of what felt like royalty.

i felt myself wrapped up in a crowd, chanting, "obama, obama"

something came over me- i felt truly like an american. and, i was joyful to be one. 

had to get a photo of this one. missing good old wheaton.

january.

january. 

i am not sure how i feel about you. 

flu. 

fun. 

not. 

however...

inaugural weekend in dc. 

fun. 

yes.

and not so cold weather. i think i like you east coast. 

picnics outside.  i can handle that. 

brewery tours. junk food. pizza. chili.

 did i say pizza? yes, lots of that.

parenthood marathons. oh, heart is pounding. cliff hangers.  

yes please.  

oh and (finally) welcomed into the 21st technology. 

the nyboers have... IPHONES. 

communication between the two of us has ended as we know it. 

just kidding. 

i suppose a little slow down is good for the soul. 

its no 12 dates of christmas, though. 

tea time

tea at the drake in chicago has been a dream of mine (especially around christmas!) ever since i first laid eyes on the location. (if you have ever walked into this room- you know what i am talking about.)

 i must say- there is something incredibly enticing about a room surrounded by people chatting, a harpist playing, cakes expecting to be eaten & sugar cubes waiting to be stirred. 

so alas, my dream was made complete on one of my last days in the midwest- we did indeed dine at the drake. i was embraced by so many dear friends that  I do not see too often enough. we had a wonderful time laughing, exchanging stories, and sipping on the yummy tea.

 (i suggest the pear and caramel). 

so proud of jill and jori hailing that cab.