November Stop: Silver Spring, MD

November was a special month because Connor and I got to enjoy living with my family in Maryland! My aunt, uncle and mom were gracious hosts and let us stay with them for the whole month. I rarely get to see them, so I tried to get in as much quality time as possible.

Regardless of all of the fun stuff we got up to, just being around them was amazing.

Silver Spring is a busy little hub of cute neighborhoods and a downtown area with restaurants, theaters, shops, and more. I loved walking through the neighborhoods looking at the pretty fall leaves and brick houses. It all felt so New England to me, lots of columns and brick.

They also live at the end of a street that connects to the Sligo Creek trail which follows the creek through tall trees. The paved trail is perfect for getting outside and enjoying the crisp air, lots of runners and bikers use it too.

One of the most unique experiences this month was taking a tour of the White House with my mom. It was amazing! My mom had to request dates a month in advance, we had to do back ground checks, and we filled out other paperwork as well. All of it was so worth it to go inside and see incredible American history.

I had no idea the White House also doubled as a museum, they had over 60,000 artifacts in there! We got to go in and see some of the rooms where the first families live their normal lives like the Family Theater and the Library. We got to walk through parlor rooms like the Red Room, Green Room, and Blue Room (the official White House Christmas tree is featured in there). The Vermeil Room has lots of First Lady portraits which were all beautifully painted. I loved viewing the First Ladies’ portraits throughout the tour. There was a China Room that had a collection of historic White House tableware from all the presidents who got tableware made for them, which is a common occurrence. There are official rooms like the Diplomatic Reception Room where FDR delivered many of his “Fireside Chats” and the East Room where weddings, holidays, funerals and other events happen. The Cross Hall led us towards the exit, and as you go through the fancy corridor, you see presidential portraits and the Seal of the President of the United States on display. Then you exit through the North Portico which is very classic with white pillars and stone carvings.

The experience wasn’t over yet though because my mom also got us a tour of the People’s House: A White House Experience. This was an interactive tour where we could learn more about the rooms, fun White House facts, hear from employees in the White House, and learn more about the life and history of the historic building. It was such a cool experience, I highly recommend! Both tours were self guided, and you can even do a virtual tour of the White House through the WHExperience app on your smart phone. I loved both and had a great time. It was pretty crazy to walk through it all and see where presidents and their families had lived and worked. I would go again just to be in the space and feel the impact of the history there.

The day prior, my mom and I went to the National Gallery of Art for most of the day because there was so much to see. I took a total of 169 photos and videos from the trip, I’m a sucker for incredible art. There were massive, gorgeous paintings of all kinds of subjects. I love the huge landscapes, but also the detailed still lives too. They had some of my favorite artists there like Monet, and I walked away with a couple new favorite artists like Albert Bierstadt and Thomas Cole. The building was beautiful with black marble columns, decorative fountains, and green foliage. If I lived nearby, I would go to this gallery all the time. It’s so great that Washington D.C. has free museums and art galleries.

We got out into nature during the month as well. Maryland has tons of parks, but we went to Great Falls National Park specifically. We enjoyed the beautiful day along the walk. Connor hadn’t see the falls before, so we went on a weekend to the overlook to see the amazing view!

It’s crazy the amount of water that rushes over the grey boulders.

We walked along the main trail that follows the Patowmack Canal which has a series of locks that used to move thousands of boats along it for trade purposes.

Connor and I went back to the park on our own to do the popular Billy Goat A trail. It is much more rugged on the one way trail leading up rock walls and over boulders, but the bonus is being along the Potomac River with the rushing water and pretty sights.

The day we went was pretty chilly, hiking in 28 degrees, but we still loved it! The trees were bare from losing their leaves and the grey rock had all kinds of interesting patterns left from water over the years.

Once we got through the strenuous section of the Billy Goat A trail, the walk back is flat and well kept for a nice stroll.

I would love to go again when it is a little warmer!

My mom and I saw some very show stopping, noteworthy productions this month as well. We dressed in pink and green witch outfits to go see the movie Wicked, and it was so amazing. We both loved it. She had taken me to see the musical in San Francisco when I was little, so I was really excited to see the movie with her this month. Our costumes were extra fun. The acting, costumes, score, and production were perfect. I’m definitely going to see it again in theaters if I can, and I’m already excited for part two.

Another special moment was going to see The Nutcracker ballet together at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. I grew up watching Barbie in the Nutcracker movie a million plus one times, so it was a dream of mine to see the real ballet. I was so excited to go, and the evening didn’t disappoint.

The venue was so pretty decked out with red velvet, huge chandeliers, and floor length mirrors. We had great seats with a full view of the stage and orchestra.

When the lights dimmed, the magic started. The orchestra was perfect and made my childhood come to life again through the music I know so well.

Then, the ballerinas were incredible. It was hard to wrap my mind around the insane level of difficulty they were executing with such grace. I couldn’t take my eyes off of them. The sets and costumes were beautiful as well.

I felt like I was 12 years old again, watching this ballet with my mom. It was such a special night.

Right at the start of the month, Connor and I actually took a few days to fly to San Diego and attend our best friend’s wedding in Temecula.

I’m so happy we made it happen, and the whole event was amazing.

The newly wedded couple seemed so happy not only during the wedding, but also during the days leading up to and following the wedding surrounded by family and friends.

The wedding was beautiful, and we couldn’t be happier for them.

Connor and I also loved seeing old friends and getting quality time with them too.

During the rest of the month in Maryland, we got up to a bunch of fun, local activities too!

We had fun at the downtown Thanksgiving parade, we went ice skating twice, we tried lots of food places, and more. Ice skating was a blast at the little rink in downtown Silver Spring.

Connor and I try to go ice skating once a year because we both love it, and it’s always the best time. The first time we went, it was a packed weekend on the ice, but we went with my mom on a Wednesday evening and had a calmer experience.

It was so fun ice skating with my mom because it had been a long time since we last did that together.

She used to take me as a child all the time when we lived in Northern California.

All of the food places our family took us to were delicious as well. We loved the dive bar, Quarry House Tavern, that they have been going to for years.

Silver Spring had tons of food options from all different cultures which was cool to see.

There is an a park close to the house called Brookside Gardens which is a collection of beautifully kept and curated gardens that my family likes to visit frequently. I’ve been on walks through it before, but this month they set up their Garden of Lights which we all went to go see.

It is a light exhibit throughout the gardens with all kinds of fun displays and designs.

We walked past large animals, bright insects, atmospheric elements, a bee hive, the Lochness Monster, human-sized flowers, and pretty patterns all of which are made with Christmas lights!

It was so fun walking through it all and totally put us in the holiday spirit.

Then of course, we got to enjoy celebrating the holidays with my family! I can’t describe what it meant to me to get to experience decorating for Christmas with my aunt, uncle and mom and then getting to celebrate Thanksgiving too.

I am extremely sentimental, and decorating for Christmas was always something my mom and I did together. It was even better when my brother, sister, and dad got involved too.

So, getting to do that this year with my family in Maryland after not having that for years was amazing. My whole heart was warm and happy. I loved how the decorations turned out too. Then, Thanksgiving was super fun! I cooked pumpkin pies with my mom and aunt and we went over to their best friends’ house for dinner.

Their family welcomed us in and made us feel at home. They were extra sweet about my allergies and made sure I could eat most of the Thanksgiving meal without dairy or gluten restricting me.

Connor and I loved talking to everyone and spending time with this family.

We didn’t want to go home even when it got to be 10pm. I cannot count all of the blessings in my life and I’m extremely fortunate to have them. I am forever grateful for my family and friends and the life I get to lead.

Speaking of friends, I got to see two of my Tucson friends this month too! It was so funny to see them all the way out here on the east coast. One of my girl friends, Lindsey, invited me to my first pilates class and coffee after. I love trying new workout classes, and we had a blast together. It was amazing getting to catch up with her. I wish we could’ve had even more time together because I could’ve spent the whole day talking with her. Connor and I got to meet up with our friend Nico the night before Thanksgiving at a fun bar in Washington D.C. We loved getting to catch up with him too, and could’ve also spent the whole night talking. I’m so happy the timing of his trip worked out with ours! A little side note, since it was the night before Thanksgiving, we got to see whole groups of old friends meet up at the bar and get excited about seeing each other. It was really fun watching all of the reunions.

About an hour outside of Silver Spring is a historic town Frederick. I spent the afternoon there with my family and their friends looking into art galleries and popping into cute shops.

I loved all of the old buildings. It felt so quaint to me.

The main streets were full of food spots, candy stores, and boutiques. My favorite part was the little canal in the hub of downtown where different organizations decorated miniature boats. All of the boats had themes and lights.

They were so cute! It was like a mini boat parade floating down the canal except the boats were anchored and not moving. After some warm beverages, we headed back home.

I loved getting to spend time with my family at home too. Getting to live together for a month was so comforting. We played Dominoes, made dinners, looked at old pictures and just hung out. It was perfect.

On a work note, I finished up an article I’ve been working on for months for a magazine, so I’m really excited to see how the production turns out on it.

I also looked into a couple other articles and have been reaching out to publications about ones I’ve already written.

I’m in the freelance grind. I also made another art piece this month which is called On The Slopes.

Hopefully my inspiration comes across in the photo.

Connor and I signed up for the local LA Fitness for the month, and I went to Grace yoga studio as much as I could. Both places had monthly passes we could buy which is music to our ears because fitness centers usually make it tricky.

Grace was a fun studio on the second floor of a building with lovely wood floors and big windows.

It snowed during one of the classes I attended, and that was magical watching the flakes drift past. I really enjoyed the studio overall! I’m so glad we had both of these options.

And that pretty much wraps up the month of November! Definitely a special month as I mentioned at the beginning, and we loved being in Maryland with family. Our next stop is South Carolina for more family and holiday fun! Thank you for following along! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and are enjoying their holidays during this winter season.

Princess Update:

My aunt and uncle have two sweet cats in their home, so Princess enjoyed her luxury suite all to herself. We wanted to keep them separate to reduce stress on all the animals, and give everyone their space. Princess had no issues and loved having Connor work remotely from our room because she always had company. Fingers crossed this next drive goes better than the last! The last drive was one of her toughest yet, but I have high hopes for the drive to South Carolina.