Visiting Katie and Mike 2018

We made one more stop in Maryland to visit Katie and Mike. We had a delicious dinner and then, unfortunately, Miranda started running a big fever which cut down on the fun. James played a little bit of chess with Mike and wasn't too worried though. Grownups had a little time at night to chat.

Miranda feeling better the next morning with James and Mike

Visiting Teresa and Family 2018

We got a chance to visit with Teresa, John, JJ, Finn, and Penelope in Maryland! It's been longer than I thought since we last saw them because time has really been flying. We've gone from 3 kids on our last visit to 5! The kids got along well and it was great to see them settled in their new home.

Too much cuteness!

I could just eat up Penelope.

Miranda and Penelope playing


Finn and James join them for Shopkins fun

It was great to see them!

Visiting Megan, Ed, Will, and Max 2016

We visited Megan, Ed and their kids Will and Max in Maryland. Janice and Darren came too. We got to see their (no longer so new) lovely house, and the kids played together in the playroom and in the back yard. Ed grilled up some burgers and hotdogs for us. We had a really great time.

Megan, me, Janice

This was my first time meeting Max!

James and Will had so much fun together!

Ed and Megan

Janice and Darren

Kevin keeping an eye on the kids in the playroom

Will, James, and Miranda in the kiddie pool

Ed and Max checking the pool

Darren, Megan, Janice

Me, Miranda, Kevin

Dads and kids having dinner

Saying goodbyes

Visiting Katie in Baltimore 2013

We went to Baltimore last weekend to visit Kevin's cousin Katie. We had lots of fun! We got tickets to the Red Sox and Orioles game, and even though it was supposed to rain, Kevin was fully confident they would play because he had already been rained out of a game in Boston. So we started in the early afternoon at Alewife and got some good beers on tap.

Katie and Kevin at Alewife

Afterwards, we went to Faidley's Seafood market where Kevin and I had the best crab cakes of our lives. They were amazing, huge, and beautiful. Even though I don't usually photograph food, I should have taken a photo of these crab cakes to show how huge and how totally composed of crab they are. Sadly, I ate it way too quickly to even consider such a thing. They are life-changing. I will dream of them forever. If you need a visual, here you go. Beware, if you go, they close really early around 5 p.m.

Crab cakes at Faidley's Seafood!

We still had a little time to kill after our very early dinner, so we went to Pickles, a large outdoor bar near Camden Yards stadium. We got some Miller Lites, and while Kevin was patting himself on the back for his superior intellect in carrying a coozie at all times, Katie and I whipped coozies out of our purses. Kevin said he'd never been so proud of his family. Haha.

 

Cheers to coozies at Pickle's Pub

Then it started raining. Really raining. And even though I had brought an umbrella to Baltimore, for some reason I had decided to leave it at Katie's. We got soaked at the outdoor bar cleverly selected for it's proximity to the stadium. But Kevin never lost hope, and sure enough the game started on time. Katie's friend Heidi met us there.

And what a game! Red Sox player Stephen Drew had an inside the park home run! Shane Victorino also hit a home run. And most notably, "Big Papi" Ortiz flipped out at a umpire and destroyed the dugout phone. It was amazing to see in real life. I could see the white bits flying of what at the time I thought was the wall. That was it for us. We'd done all our partying before the game, so we headed back. Thanks for a really fun time, Katie!

Camden Yards!

At the game

Special thanks to my mom who stayed with James for the weekend and for the first time by herself overnight! Thanks, Nana!

• Last time we visited Katie in Baltimore in 2010

Meeting William T. 2012

I was dying to meet Megan and Ed's new little baby. They live close enough that it's possible to just go for a quick weekend, but we'd just been in April right before Megan was due, and it was hard to get back down there with James in tow. Alas we met William a week ago. He's the perfect little adorable blend of Megan and Ed. Babies change a lot very quickly so I don't know if he's going to keep it up but I've never seen a baby that looked so much like both of his parents. He's got a little Megan here, a little Ed there, and lots of Ed's expressions.  And he's good! Maybe he'll rub off on James....

Me, James, Megan, Lucy, William, and Ed (Kevin behind the camera)

James ran around spilling Cheerios all over the Taylor's home while I chased him and picked them up. William was not impressed since he's a mature older soul. Hopefully as they grow older the age difference will get smaller. William needs to catch up physically, and James needs to catch up emotionally and then they will be the best of friends!

William: Do you see what I've had to put up with today?

James did make a connection with Lucy though. He wanted to pet Lucy all day. While Lucy was eager to have me pet her, she was less enthusiastic about James.

James petting Lucy-- Lucy avoiding paparazzi shots

Megan and Ed were awesome hosts and made us a yummy burger and mango salsa, and pretended like James was being cute.  Most of all I got lots of William snuggle time. At one point I had to chase James while carrying William and wow, was that a dose of reality. That's not gonna happen anytime soon.

Me and my cutie snuggle baby, William T.

Megan's Baby Shower 2012

Megan's sister Melissa and her close friends threw her a wonderful baby shower to celebrate the upcoming April arrival of her son.

Ed and Megan, the expectant parents

The surprise party was held in her own house in Maryland so her family stayed overnight at a hotel so that they wouldn't tip her off. Her friend Laurie took her out to get her nails done to distract her. Meanwhile everyone rushed in to cook and decorate in a jungle-theme to compliment the baby's nursery theme.  Melissa made a delicious jungle/Spanish theme spread.  Think empanadas, mango salsa, and banana-vanilla smoothies. Yum.

Megan and her sister Melissa with the impressive jungle cake

Jungle-theme nursery wall-- isn't it amazing?

Besides the usual present-opening, someone had the clever idea to let the guests decorate some plain white bibs using fabric markers.  Some of the guests were extremely artistic. Others made up for their lack of artistic ability with funny sayings. Amusing for the guests and for the parents.

Opening presents 

Check out her awesome giraffe bib

Friends since college (a very long time ago) Laurie, Janice, Megan, and me

Visiting Katie in Baltimore 2010

Along with Katie's roommate Caitlin, we had dinner and drinks in Baltimore's Hamden neighborhood. We especially enjoyed the Hon Bar, full of plastic pink flamingos and delicious martinis.

Dinner at Rocket to Venus with Katie

Martinis at the Hon Bar

Some of the fun decorations at the Hon Bar

The following morning we walked around the waterfront and Fells Point before heading out of town.

 

Fells Point

Fells Point

Kevin's Short Story in The Baltimore Review and Reading 2010

We went to Baltimore this weekend so that Kevin could a short story reading for The Baltimore Review. Kevin's short story "Puritan Hotel, Boston" was published in The Baltimore Review, Winter/Spring 2010 Issue (Volume XIV, Number 1). The literary magazine hosted a reading at the Towson Art Collective to celebrate the issue release. Kevin read an except from his story and his reading went really well. I was impressed by some of the other readers as well. There was even a little musical interlude.

Giving a reading at the Towson Art Center

“Puritan Hotel, Boston.” Baltimore Review 14.1 (2010): 34-49.