Baseball! (and Mt Vernon)

It’s an interesting experience to have a life that is so routine, yet still fun of new adventures. I go to work everyday and do just about the same thing, come home and have dinner group, then FHE, Institute or go to the gym, so it often seems that life is repetitive. Yet each day is still unique, and especially on weekends, we see new things every day.
The weekend it rained all day long on Friday, so it was the kind of dreary, gray day where I just want to stay inside, curl up by the fire, and read a book. We don’t have any fireplaces here, but I did curl up with my computer! I finally decided that I really should get out, so a few of us went to a Nationals baseball game. I have never been a big baseball fan, and I’m still not, but I think the best part about the game is the crowd and environment. It was still raining when we went, so we got soaked through, but there were not very many people there so we had great seats by first base. There were some guys in front of us that were quite entertaining too- particularly when the Bud Lite bottle count got higher than 10…we were cracking up at them, just harmless drunk people having a great time! The guy in front of us was a really nice guy (who has Mormon roommates in Hawaii) that really liked the booze. So, overall, it was a very entertaining game (besides the baseball) and a pretty good experience!

Saturday was a little more wholesome in its activities and environment. In the morning we went to breakfast at Eastern Market, a market that has a restaurant area with amazing breakfast food, and then stalls with tons of other foods like all kinds of meat, cheese, fruit, and home-made items. Breakfast was so filling I didn’t eat again until late that night. Outside the building there were lots of stalls like a farmers market but selling bags, jewelry, and that type of stuff. It was pretty cool to see.

After breakfast we caught the metro and a bus to Mount Vernon, where George Washington’s plantation estate is. It is right on the Potomac River, and it was so beautiful there. We walked through the main house and saw many of the other dwellings, including the slave quarters. It is hard to imagine what life really would have been like back then, not only the living circumstances, but the attitudes and the culture that they felt. Looking at Washington’s tomb and watching a movie about his life, it really struck me what an amazing man he was, and everything he did that perhaps only he could have done in safely leading the beginning of this country. The formation of this country truly was guided by the hands of God.

Today we had Stake Conference, and the building was right by the Washington DC Temple. We got there early, so I got to walk around the temple a little. It was the first time I had seen it, and the temple and the grounds were so amazingly beautiful and peaceful. I love being on temple grounds, just being still and feeling the peace and knowledge of Heavenly Father’s love through the Spirit. Stake Conference was very good as well- the talks were very uplifting and motivating.

The rest of today has been good- I read Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen and absolutely loved it. I couldn’t put it down. But tomorrow starts another week of work, which is good. An update on mission papers- I am meeting with the Stake President next Sunday, so my papers will be processed right after that. Hopefully I’ll have my call by the end of the month!

Sorry that there weren't any pictures- I need to steal some from a friend, so I will try to update soon.