NWMDC | Weekend Fun

 

My NWM DC weekend is going to have to be two posts - so bear with me! Too much fun crammed into 48 (or less) hours. All in good fun! We had a blast gallivanting around on Saturday, thus the need for some extra blog love about this amazing, amazing weekend.

Friday night Heather and I landed and got to our hotel by 9:30, where we met up with Trista and my sister. Trista had been in DC since Friday morning, and my sister had arrived on the bus from NYC not even an hour prior to us landing at Reagan. We headed out to Crystal City Sports Pub for a late dinner, and before we knew it, it was nearly 11:30 and we had an early, early (re: 7:15) alarm clock waiting for us, as we had plans to be at the expotique around 8:30 on Saturday morning.

Saturday morning came way earlier than I think any of us had hoped - but it was Expotique time! I was so excited to check this out. Kasey and Carly were meeting us there for the expo and then for playing at the Nike store for more race swag, and of course, our resulting photo shoots.

Nike doesn't quite do an "expo" in the traditional term. Being that this race caters to women (read: the race is not women only, as we thought learned), the expotique is just that: an expo boutique, featuring the race's major sponsors: Nuun, Luna, and the best of them, Bare Mineral and Paul Mitchell. So if you're the type to get all excited over free swag and true vendors, this expo may not be up your alley. However, if you just like playing around, this could be your sort of thing:

From top left - right: All of us, ready to rock! | Half marathon #10, at the Nike store with light up digital course map | Nike party going on my arm | There I am! On the wall! | Scribble wall at the expotique with comments from Heather and me | Kasey's tribute to all of us!

After playing at the expo-area, we headed up to the place I was second-most excited for: Georgetown Cupcake! While I don't regularly watch the show anymore, I love any opportunity I can get to get my hands on some awesome cupcakes. The store opens at 10, and we were in line by 10:20. I'm glad we weren't there when it opened, as originally planned, because apparently their secret (read: free) flavor of the day wasn't ready yet! Victory for us. We ordered a dozen (two for each of us and then two 'community cupcakes') plus our free one = thirteen fabulously delicious treats that no, we did not even finish come Sunday afternoon. But please note that yes, I finished my two.

Cupcakes! All the cupcakes.

Post-cupcakes, we headed back to the hotel to drop our cupcakes, re-charge the phones (because you know how dead they were post-expo) and get ready for our next adventures...

We first headed to the Nationals/Reds game down at Navy Yard. New ballpark for me and sister, check! Not a super thrilling game, but a clean win for the Nats. From this photo, we were sitting in direct line of the sun and (quickly) bound for sunburn city, so we moved not even in the fourth inning to the other side and enjoyed ourselves a bit more. Baseball, beer, hot dogs... what more could you want in a Saturday afternoon?

Afterward, the adventure continued - specifically, back over to the Smithsonian on the Metro and to gallivanting around the National Mall to get a few memorials in for sister, who'd never been to DC. Washington Monument (scaffolding and all), Lincoln, and a walk all the way back up by the Vietnam Memorial and all the way to...

Michelle, we're here for your cardigans.   - HP

Amazingly enough, Heather had never been either, so at least we crossed off a major item for both of them! After the National Mall fun, up to Pizzeria Paradiso for dinner with all the other crazies. So many folks carbing up for dinner around there, and so much buzz in the city! I just loved it! I think something I loved about the Mall was the fact that there were runners everywhere (not just those folks in NWM gear, but folks out and about). The weather was perfect, and you can tell this city truly loves being active and outside (I imagine especially in spring when it was like it was this weekend, just gorgeous).

After dinner, a pre-race day stop at CVS for an onslaught of all things random and necessary, and bed time with an early early alarm... it's almost race day! And you get to hear more about that on Wednesday!

Happy Monday, friends! Did you race this weekend? How'd it go?

PS. You can also read my sister's recap of her whirlwind weekend - I'm glad she seemed to have more fun than she lets on. ;) Love you sister!