Christmas in Old Town

Me, Slapshot, and my two French boys

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Could Alex be any cuter?

Caps v Jersey and Michelle Obama's here

Come to the dark side, we have cookies

I just parked next to a Prius with the best bumper sticker ever. I laughed out loud all the way into the office.

Jenn - I totally coulda gotten you on the Zamboni

Apparently Pentagon Row has an ice rink. It's adorably tiny.

Belated birthday cupcakes from my coworkers

I have to say that Georgetown Cupcakes are hands down better than Cakelove or Buzz. AND they deliver!!!

My new favorite quote: "It's Christie's birthday - that's like a national holiday." Love you too, Tracy.

My brilliant husband decides to order the Vietnamese cafe

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A perfect morning

We're having brunch at Parc, a f
French cafe, on Rittenhouse Square. Next up? Facials at the hotel spa. La vie, elle est bonne.

Say no more

Pats the King of Steaks

Mmmmmmmmmmmmm

We saw the mast from blocks away and hoped it'd be the USS Constitution.

Still cool tho

Irish Famine Memorial in Philly

Coolest dog costume ever

Puppy trick or treat in old town

Day off with the puppies? Priceless

Me in Iowa with Heath Hill and Caree Severson

My friend Caree just posted this photo on Facebook. It’s one of my all-time favorite photos, because it reminds me of the stories that come, rarely, that really affect you deeply. This was taken after a morning spent pheasant hunting with Rep. Tom Tancredo and a bunch of his supporters out in Iowa. Heath and Caree and I had spent a week on a road with the congressman. I was amazed that they let me drive around the back roads with them, as Heath swilled Mountain Dew and Caree tried to bolster Tancredo’s spirits. He was, after all, possibly the darkest horse in the Republican presidential primary field. He was drawing crowds of 20 or so, but admitted to me that sometimes he’d show up for a campaign rally and nobody at all would be there. My friends on the left spend a lot of time dissing the gun-toting, immigration-hating crowd, calling them racists, red-necks, and a thousand other loaded phrases. But Caree, Heath, the congressman – if you could have spent a week on the road with them, you would have seen how much passion they have for this cause they so truly believe in, how much they care about their country, how much pleasure they take in doing the right thing, the kindness they show to everybody they meet, and their generosity of spirit. Heath is one of the best men I’ve ever met – gracious, kind, gentle, strong, articulate, thoughtful, devoted to his family and his faith and his community. Caree has faced tremendous sorrow in her life with grace and goodness, and she always finds a way to turn sadness into a positive for all around her. I’ve never liked two people I’ve covered as much as I like Caree and Heath, and I am so blessed that they welcomed me into their lives last year. I hope they will always be a part of mine.

Chris is master of his domain

Lovely morning

Scaffolding is gone

Just when I was coming up with fun things to do with it.

It's official - our house is a war zone

This is the Brickhouse Inn, where we stayed in Gettysburg. We were in the Alabama room, which housed Confederate snipers during the Gettysburg battle. The house was right on the outskirts of town, and they were trying to keep the Union Army out of the village. The Alabama room has bullet holes pockmarking the brick from the gunfights. It was totally romantic. The room's wide plank pine floors were the kind I obsess over, and the hosts, Brian and Tessa, are discrete and very helpful. I'd also recommend the private guided tour; our guide, George Newton, knows every inch of the battlefield, and the names and histories of every leader on both sides. He made the battle come to life - even for me, and even though he kept calling me "Christine." 

I can haz power tulz?

My view at O'Rourke's Irish Pub in Gettysburg

Chris and George Newton in the reading room

Looking up Georgia troops to figure out which brigade Chris's great great granddaddy was in. It was the 48th, company F. He was the captain.

Wright's Brigade placard

Marks where the brigade gathered before advancing to union lines around 6 pm July 2, toward Cadori barn

Cadori barn at Gettysburg

Chris's other great great granddaddy, Thomas Wiggins Kent, was shot and captured near here the second day of the battle. He was captured by union soldiers and had his left arm amputated.

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Happy Chris? Priceless.

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Chris's great granddaddy made this cannon in Macon, GA

Now it's at Gettysburg

Making Room

This weekend, Chris was halfway down the stairs, white knuckles clenched around the hand truck, upon which was balanced our ginormous old television set. He bought it when he was a bachelor, and all that implies. For years I've been begging him to swap it for a smaller, sleeker TV that makes sense in the life we live now. This thing is 50 inches square, four feet deep. It weighs more than the Titanic. 

And it wanted to go down the stairs - really fast. Chris rolled it slightly forward on the step, pausing just before pushing it over the edge, and for a moment it could have gone either way. Either my husband would keep control over the beast, or it would hurl itself to the ground. I couldn't watch, and went back inside. Where the living room was curiously, suddenly, empty. That's what a lot of the house feels like these days. 

But empty is a good thing. Because the random baggage we've both been collecting over the years is now heaped in our dumpster like an archaelogical dig. There's that box full of shiny blue packaging for my failed soap company. The Pier 1 bookcase that's been holding dusty college textbooks for 15 years. The glow in the dark Statue of Liberty nightlight I bought with my college boyfriend. The entire pile is taller than me. But it look so tiny, almost forlorn, all smushed into the back end of the dumpster. I thought the house would feel bigger for the loss of all this stuff. It doesn't. It just feels lighter. 

And now, we get to rebuild. We've started with this late 1800s Chinese cabinet, which we discovered at one of my favorite shops, Dragonfly antiques. It has been so loved over the past 200 years that the corners are rounded. The patina shows wear from the centuries too, although in the sunlight it glows the deep rich red of a fall sunset. It feels safe, permanent. Like home. And you've probably already guessed what it will hold: our new TV.

Radley's gonna be a builder when he grows up

Can I just say how surreal it is to have my roof torn open?

Disconcerting is an understatement.

The third and final panel is in

Its unbelievable how fast this is going.

Steve installed the second panel yesterday on his birthday

The first panel is up!

I don't even want to think about how much work lies ahead of us. But we arrived last night to see the first tangible improvement to the house. It's pretty heartening. Even better was Steve's quote: "There's not as much damage as we thought there was." Still, there's a long way to go before we can even think about putting it on the market.

It doesn't feel like the same room

Now I just have to get a rug to fit this crazy-shaped space. Ideas?

Suddenly we have a blank slate

Goodness

As we were driving home tonight, I asked Chris to take a guess at what our house would look like. There'll probably be some boards lying around, he said. Maybe they'll start work on one of the panels. But this is more like the demilitarized zone, as one person just commented on the pic. It's the bracing that will hold the roof in place as they start to tear down the outside wall of the house. Which is only somewhat reassuring. I'll post more pics taken during the daylight so it doesn't look like I'm using night vision goggles.

These are a few of my favorite things

Apparently this is what I do when stuck at home, computerless. Put books in storage to create more space for shoes. Then organize said shoes by height, color, finish and season. I think I may need a more productive hobby. Although this was pretty damn fun. And my chic stylist friend Margaret will be so proud!

Our new dumpster!!!!

I'm so happy the dumpster is finally here. That means the talented ernie and steve birkett will start fixing the roof soon. Del Ray here we come!

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And we are done!!!