Another Holiday Successfully Negotiated

All the folks at Casa Coal Bear survived the holiday. We've had family either with us or near us for the past couple of weeks. Heather and Omar, along with Aunt Adrienne, brought Diego and Abby north to see their great-grandparents for the first time. Until now it's been a succession of adorable photographs the whet folks appetites. Finally, the kids were on the scene, making a personal debut. Lots of huge brown eyes and solemn expressions as the youngsters contemplated the new surroundings. The guests made the requisite pilgrimages--the Mall in DC (to see the monuments), The Mall in Columbia (I think..that one is requisite for my girls, anyway), the National Aquarium, the Maryland Science Center, and of course Grandma and Poppy's house. After a few days at the Casa, our house guests traveled to Pittsburgh to see more relatives, then flew home.

My sister- and brother-in-law came back to this area to spend more time with all the Maryland family. The gathering of the clan was sufficient reason to dine out. Breakfasts at the Forest and the Double T diners, dinners at Macaroni Grill, Copeland's, and Avanti's, and even a Coal Bear Cookout on the 4th. We had enough folks on hand to break out the Tripoley game. As usual, I had better return for my efforts at the grill than at the cards. On Thursday, we'll bid good-bye to our remaining guests and life will slip back into a well-established rut with a jarring thud. I can almost feel the whiplash already.