EAST COAST HOLIDAY (PART II)...

And so my East Coast holiday week continued on...

TUESDAY: I woke-up to find my nephew asleep in the family room. Dad was quietly watching TV beside him, in case he happened to wake-up or start crying. I, on the other hand, bundled up and hopped into the car and drove into the city. Despite the freezing temps, the skies were clear, and the sun was shining. As I drove into the city, all the sights and sounds started to familiarize themselves with me once more. The monuments looked as grandiose as ever, the tourists were out despite the temps, and the beat of the city was steady and up-beat.

I drove up 17th Street, and passed thru the National Mall. Then I got on Connecticut, before taking a turn or two and finding myself along M Street. I led myself into Georgetown, and I was overcome with the sense that I was really "home." Winter in Georgetown is, to me, quite special. The sidewalks are crowded, restaurants are bustling, and the shops all call out to shoppers with an array of "sale" signs in different colors, shapes and sizes.

I crossed the Potomac via Key Bridge, and entered Arlington. I ended up at Shirlington to 1) grab a cup of Caribou Coffee (one of my "homecoming" rituals), and to 2) pick-up another bottle of wine (or two) at Harris Teeter. Then I headed back home to take care of my nephew, who is super adorable.

Later that night, I drove to Centerville to meet up with a gang of friends for a pre-Holiday get together. It was great to see the familiar faces, and to exchange stories and updates. After dinner, I headed back home with a pit-stop at The Cantina, where I helped myself to a couple of drinks. I went to bed a drunk man that night.

WEDNESDAY: Christmas Eve, for me, was spent with the kids. Joie dropped off Lexi and Noah at the house, and around 11AM, the parental units dipped out to hang with my aunt and uncle who were in town for the next few days only. I spent the next 9 hours being "Super Uncle." I had to learn how to handle the crying 5-month old AND tend to the needs of my four-year old niece as well. The first couple hours were quite nerve-wrecking. But once I got the hang of it, I was balancing life like a pro. I had Noah in one arm, while I chopped, prepped, and cooked a curried chicken rice salad, AND prepared little meals for my niece throughout the day. I juggled bottles, formula, food, diapers, tears, wailing, and "Ninong, can you play with me?" all throughout the day. By the time Mark and Joie came home, I was done. And though I needed a nap, the adrenaline I found just being around my neice and nephew was so great...

As a fam, we wrapped presents, and helped prepare food for Noche Buena (arroz caldo, fried Cornish hens, and other stuff). Lexi fell asleep soon after, but Noah stayed up for the count, and was all smiles when we greeted each other "Merry Christmas!"

THURSDAY: I got up and drove into Old Town to attend the 10AM Mass at St. Mary's. Mom/Dad served/attended Mass the night before, but I didn’t go with them since I was still babysitting the kids. Mark and Joie had a later start, so I went ahead of them.

I sat behind the most annoying couple with children ever; the guy was a total tool. I love kids, but it’s rare that I see parents playing with kids and encouraging them to act a fool AT CHURCH. Super distracto!

After Mass, I drove through Old Town to take in the sights once more. And I noticed a man coming out of the Starbucks at the end of King Street, so I bee-lined for the next available street meter. I ran inside, ordered a latte, and picked-up a couple of last-minute gifts. You gotta love Starbucks stores that are open on Christmas Day...!

I went back home to take part in more prep for Christmas dinner. Friends and fam trickled in and out through the night, and there was a lot of catching up, story-telling, and fun times to be shared.

FRIDAY: I had a late start to my day after being up late to clean up after the guests had gone. Mom passed out early, and Dad followed her a little later. My brother actually went into work early Friday morning, and Joie was prepping little Noah for his afternoon doctor appointment. I, on the other hand, was getting ready to drop my parents off at the National Theater in the city to watch West Side Story.

After dropping them off, I went to Pentagon City to meet up with an old elementary school friend. We had lost touch after graduating high school, but we ended up finding each other on Facebook (go figure). So we met up and hung out while my parentals were enjoying the show. We caught each other up on the latest and greatest, and then we reminisced about the good ol’ days.

When the show was over, I hurried back to scoop up Mom/Dad, and then we headed home. Mark and fam came back later that night, and then we hooked up with some friends and went to the Shadow Room just outside Foggy Bottom on K Street. Some other folks we know were planning on showing up there, so we gave the place a try. Some of the gang had trouble with getting in, but me and the siblings got in right away. When we all eventually got inside, we found Gina at the bar, and the night took it’s course. Sho’ nuff… We were plastered, and good times were had by all. Despite the wanna-be pretentious-ness of The Shadow Room (goodness, what a joke), we had a great time. And it was an added bonus to see some familiar faces (Rach, Ramir, Cookie, Edsel, Karen, etc.). Gina-G got sick, so we had to take her car and get out of the city. We ended up meeting the Enrico brothers at IHOP in Potomac Yard, where we – later on – ran into a bunch of other familiar faces (Gemini, Lauren, Joyce, John, Brandon, etc.). SMALL WORLD it is… that Metro DC area, I tell you. A fight broke out at the table next to us – where a random group of people were seated (some South Asian, a black girl, a few white girls, and some other Asians --- VERY random, but multi-cultural at best…ahaha!). Black girl and one of the Indian guys got in a fight. Coffee was thrown, as were other liquids, then they were asked to leave. GHETTO.

We finally got back to Ft. Washington, scooped up our car at Siena’s, and drove Gina back to her house… helped her to her door (poor thing fell out her car), and made sure she was inside. When we got home we found the kids asleep in the family room with their grandparents; of course, Nunu was placed in-between grandma and grandpa; little spoiled one. AHAHAHA.

SATURDAY: Got up late again, and Mark and fam got ready to attend the Villanueva family get-together. I, on the other hand, left for Waldorf in the afternoon to meet Juvale and Nikki at Starbucks. Mom and Dad got ready for a party of their own, too.

I met Jev and Nix in Waldorf, and I got to meet little Nadeya. She is such a cutie! It was so good to catch up with Nix and Jev, and so we hung out for about an hour just quickly catching up.

When that was over, I headed back home and started to pack. Mark and fam came back, and we eventually went to the pho place up the street for a quick bite. We saw Gina there, and later on Laya came through to join her.

After dinner, we went back to Mom’s/Dad’s and Mark and Joie started to pack away their things into their car. I started laundry, and started to pack my bag. I said my good-byes to my siblings and nephew and niece, and they were headed back to Lorton. I finished up packing, and got ready for bed.

SUNDAY: Mom/Dad and I got up early enough, and we headed to St. Columba for the 10:00AM Mass. After Mass, we scooped up my luggage, and then went to grab a bite in Alexandria. Uh, the parentals love Chinese buffets, so that’s what we did. Ugh. Then they dropped me off at Reagan, and the long journey back to L.A. began.

The journey itself was un-eventful. I did grab a bite at Bonfire by Todd English while waiting for my connecting flight at JFK – a great way to end my trip. I kicked off my personal holiday week with a dinner at TE’s Olives in DC, then wrapped-up at TE’s Bonfire in NY. Then it was back to L.A. for me.

It was a perfect Christmas… and I have memories to last me a lifetime. Thank you, family and friends, for helping me to find the holiday spirit that I couldn’t seem to find before.