The more things change, the more they stay the same

Of all places, Washington DC is probably the city that Steve and I call home the most, together at least. We met there when we were both living there in 2001. I lived there for 3 years in that period during grad school and while working, and when we moved back to the US from Mali in 2004, we were in DC about a year. We've been lucky to have a really fantastic, solid group of friends we've stayed in touch with who still live there, and although we've missed a lot of their engagements, weddings, and kids' births, we still hold them close to our hearts as friends.

We've learned over the years that when we come back for a visit, it's pretty hard to a lot of lunches, dinners, and drinks to meet up with everyone. So the best way is to get as many people as possible together in one place. This time we had the idea to just host a big happy hour kind of thing, with an open invitation. I'll give a huge shout-out to Spider Kelly's bar/restaurant in Clarendon, who hosted us and were absolutely fantastic. We all met up late Saturday afternoon and had a whole section of the bar set aside for us. Which was good.....because now the group has expanded significantly and all the little rugrats needed the space to wreak havoc!

At first, I think our bartender Nate was a little bummed he got stuck with our gig. At my earlier request, they had made up a special drink menu of non-alcholoic cocktails for all the pregnant and breastfeeding women planning to be there. I was very pregnant, the first guest to arrive, Alison, also very pregnant. Then a few folks with kids arrived- I could see he thought this party would be a bit of a drag. But ooohhhh nooooo how little ol' Nate knew of hashers! Most of us knew each other from the running club the Hash House Harriers in the DC area, and back in our day (which for some is like, yesterday), we always knew how to have a good time!

The moral of the story is, a few hours into it, one yummy and hilarious but almost offensive chocolate cake, and at least sixteen irish car bombs lined up on the bar (for those NOT pregnant), bar tabs that would make most cringe, and laughter and stories stretching from here to Timbuktu, everyone was reminded that although I counted just under 10 children running around (all under the age of 5) and I think 3 pregnant women and 3 or 4 breastfeeding (with 2 of our girlfriends currently in the hospital delivering that week!), you shouldn't underestimate the power of adults having fun. Our families may grow larger in time, but I'm not sure whether any of us have really grown up. Which, according to Peter Pan and most of the rest of us, is a good thing.