After months of work and school we needed a break, so the beach was perfect. We stayed at the luxurious and gorgeous Westin Hotel (http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/index.html) It is in the Town Center, not on the beach but surprisingly affordable. Their beds are wonderful, the kids (and myself) refused to get out of them unless necessary. The hotel was not far from the beach, just a quick drive down the interstate we were there in less than 5 minutes. The weather was perfect and the beach was not over crowded, which made for great sand castle building. My oldest would not get out of the water. There was lots to see and do, walking along the boardwalk of course was great! You can rent bikes and ride them in town or along the boardwalk as well. A lovely statue of King Neptune is placed on the broadwalk, protecting his ocean.

Now for the food! Pop’s Diner (www.popsdinerco.com) has an awesome kids menu and even better side options then just hasbrowns, and coffee, no dinky cups for them big mugs make for a great start. If you want good Virginia BBQ then go to Beach Bully (www.beachbully.com) Again since I often go by the kids menu, I can definitely tell you that they have a good one. Ribs, chicken and mac n cheese! Yummy!

If you want something a little nice with a great view, go to the Lynnhaven Fish House (www.lynnhavenfishhouse.net) Nice enough for mom and dad but casual enough for the kids. Their signature quiche is wonderful, with scallops and crab and the flaky crust, I am drooling as I type. The highlight (for my boys) was the grilled cheese! Did I mention it has a wonderful view of the beach.

Dessert anyone? For the best frozen custard, you have to go to Kohr Bros. (www.kohrbros.com) word cannot describe how luscious the custard is. I only wish I could top it on a cupcake then I would be in heaven!

Virginia Beach is a can’t miss for vacation, the ocean is wonderful and tons for the kids to do. I highly recommend it for the perfect weekend getaway. Check out these website for more details:
www.VBFun.com

www.vbgov.com

www.virginiabeach.com

I hope Virginia Beach will be on your list of favorite spots, it is on mine.

You walk into the powder blue painted bakery and are face to face with the simple yet delicious display of cupcakes. The decor is simple and meant to display exactly what they are selling…cupcakes!

The flavors are great they have a moist and chocolatey Flourless chocolate cupcake, simply red with (in my opinion) the best cream cheese frosting and my favorite strawberry fields. They have others including dipped cupcakes!!

Check out the website and check out the bakery. Eat them there or take them with you. You will not go wrong with these delightful cakes. Enjoy!

As I posted previously, Generous George in Alexandria is a family friendly place. Family style italian fare!! Well little did I know it is more then that!

This is a fun place, the new location in Herndon is great. it is brand new and so much fun.

Their menu has a lot of variety not only for adults but for kids as well. In other restaurants, the kids menu only has at least 5 items and is either relegated to the bottom of the back of the menu. Well not at Generous George and given its restaurant name…they are very Generous!

The highlight for me was the Kid’s make their own pizzas. My boys loved it, they can pick their own toppings, they bring the pizzas to the table and they make it right there! And to go along with their culinary adventure, the kids get their own chefs hat! How cute is that???

And the pizzas, it is the restaurant personal size pizza which is the size of a 10 inch dinner plate. Very filling! And they have great appetizers too like their fried ravioli!! Super yummy!

So if you find yourself in Herndon or Alexandria, stop by Generous George whether with the kids or by yourself!

www.generousgeorge.com

Found this a great way to save money as well as providing the best for your baby!!!

Homemade Baby Food Making Class – Art and Soul
Start: Mar 21 2009 – 11:00am
End: Mar 21 2009 – 12:00pm

Art and Soul and Executive Chef Ryan Morgan will host a homemade baby food making class for families with infants or a newborn on the way. During the hour-long class, Chef Ryan will teach guests about the benefits of making homemade baby food. Chef Ryan, who recently had a baby girl of his own and has been diligently researching
the subject, will teach about the health and economic factors, as well as which ingredients are most beneficial to babies. He’ll also provide recipes and information about some of the ingredients that should be avoided. The class will be held on Saturday, March 21st at 11:00 a.m. and is priced at $35 per parent.

Parents are welcome to bring their baby to the class. There are only 40 seats available and are on a first-come first-serve basis. To make a reservation for Chef Ryan’s class please visit www.artandsouldc.com. For every seat
purchased, $10 will go to DC Safe Kitchen, a partnership between Chef Art Smith, The Liaison Capitol Hill, an Affinia Hotel and The DC Fire and Rescue Squad that will teach DC youth about kitchen safety skills.

In addition, The Liaison Capitol Hill, an Affinia Hotel, will introduce Chef Ryan’s baby-food for the soul on its in-room dining menu.

Art and Soul is located at The Liaison Capitol Hill, 415 New Jersey Avenue NW, Washington, D.C.

Their Thai mac looked good, it has no cheese but is made with carrots and bacon. So we ordered and held our breath. My 4 year old received his plate of food, his eyes grew with delight as he uttered “mac and cheese!” little did he know…there was no cheese. He began to dig in! Before we knew it, he ate half the plate, macaroni,bacon AND carrots. He enjoyed it!! Yay! Thai food can be enjoyed once again!

Their kids menu also has thai nuggets and you can order plain noodles as well. My youngest engulfed their delicious dumplings, which come 5 to a plate. The restaurant offers kid size drinks and is clean.

If you want to make the drive out to sterling, it is worth the trip. So if you are in the mood for thai food, I highly recommend Thai by Thai out in Sterling, VA off of the Harry Byrd Hwy, behind the Ihop. And check out Urban Spoon for reviews.

You’ll be glad you did!

It is a magazine and it is full of great stuff! Check them out when you want to know about preschools or where to have the next birthday party.

After all, we are all modern mamis!

The Washington Post is great! (www.washingtonpost.com) register yourself and you have access to a lot of fun things to do. You can even create your own going out list so share with others.

My next favorite is Greg Lists’ Dc (www.gregslistdc.com) My friend Andrea introduced me and I am on there all the time. It has some amazing events posted on its site, for example, on Sunday February 1st from2pm-5pm in Chinatown, they will be having the Chinese New Year Parade! I am excited to be taking my kids to this.

If you want to find other moms in the DC area who have the same interests as you, join Meetup! (www.meetup.com) It is a social networking site that gets you off the laptop and meeting people face to face. They a have a lot of mom’s groups from Metro moms to Working Moms.

There is always something to do and often is hard to find out what and where to go. Go to these sites and get the info you need to get out there and have fun! Enjoy yourself!

Reminder: The National Aquarium will be closed January 20th, for the Inauguration.

www.nationalaquarium.org

Children’s Inaugural Ball

Details:

Noon-5 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 18

Historical Society of Washington

801 K St. NW
Washington, DC 202-383-1850
» Web Site

Information:

202-383-1850

Price:

Free

Special Features

• Inauguration Central

Overview

A family-friendly welcome for the next president. Highlights include live music, games, storytelling, puppet shows and other activities about the presidents of the past.

Read Editorial Review

Editorial Review

Kids eating

Here are a few places to take your kids to whenever you are in the mood to eat. They are kids friendly and Metro accessible.:

Generous George
3006 Duke Street
Alexandria, VA
www.generousgeorge.com

Taqueria El Poblano
2503 N. Harrison
Arlington, VA
www.taqueriapoblano.com

Amys
3715 Macombs St NW
Washington, DC
202-885-5700

Check these places out and feel free to leave your reviews!