I went up to help Ben and Bonnie with our first grandson, Patrick.  I’m having a great time being “Nana”.  (I took this picture after Patrick’s bath last night).

It’s been eventful, too.

Ben and his little family were going to a wedding out-of-state on Saturday and Sunday while I stayed in D. C. with a plan to catch up on some projects.  However, Friday night, the Derecho passed through and knocked out our power. (See the articles below about the thunderstorms.) Ben and Bonnie left in the morning, but I stayed without electricity.  It was okay for me since the power came back after 17 hours.  As I write, tens of thousands are still without power (a week later) while we’ve also been experiencing a record-breaking heat wave as well.

We were going to go to the July 3rd dress rehearsal on the National Mall for the Fourth of July concert, but it was just too hot.  Instead, we saw a fantastic fireworks display put on by Falls Church, Virginia, on July 4th .We watched from the top of a metro parking garage. We could also see the DC fireworks and many other displays in the distance (at least 8 total, including Falls Church’s).

More Photos from the Trip

While I’m visiting Ben and family, I’ll be adding to two Facebook photo albums, so feel free to check back for new pictures on “Visiting DC 2012” and “Pix of Patrick.”  In the first album, I have pictures of flying in over the National Mall, storm damage, and time with family.  In the second, are adorable pictures of our little grandbaby. Just click on any of the photos if you want to see a larger image.

Related articles

• DC area thunderstorms knock out power across region (The Washington Post)
• Derecho: Behind Washington, D.C.’s destructive thunderstorm outbreak, June 29, 2012 (The Washington Post)
• Derecho (Wikipedia)
• D.C. heat looks to break next week (wjla.com)