last weekend in the Mary-land

I picked Kraig up from BWI on the 25th. He flew in from St. Louis where he has a new job at a power plant closeby in Illinois. I am greatful that he came to help me move, and to do a little bit more sightseeing with me! After I picked him up, we had dinner and I went to work- my last night of work at the NIH...

(left) Nathan and I at the Rock Bottom Brewery (right) saying goodbye to my floor

On Friday night, Kraig and I went out to dinner at the Rock Bottom Brewery in Bethesda, MD. We love this restaurant. We think that it has the best caesar salad and it was also the restaurant that we ate at prior to getting engaged just a few short years ago...

Anyway, we went there with one of my favorite patients at the NIH- Nathan. My patients at the NIH were one of the biggest reasons that I liked working there so much- and now, since I do not work there anymore, I figured we could hang out and not have to worry about crossing that nurse-patient line! Plus, Nathan had never been there. He agrees that the caesar salad was awesome!! I had ended up leaving my stethoscope at the NIH (guess I really didn't want to leave) and had to go back and get it that night after dinner. So- I got to go through security one last time and say goodbye a few more times. I also got to sneak some more snacks! :) I will really miss the NIH. I hope that I go back someday.

I had a ton of plans for Saturday but had to cut them short because I had not done any packing yet. Kraig and I decided to go into DC one last time for the beginning of the Cherry Blossom Festival and to try and get up in the Washington Monument one last time.

me very sleepy and wondering where the Metro is...

To get free tickets to get up the Washington Monument one has to be at the ticket booth very early- especially during Cherry Blossom Festival. We wanted to get there around 7:30 am to secure a place. We were running on schedule until we got to the Metro and found out that it does not run that early on weekends. By the time we would have gotten on the Metro and made it into DC, the monument tickets probably would have been gone. So we went home and went for our plan B... a trip to Annapolis, MD instead. Alas, the Washington Monument won again....

We went back to my apartment and did some packing. Then we headed for Annapolis. We stopped at Arundel Mills mall (the one with a Medieval Times) on the way and saw Alice in Wonderland. Kraig and I both remember hating the Disney animated version, but we really enjoyed this movie.

(left) the Channel in Annapolis (right) posing with some duckies

After that we made it to Annapolis and drove around. The city is really neat and has a lot of shops on restaurants along its main street. The main street is also centered around "the channel." It is a small channel where all of the large yachts come through to show themselves off. It was a beautiful day, and I really enjoyed this part of the city. We walked through a few shops but our main destination was a restaurant called, Buddy's Crabs and Ribs

(left) at the restaurant (right) MD does not get any better than this sign!

What better way to say goodbye to Maryland than at a crab shack? (I got a chicken sandwich but that's besides the point).

I picked this place for a few reasons. #1 It has a funny name. #2 It overlooks the water, and #3 they had a seafood buffet for Kraig. He was a happy camper at the seafood buffet and ate enough seafood for the both of us! He got his fill (or overfill) or shrimp, crawdads, crab legs, oysters, clams, and every thing else in between.

(left) Kraig and his bucket (right) Kraig in the buffet line

His goal was to eat enough to fill his scrap bucket but I had to cut him slightly short of his goal because I was scared that my car would get towed if we left it over the parking space's time limit. The restaurant was a really great place, and I enjoyed watching Kraig. Seafood makes him so happy. I also enjoyed helping him try to crack open the crab legs...

my crab dance... complete with claw

We continued to pack on Saturday night and Sunday morning (packing and moving is the worst part of this travel nursing thing). I dread the move, especially since we will be driving 14 hours today to get to St. Louis. At least this time we can share the driving. My car was so full that we actually had to leave a few things behind (the food in my refrigerator and my trash can). This is the first time that has ever happened! oops! I blame Baxter.

Goodbye Maryland! I will miss you, and hopefully someday I will see you again...