Happiness is...a busy weekend.

This weekend was one of those non-stop, go go go, type.  I wasn't home for longer than about 20 minutes at a time other than to sleep. I got nothing done (in the way of laundry, grocery shopping, cleaning or other 'responsible adult' type activities.) But it was a pretty great one anyway.

Friday night I headed into town to visit the Jazz Church with a group of friends.  The Westminster Presbyterian church hosts live performances every Friday (and Blues on Monday) and serves up soul food in the basement. There were plenty of 'amens' and a bit of preaching about how God loves jazz (I'll add my own 'amen' to that!), along with the fantastic music. It was a great way to start the weekend.

Saturday began with a delicious brunch (cinnamon bananas over German pancakes topped with buttermilk syrup, red potatoes and leeks, bacon, orange juice...are you drooling yet?) and then a drive to Annapolis for an Irish Festival.

My great friend K is my musical guru and the one I follow blindly to concerts and bands I've never heard of before.  She has yet to lead me astray and Saturday was no exception.  The goal for the day was to listen to Scythian, a local band that is influenced by everything from bluegrass to klezmer and puts on a rousing show.  It was super hot but they were hotter! We were up and clapping and stomping our feet and Miss M even had a run-in with some wandering belly dancers.

We were also treated to plenty of kilts (though I'm not sure why, only in the US would that fly, everywhere else people would realize that the Irish and the Scots are NOT the same!) and plaid in various forms (check out the pants below!) as well as some bagpipes and LOTS of beer and drunkenness. Good times!

We followed it all up with a stop at  The Queen Vic, a British pub in DC where I had a tasty chicken and mushroom pie, fantastic chips (fries) and the crowning dish, sticky toffee pudding.  I'd never had it before but I became an instant fan! The cake is moist and drenched in a caramel-y toffee sauce and served with a side of heavy whipped cream. I guess it's usually sweetened but ours was salted giving it an interesting salted caramel taste. And it was delicious!

But wait, we're not done! Then it was time to switch friends and drive an hour or so down to Stafford for dinner and a movie night (Five Guys and Goonies!) followed by some homemade ice cream. Does it get any better?  I don't think so either.  And yes, I think I gained at least 5 pounds in the 2 days, but it was totally worth it!
How was your weekend?