Fairfax

We always try to visit the three McDow kids in late August or early September, which is roughly when their birthdays occur. Following their move to Virginia, it's become a bit trickier to drop in on them. This year, we made a last-minute decision to catch the Chinatown Bus for a cheap, whirlwind trip to Fairfax. It was well worth the schlep. Here we are reading a post-breakfast book to son Silas and godson Solomon, while Dodie and Maggie Lou watch from the sidelines. Silas is more interested in Solomon than in the book.

One nice thing about visiting Fairfax is that it's now a twofer, with friends from college and friends from high school. We managed to see 'em all. On very short notice, Rebecca marshaled her whole clan -- Dane, Campbell, Cooper, and Kiera -- and zipped over to Dodie and Alison's. It was our first time meeting Cooper and Kiera, and the Charnecos' first time meeting Silas. They seemed to like him. Also, Dodie and Dane had a chance to compare minivans.

What happens when you get seven kids together? Within a few days of our trip, Maggie Lou and Campbell had strep and Silas had roseola. Everyone's fine now, although the other kids aren't quite out of the roseola incubation period, so we'll see....