One of our favorite weekend traditions is to go to the Old Town Alexandria Farmers’ Market. We have been doing this for years now, and it is fun to introduce new friends to one of our favorite places, ever! We stroll around, grab a bite to eat, check out all the wares, buy some fresh veggies and flowers, admire the handiwork of local artisans, and have a wonderful time together. This is exactly what we did when we invited our dear friends – Brianne & Deryck Deno – to accompany us this morning.
The last time we brought Grace to this place, she was not old enough to walk yet. This time, she insisted on walking next to Cooper, the Denos’ dog, who was terrified of all the sights and sounds, poor baby.
Gracie picked out her snack, and proceeded to devour it before we were done paying for it! She also insisted on climbing up and down every single staircase she could find. Here she is finally settled down to finish off the rest of her pastry while calling out to Cooper to come and sit next to her.
This is Brianne Deno. Gracie’s best friend. My lifeline most days when Aaron is away at work for long hours at a time. She is a godsend to us and we love spending all our time with her. Gracie absolutely adores her and she has been a consistent presence in our lives. Brianne and Deryck are great to be around. This morning, it was especially fun to have them join us as we strolled around the market.
The love of her life is her Daddy. The sun rises and sets with him – they are two peas in a pod. They love to laugh, tease each other, chase each other around, go swimming together, play together, take forever to go through the bedtime routine together, and quite simply, are the cutest pair of silly geese you will ever find. What a special relationship they share and how I adore that they have that!
I know their eyes are closed BUT this is easily one of my favorite pictures! I love these two people ever so much!
We walked around the waterfront after we were done at the market, and Gracie happened upon some duckies. She was thrilled to see them and immediately wanted to pet them 🙂 Another family had brought some bread to feed the ducks and sweetly shared a slice with Grace. She loved throwing in each piece of bread and watch all the ducks swim to it in a frenzy. She asked if she could have ten more slices..haha.
As we were leaving, we happened to walk past this gentleman, who played the most beautiful music with these glasses filled with water. He explained to us how it worked, and then played us several songs. Gracie was mesmerized by all the water in the glasses and didn’t want to leave 🙂 It was a fun morning and we were glad to have Brianne and Deryck join us!
