Two weeks ago my twin sister -Jolene- packed up her three children and drove all the way to DC from West Virginia. I was missing her children in the worst way-there is something about a twin’s children that feel just a bit like your own. It was the best gift -to just spend two days together enjoying my favorite spots in DC.

It’s ironic that she lives in the middle of the rolling West Virginia hills and I live in a busy metropolitan area. We walked though the magnolia gardens at the Smithsonian and then visited the butterfly exhibit at the Natural History Museum. It’s a hidden gem and children always love it.

We of course visited Union Market for ice cream -twice in two days!- and I took them to my favorite pizza shop. It was such a wonderful two days of talking, playing with her children and snuggling her littlest.

We both love snippets of each other’s lives but are always happy to go home after a visit, even when they feel too short.