So this is actually a "guest" appearance by the other half of the Chemistry of Clutch blog. I took a trip to our nations capitol a couple weeks ago for a
chemistry conference so I figured I had better tell you guys about it and show you some pictures. It was a spur of the moment trip so Shannon didn't get to go, but my sister went and got a free hotel room out of it. Most of my time there was spent at the conference listening to talks, looking at posters, and talking to other scientists about research stuff. I also had a few job opportunities pop up in the form of interviews at the career fair there. One was with
Roche and the other was with the
Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. I also had a possible opportunity pop up that could lead to a job at
Michigan State. I had some productive discussions about biofuel cells with some of the top researchers in that area, so the meeting was very productive. That's a basic summary of the meeting, and here's some pictures of the first day that we got there and I actually got to go see some of the sights.
The washington monument
The capitol building
The WWII memorial
The Lincoln memorial as seen from the Washington monument
It looked really big up close....
Honest Abe
The Washington monument and reflecting pool seen from the Lincoln memorial
At the Natural Science Museum, this furry guy was not alive
But this guy was! Some stupid lady held out her hand to hold it after I did and then jerked it back a the last second and it fell on the floor. Poor hissing cockroach....
And of course, what trip to DC would be complete without a mention of the Obamanator. This was a whole store with just Obama stuff in it, including this cardboard cut-out of him! I think I learned more about the national healthcare plan by talking to cardboard Obama than from the real thing on CNN!
He got 1st place in the World Beard and Moustache Championships!
I dont have a hanging picture of this first one but you get the idea. A lot of people these days are getting these artsy, super-cute pictures of their newborns and often use pod/cocoon props like these. My friend Courtney suggested I learn how to make these and I am glad she did because they are fun and really easy to make. 
And in case you were looking for a more multipurpose craft, not only are they baby photo props, they can also be homemade mullets. For those occasions when you dont have time to grow a proper mullet and need one in a hurry. Maybe I should make a whole bunch and sell them at the fair! Just kidding...that was a cheap joke!
I am pleased with the way they turned out, even though it doesnt appear that way in the pics. They yellow/green hat is a roll brim hat with some cabling at the bottom and the red/blue hat is a cable at the bottom with a button flap on the side. It is kind of hard to tell the detail in these pics. These beanies go with the scarf I made about a month ago. Maybe they might be finding their way to you sometime soon! 
Then after I got to spend some time visiting with Ryan and Katie, I headed to T-town to see my sister following her surgery. The surgery went "perfectly" the doctor said. I got to stay with Shay at the hospital and then she came home the next day. She is really sore and sometimes a bit nausiated but doing well other than that. She has a couple of weeks to go for recovery and is supposed to take it easy for the next few months along with physical therapy. I am glad we have been able to be here and help this weekend.
Please keep both the Isenberg's and Shay in your prayers in the coming weeks.
Unfortunately, we couldnt take our camera in so these are the only 2 pics we got. I made Matt wear a blindfold and everything but I think he kind of knew.
The destruction has already begun!!
Lucy being really weird. She never lays like this long than about 15 seconds.
And Oreo and Lucy never get this close but never say never I guess.
And by Matt's special request, I made him a chocolate cheesecake. It was supposed to be the Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory but it wasnt quite that. It was more like a Ghiradelli Chocolate Stumpy cheesecake that was really confusing and slightly difficult to make. But he liked it a lot so that is all that matters. And in the end, it looked pretty!
The capitol building
The Lincoln memorial as seen from the Washington monument
And of course, what trip to DC would be complete without a mention of the Obamanator. This was a whole store with just Obama stuff in it, including this cardboard cut-out of him! I think I learned more about the national healthcare plan by talking to cardboard Obama than from the real thing on CNN!