If holding down the turkey consumption record, then holding down the couch (and control of the remote) on Thanksgiving day is your style - chow down and carry on! If you’d like to add a little cheer, exercise or civic duty this year, check out the events below and get your holiday season off to an extra festive start.

Thanksgiving Day Parades:

Montgomery County Thanksgiving Parade
Saturday, November 21, 2015
Downtown Silver Spring: Georgia Avenue from Ellsworth Drive to Silver Spring Avenue
Silver Spring, MD

Beginning at 10 am on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, Silver Spring comes alive with balloons, floats, local and professional marching bands, plenty of glitter and good fun for all. Inflatable turkeys and other assorted animals will fill the

Fall Colors DC: Best Places to Soak in Fall in the DC Area

As the heat of summer begins to fade and brisk fall mornings freshen the air, sights and feelings of fall abound in the DC area. Grab a thermos of hot cocoa or spiced cider, bundle up and get out there – these fall colors are as fleeting as they are spectacular.

Rock Creek Park

While epic landscapes of red, gold, yellow and orange await in the farther reaches of the DC area, you don’t have to leave the city to catch some fall colors that will leave you ready for the change of season. Located close to home in Northwestern DC, Rock Creek Park boasts some of the capital city’s finest natural scenery. The park tends to hold on to its firework fall colors longer than other areas of the city

Foodies Rejoice! Taste of DC 2015

Every October, foodies, food trucks and those simply drawn in by the smell of grilling steak and whispered rumors of free mini cupcakes take over Pennsylvania Ave from 3rd St – 7th St in celebration of all things culinary. The Taste of DC 2015 food festival invites you to come eat, drink and be merry with masses of presumably jolly friends and strangers in a pop-up festival environment sure to please every palette. Sixty plus local food vendors; an alleyway of food trucks; beer, wine and spirit samplings up to your eyeballs and a limitless variety of specialty foods, usually served in adorable miniature portions on adorable miniature hot dog trays – what’s not to be jolly about? Kick off the almost-Halloween season and

Live & Love DC Fall edition.

Yoga DC – Where To Get Your Flow On in the Nation’s Capital

The benefits of a regular yoga practice are numerous and convincing:  increased muscle strength and flexibility, stress reduction, mental clarity, energy levels reminiscent of your twenties and a tight booty to boot!  On a more serious note, multiple studies show that daily meditation – a common element of yoga – may reduce Alzheimer’s risk.  Natalie Nevins, DO, of the American Osteopathic Association, explains: “Yoga is a healing system of theory and practice.  The purpose of yoga is to create strength, awareness and harmony in both the mind and body” (AOA, 2015).  Still not convinced?  Commit to a month at one of the awesome DC studios listed below, or

The National Book Festival

What better way to celebrate the back-to-school season than to soak in an afternoon of books, books and more books? Each fall, the Library of Congress hosts a free, public festival of all things books to celebrate our nation’s literary history and to nurture an enthusiasm for reading amongst readers young and old. This year’s event marks the 15th anniversary of the festival and the festival’s theme: “I Cannot Live Without Books” – a quote from book-lover Thomas Jefferson – honors the 200th anniversary of the acquisition of Jefferson’s personal library by the Library of Congress. The festival will be held on Saturday September 5, 2015 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center from 10 am – 10pm.

This year’s festival will

Live Music in Adams Morgan

Arguable one of DC’s coolest neighborhoods for everything from specialty coffee to soul food to people watching, Adams Morgan also offers up some of DC’s best live music. Check out these hot spots, then hit 18th street with an ear out for good tunes and good fun.

Columbia Station
2325 18th St NW Washington, DC 20009
Live, no cover Jazz every night of the week, unbeatable atmosphere and American fare from every corner of the country come standard at Columbia Station. The classic Adams Morgan food n’ blues venue features local musicians and hosts traveling artists. Snag an outdoor patio seat on a summer night and enjoy good eats while live music floats over your table through the open front window.

Madam’s Organ
2461 18th St NW

A Floating Landmark – The Main Avenue Fish Market

Tucked between the I-395 underpass and the yacht basin along the Washington Channel, The Maine Avenue Fish Market—also lovingly referred to by regulars as The Fish Market, The Fish Wharf and The Wharf—exists as a locally fueled public space in the midst of pedestrian-scarce new development along the waterfront. Due to its somewhat clandestine location and the city’s reluctance to promote the market as a tourist site for fear its days may be numbered (see below), the crowds of tourists swarming the nearby monuments most often overlook the Fish Market, making it a local favorite for good fish and good fun.

The Project for Public Spaces describes the market as an “authentic example of urban commerce at

Say SUP to the Potomac: Stand Up Paddleboarding the DC Area

What could be finer than gently canoeing or kayaking along the Potomac as the sun sets on a burning hot DC summer day? How about paddling your own private vessel where you serve as mast, motor, captain and passenger into the horizon? Stand up paddleboarding (commonly deemed SUP) has floated its way into the hearts of DCers and options abound to hit the areas various waterfronts in a whole new way.

SUP originated in Hawaii as an offshoot of surfing that allowed surfers to paddle out farther, view incoming surf from greater distances, propel faster through waves and enjoy riding the ocean on days when the waves were nothing to hang ten about. The sport emerged in the United States around 2005

National Ice cream day is actually a thing!   Nothing says summer like an ice cream cone dripping happily down the elbow of a grinning child, or sweethearts sharing a gelato in the afternoon heat.

Getting ice cream is the universally applicable form of joy sharing, and is flexible across a wide variety of circumstances. It’s the perfect way to spend a sweltering summer Sunday afternoon with the kids; it’s a great way to catch up with an old friend; it makes for a casual and fun first date – or a fail-proof extension of a successful first date. “So, should we get ice cream?” rolls of the tongue perfectly upon the conclusion of a conversation-filled dinner and is exceptionally more impressive than: “Uh. Wanna come in?”

So, forget the frozen

DC’s Best Locally Roasted Coffee

 

From single origin, freshly ground cups of pour over boasting citrus and floral flavor notes, to expertly extracted fair trade espresso, the DC coffee scene is buzzing. While coffee shops can be found around nearly every street corner and vary from cute and neighborhoody to quick and take-outy, local roasters are keeping the fine art in the coffee business and serving up some of the most delicious caffeine fixes to be found. Check out these DC coffee roasters doing it right and add a local twist to your morning ritual.

Filter Coffeehouse & Espresso Bar
Multiple Locations

The good-coffee, happy-customer bicycle enthusiasts at Filter use specially selected varietal beans roasted by local Ceremony Coffee Roasters in