Active Rain/Tomato Blog

Days are getting shorter (!!!), the start of school is just around the corner and retailers are dusting off their holiday decorations. That means it's County Fair time in Northern Virginia. Traditionally held at the end of summer, August and September are chocked full of county and state fairs. C...

Getting ready for school?  It always costs you more than you think but this Virginia tax holiday will give you a small break.  That's right, school supplies, including some clothes, are tax exempt in Virginia August 6,7,8, 2010. During this three-day period, purchases of qualifying school supplie...

A recent article in the Washington Post caught our eye because of a blinged out necklace with the letters DMV.  We couldn't imagine this was a salute to the Department of Motor Vehicles and we were right. When you think of New York, it's the Big Apple.  Chicago is the Windy City.  Atlanta is the ...

This weekend we celebrated the wedding of one of my nieces.  Catie is a pediatric nurse at Fairfax Hospital, her Drew is a Youth Minister at Gainesville United Methodist Church. Family came from near and far including cousins from Spain and California. These same cousins had all served as bridesm...

One of the most asked for features in a home search is hardwood floors.  Hardwood floors are easy to maintain, go with any decor, and are essential for those with dust and mold allergies. If you buy a house with existing hardwood floors, you take what you have, maybe refinish and you're done.  Bu...

At first glance it might not look like a storm, a power outage and Twitter would have anything in common - but they do.  This past Sunday, a sudden, raging electrical storm swept through the Washington metropolitan area.  Several people were killed and thousands lost power.  Angry citizens took o...

Washingtonian Magazine, in its August 2010 issue, highlights the food, fun and shopping in Alexandria's Del Ray Neighborhood. We're happy to say that of the 21 places they mention/review, we have done posts on almost all of them. Go ahead and buy your August Washingtonian, but for an in depth loo...

I don't know about you but with these 100 degree days, I'm ready for a good old fashioned swimming hole.  Clear, cold water,  not many folks around, maybe even a waterfall or a few rapids and no chlorine.  Doesn't that sound good? We did a bit of scouting around and came up with a great site for ...

Get your running shoes on!  Plans have just been announced for the first Woodrow Wilson Bridge Half Marathon on September 19. Sponsored by Burke and Herbert Bank and their six charity partners, this first time event will see runners take off from Mt. Vernon, move up the George Washington Parkway,...

Why not create a National Night Out Event in Your Neighborhood on August 3?  National Night Out was originally created to combat drug and crime prevention and to foster better citizen/police relationships.All those things are still true - and still the mission of the organization - but in our nei...