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By Katie Bianco, Holly Gambrell and Stefanie Gans
Meat eater, animal lover and a life of contradictions
Life is nothing if not a decades-long continuum of contradictions. I love my kids, but also long for a life of carefree travel and freedom. I love the hyperintensity of adulting on the East Coast, but damn if I could see palm trees, mountains and the super bloom on a daily basis. Anyway, another push-pull: eating animals, avoiding animals. And so this week, we can celebrate both: Fairfax Veg Fest and The Beefiest Beast Feast. -SG // The Beefiest Beast Feast at B Side, 8298 Glass Alley, Fairfax; April 9, 6:30-10 p.m.; $65; and Fairfax Veg Fest: 200 Spring St., Herndon; April 14, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; free
Flying high
You know what I love about spring? The breeze. I’m a hot-natured person (minus when I’m in the tundra known as the office), so summers and I don’t mix very well, especially on hot, muggy days when the wind speed is approximately zero. But springtime is full of cool, slight winds that feel just right. Mix that with warm sunshine and you have the perfect reason to head to Gunston Hall on April 13, for its annual Kite Festival. I’ll be there with my niece and nephews, flying a Mickey Mouse kite I bought them for Christmas this past year. Don’t have a kite? No worries; some will be available for purchase in the museum shop. -HG // Gunston Hall: 10709 Gunston Road, Mason Neck; $8 children, $10 adults
Blue period
Peak bloom has passed and the National Cherry Blossom Festival wraps up on April 14. But spring is only beginning. This Sunday, I’m going to go from pink to blue, and take my family to the Bluebell Festival at Merrimac Farm in Nokesville. The carpet of Virginia Bluebells extends along the Cedar Run shoreline for nearly a mile. This is one of those Virginia things that I’ve always meant to do, but have never made it out. I’m excited to see the blue blooms, snap some pics and celebrate the arrival of warmer weather! -KB // The Bluebell Festival, 15020 Deepwood Lane, Nokesville; April 14, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., free
