🍌 The Savannah Bananas are bringing their biggest show yet to Washington, D.C. Nationals Park will host the first-ever Banana Bowl, with six teams, surprise appearances, and a finale unlike a typical night at the ballpark.

🏘️ A 1980s-era Reston office park could soon look very different. A developer is proposing hundreds of homes, new green space, and a phased redevelopment near Metro.

❤️‍🩹 The Children’s Inn at NIH is closer than ever to completing a $55 million expansion that could help thousands of families each year. With $42 million already raised, the nonprofit is now turning to the public to close the final funding gap.

Scroll down and enjoy!

—Chris Colgan

The big top is back at Tysons II for a family-favorite spectacle of acrobats, aerialists, tightrope walkers, and a live circus band. This international cast brings thrills, clowns, and jaw-dropping stunts under one tent — a perfect end-of-summer outing for all ages.
📍 Location: Under the Big Top – Lerner Town Square at Tysons II, Tysons
📅 Date: Now through Aug 31
🎟️ Tickets: Prices vary by date and seat
MORE INFO→

Meet more than 80 authors, poets, and illustrators at this beloved all-day literary celebration. Enjoy author talks, panels, book signings, and family-friendly activities as part of the Library's America 250 anniversary programming.
📍 Location: Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, DC
📅 Date: Aug 22 | 9 AM–8 PM (doors 8:30 AM)
🎟️ Tickets: Free (advance registration encouraged)
MORE INFO→

Watch the sky fill with colorful kites of all shapes and sizes at this family-friendly Ida Lee Park tradition. Browse handmade goods from local artisans, enjoy live entertainment and food vendors, and let the kids loose in moon bounces and a coloring tent.
📍 Location: Ida Lee Park, Leesburg
📅 Date: Aug 22 | 11 AM–5 PM
🎟️ Tickets: Free admission
MORE INFO→

NOT ENOUGH? SEE 10+ GREAT THINGS TO DO THIS WEEKEND→

Driving the news
The Savannah Bananas are bringing their biggest event yet to Washington, D.C., this fall, turning Nationals Park into the home of the first Banana Bowl championship.

The inaugural Banana Bowl will take place Oct. 10, 2026, at Nationals Park, bringing all six Banana Ball teams and casts together for one championship event.

Details
Organizers are planning a mix of baseball and entertainment throughout the night.

Why it matters
D.C. gets center stage for what the Savannah Bananas are calling the biggest celebration in Banana Ball history.

The event gives local fans a rare chance to see every Banana Ball team in one place while putting Nationals Park in front of a national streaming audience.

The big picture
The Banana Bowl will also tie into America’s 250th anniversary, giving Washington a fitting backdrop for a sports-and-entertainment event built around a national celebration.

Between the lines
This won’t look like a typical night at the ballpark.

Banana Ball has built its following around fast-paced play, on-field performances and crowd interaction, and the championship is being framed as a full-scale show as much as a game.

What’s next
Fans can enter the ticket lottery through midnight Sunday, Aug. 23, for a chance to buy tickets to the first Banana Bowl.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE→

Driving the news
A Rockville developer wants to turn an aging Reston office complex into hundreds of new homes near Metro.

Berman Enterprises filed a rezoning application with Fairfax County to redevelop the 12.5-acre Maker’s Point office park on Sunrise Valley Drive.

Details
The project would replace three office buildings from the 1980s with housing in phases.

Why it matters
For Reston, the plan could replace aging office space with more housing near the Wiehle-Reston East Metro Station.

It would also add green space and include affordable and workforce housing required by Fairfax County.

The big picture
Maker’s Point sits inside Fairfax County’s 119-acre Reston East Area Study, where officials are reconsidering the future of an area filled with older office buildings and large surface parking lots.

The county launched the study in April and expects to finish it by the end of the year.

Between the lines
Berman isn’t planning to clear the entire property at once.

Two of the office buildings still have tenants, so the company plans to redevelop each section as vacancies rise and market conditions support new housing.

That approach lets Berman pursue residential approvals now while keeping rent-producing offices in operation.

What’s next
Fairfax County will review the rezoning request as its broader Reston East study moves forward.

The first phase would start with 63 townhomes at 11130 Sunrise Valley Drive.

The bottom line
Maker’s Point is the latest example of Northern Virginia developers looking at underused office properties as potential housing sites, especially along Metro corridors.

For Reston, it could mean hundreds of new homes on land where office demand has faded.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE→

Driving the news
The Children’s Inn at NIH is asking the public to help close a $13 million funding gap for a major expansion of its Bethesda campus home for children in clinical trials and their families.

The nonprofit has launched the public phase of its $55 million capital campaign after raising $42 million since fundraising began in 2024.

Details
The project, called The Inn of Tomorrow, will expand and update the facility on the NIH campus.

Why it matters
The project gives Bethesda and the Greater Washington region more capacity to support families who travel to NIH for pediatric research and care.

The Inn provides housing and programs at no cost, helping families stay close to children participating in clinical trials.

The big picture
This is the Inn’s first expansion since 2004, when the facility doubled to 59 rooms.

The current project comes as many Greater Washington nonprofits face tighter budgets following federal cuts to grants and programs.

Between the lines
The Inn operates separately from NIH through a public-private partnership, leaving private fundraising central to its work.

Despite layoffs and funding cuts at NIH, donors have added about $7 million since the project’s earlier fundraising stage.

What’s next
The public campaign will focus on raising the remaining $13 million while work on the expansion continues.

The Inn has already scaled back parts of its original plans as it responds to funding pressure.

The bottom line
With more than three-quarters of its goal already raised, the Children’s Inn is turning to a broader donor base to finish a project that could house more families and give children in NIH clinical trials a better place to stay during treatment.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE→

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