Dumbarton Oaks: September 2019

The whole reason we relocated this semester was for Brad to be in-residence for a research fellowship at Dumbarton Oaks. I mentioned it a few posts back, but as a refresher: Dumbarton is an elite research library for scholars specializing in Byzantine, Pre-Colombian, and Garden Landscape Studies. Brad's dissertation falls into the Byzantine Studies category. He did a two-week research session in the summer of 2018 and then was awarded this semester-long fellowship.

First day of Fellowship picture

Dumbarton is comprised of a research library, museum, and extensive gardens. It's, in a word, beautiful. There are so many wonderful bonuses to being part of the Dumbarton community, including community gatherings in these beautiful settings. Our family was invited to attend dinner with the rest of Brad's cohort at the President's Mansion three days after moving up.

Greenhouse

A snippet of the back of the house

The big girls enjoying the novelty of a fountain in the back yard

Our back yard dinner seating

Little elves in the garden

I wish I'd thought to snap a few shots of the inside of the house while taking Claire to the bathroom. It's stunning. Brad and I were invited back a few weeks later with a smaller group of fellows for a 5-course meal in the formal dining room (sans children). That, in a word, was FANCY.

About a week after the back yard dinner at the President's Mansion, we were invited to a garden party in the gardens (all five of us).

On the way to the special entrance to the secret garden.

Must have badge to open door

Pointing out where his carrel is located

Greenhouse

The swimming pool

Views from the top

The Orangerie

Orangerie interior

More Orangerie exteriors

Our sweet friends whose daddy is working on a similar project to Brad

Since those first few parties and events at Dumbarton, we've been back to visit the gardens many times, and I'm just enchanted every time. It's a magical place, and I'm very grateful for our time to spend here. More Dumbarton pictures to come, don't you fret.

Take me out to the ballgame!

After Brad accepted the fellowship offer from Dumbarton Oaks, he did three things right out of the gate: found us a place to live, bought an electric scooter, and bought baseball tickets.

He's a long-time Braves fan, but he's also just a fan of baseball, so he started scouting Nationals tickets. LO AND BEHOLD. The Braves were going to be in DC to play the Nats not even two weeks after we moved up. Kismet, y'all.

Root, root, root for the home team? Nah.

Brad's always and forever having to explain baseball things.

Our friend from undergrad, Amanda, joined us for the game! She and I care about the same amount for baseball, so we got caught up on life, while Brad and some other friends (the Crawfords) actually watched the Braves spank the Nats. Of note: Amanda and I were talking so enthusiastically that we completely missed a Braves batter get smashed in the eye socket by a pitch, the manager become LIVID with the ump, and then said manager be ejected from the game. Not one second of this did we see.

We didn't actually make it all the way to the end of the game (#kids), but we were able to watch the Braves do their thing, eat nachos, hang with friends, and generally really enjoy the experience. And, it was super fun to have seen the Nats play at home during the same season that they won their first World Series! 

Fun fact: the first year that Claire lived in Boston, the Red Sox won the World Series. Her first year living in Durham, Duke won the National Championship. Her first year living in DC, the Nats win the World Series. We're currently accepting bids from sports towns for our next big move. 

Our crew at the Zoo!

Two days after we moved up to DC, Brad and I did our zoo trial run without the girls. I was intent on doing a run-through without any distractions so that I would know what I was doing when I took the girls back by myself. Before we left Durham, I mentioned this plan to a few of my friends, and they gave me a little bit of a hard time for my over-planning. It's who I am, guys. Perpetually an over-planner. AND, BOY, AM I GLAD I WAS ON THIS OCCASION. Trying to take the three of them by myself on public transit would have been a nightmare.

After making our way to the zoo via bus (and realizing that taking the bus with the girls wouldn't be an option), we walked around to get an idea of the layout of the zoo (and learning that the zoo is on quite the incline). As we walked, we made the decision that it would be worth the money (slightly more than $100) to purchase a membership. The National Zoo is part of the Smithsonian, which means that entrance is free (I will never get over how many of the incredible museums and exhibits here are free, thanks to the Smithsonian's ownership). However, you can purchase a Friends of the National Zoo membership. We chose a membership level that includes parking (!), as well as discounts on food, souvenirs, and covers unlimited rides for 4 riders on the carousel. DONE. And we haven't regretted it, not even once. 

We took the metro back home and were extra glad we bought the membership after we walked the half mile to the metro. We have a double stroller that can accommodate a third kid on a glider board...but that would leave me pushing three tired children. None of this is ideal.

As soon as we got home, we loaded up the girls and Mom and went immediately back so we could show the girls the fun of the zoo!

Wearing our koala best.

Also. That spot on Lily's shorts is where her water bottle spilled.

First stop: the great cats

Tiger

Next up: primates!

Of note: this guy was not doing his business, although his posture suggests it. He was very industriously pulling a stick out of the ground.

The girls were SUPER excited about the carousel, and Claire was particularly excited to find a ruby-throated hummingbird, just like the one she studied in Kindergarten.

A really neat "pollinator" themed playground

Later that week, I took the girls back by myself, primarily so we could see the pandas. We got to the zoo shortly after it opened and learned that that is a great time to see the pandas in their outside enclosures. It's also not a super busy time; it's before school groups and tourists are really out in force. It was us, some serious amateur photographers, and joggers. Our efforts did not disappoint! 

Mei Xiang, female giant panda

Bei Bei: male giant panda. Bei Bei was actually born here at the National Zoo.

The pandas are located on the Asia Trail, along with some other fun animals, like the red pandas and river otters.

The only red pandas we actually saw for many a week were these statues. The red pandas, apparently, do not like to emerge when it's hot. I FEEL YOU, RED PANDAS.

The river otters put on the best show for us! We probably stood and watched them frolic and play for twenty minutes.

They're big fans of the otters!

We spent a few minutes looking at African savanna animals...

...and a few in the elephant house! It was at this point that Brynnie was done and wanted her morning nap.

Being so close to the zoo and getting to go whenever we feel like it has been one of my favorite things about life in DC. They girls love it (and so do I!), and it's such a unique opportunity. Stay tuned: more zoo posts to come!