Family in the District

One really unexpected and exciting development that we learned about just a couple months before our move to DC was that Brad's aunt and uncle were moving back to the District just a few weeks before we were moving up. Brad's uncle, Chris, is in the army and had been stationed in DC for several years before a relocation to Tuscon. Due some circumstances in his family, he put in a request for a transfer back to DC, which happened to coincide with our move.

Within our first couple of weeks, Chris and Jenny invited us over for dinner and visit, and the girls FELL HARD for Aunt Jenny and Uncle Chris! Up until this point in the girls' lives, they'd really only seen Chris and Jenny ~once a year, so they had very indistinct memories of them. That's no longer the case. Chris and Jenny played endless rounds of hide-and-seek, had juice boxes and brownies, and let the girls play with their dogs. We had to DRAG the girls out of the house when it was time to go home.

I was especially thankful that we were able to reconnect with Jenny and Chris before we went to Minnesota for Tim's and Jenna's wedding; it meant that the girls were more comfortable with Jenny while we were gone. Jenny played with the girls on the day of the wedding so that I could get dressed all by myself, which was a GIFT. 

We haven't been able to hang out with Chris and Jenny quite as much as we would have hoped, but we gotten in several good visits, and I'm so glad that the girls have gotten to live near family for a stretch- we've never done that before!

I love these pictures of Claire. I couldn't pick which I liked more, so here are both.

This particular dog is very shy, so, of course, all three girls were obsessed with him. Brynnie literally flung herself on top of him. God bless this dog.

Tucking him in. Probably against his will.

Brynnie commandeered Lizzie's trick hoop.

Lizzie

Downward dog

This crew! Always a fun time!

Around here lately: September 2019 edition

I love you, Mommy, and you're adorable.

While scooting alongside Brynnie:

You know, I'm still an excellent scooter.

Brynn was about to wail, taking that deep breath that babies do before letting loose a really loud cry:

Get ready, Nana!

We were almost packed and loaded for our journey to DC, which was good timing as Claire came in saying:
Guys! The rain is starting! Prepare yourselves!

Washington DC is so great! Because it has lots of statues that are so important! And presidents!

On our first Sunday visiting a new church in DC
Oh Lily, you can make friends! You just need to be nice. And maybe you'll make a boyfriend. Not like a grown-up boyfriend but a kid friend.

Look at this spider web! Didn't he do a good job?

Do you know why we're in Washington DC? Because Daddy was CHOSEN.

Watch over my crown, ok? I'm queen of the pandas.

I gave both of the big girls a cup of Izze as a treat.
Lily, be careful it doesn't spice you!

Doing a puzzle of the States:
North Carolina and Tennessee are husband and wife and South Carolina is their baby.

After Tim and Jenna's wedding:
They're married now, and they can't change it.

Visiting an exhibit at the zoo, wherein the animal was in the same position as our previous visit:
Still sittin' there?

Looking at a hog lounging at the zoo:
I've laid like that many times.

Watching a vulture at the zoo:
Looks like he's going to go for a fly!

Questioning Brad about his work:
How long will you be a fellow? When do you become another thing?

Collecting leaves for our plant notebook:
Come on, guys! Tomorrow you'll be in our club!

LILY-ISMS: September 2019 edition

Lily: Did you choose us at the store?
Erin: No, I didn't get you at the store.
Lily: God maded us?
Erin: Yes.
Lily: He made me a girl with curly hair?

Has stains on her shirt.
Don't wipe them off! They're my friends!

Erin: Are you going to miss Poppy?
Lily: Yes. I'm just going to cry and watch a movie.

Brad did something that she had wanted him to.
That was a good boy, Daddy.

Daddy is a good helper boy.

Doing some stretches and exercises with Daddy.

Erin: How long has it been since you've been potty?
Lily: Hm...three days?

We told the girls that they could each take seven stuffed animals to DC. Lily asked to take a stuffed dog that she, generally, never played with.
Erin: You don't play with that doggie very much. 
Lily: I love this dog!
Erin: It doesn't even have a name.
Lily: Yes it does!
Erin: What it is?
Lily: Um...it's...uh...DACHOS!

That would be "Dachos" on the bed in DC...

Mommy gives me apples all the days of my life.

As Brad was pulling out of our driveway, headed to DC:
I want to watch over him.

Watching over Daddy

Hairy dactyl : pterodactyl

Points to a woman on the sidewalk
She has a cigarette like Cruella DeVil!

Erin to Claire: It will get better and will be easier.
Lily: God is with you.

The crispy : frisbee

This is George. He was a good little monkey and then he disobeyed.

I went potty! Smell my hands!
Contrary to what I thought this meant- she actually wanted me to smell the soap.

Wait until you see this: I look beautiful!

Out of me : without me

Will you giver me?
Will you forgive me?

Claire, be quiet. Mr. Gerry be down us.
Gerry : our downstairs neighbor in DC.

дом sweet District дом

(дом : home)

One of the unexpected surprises of our move to DC was getting to live- literally- on the same block as our friends, Mark and Oksana. We have a connection with Mark (American) and Oksana (who is Ukrainian but not a friend that I made while I was actually in Ukraine) from our church in Boston (but again- we didn't actually know them at that time. We barely overlapped.). After we'd been in North Carolina for a few years, mutual friends in Boston emailed us to let us know that Mark and Oksana would be moving to the Outer Banks for a year and that we should be friends. (The OBX aren't really that close to Durham, but Mark would be coming into Raleigh for work periodically.) We became friends during their trips into the Triangle, and it was sad that they were only in NC for a year...before moving to the District. 

Brad hung out with them last summer when he was at Dumbarton for a two-week short-term predoctoral residency, and we kept them posted on our plans for this fall. The week before we moved up, Oksana texted to ask for our District address. About two minutes after I sent it to her, she sent back a screenshot of Google maps, showing that our place was *literally* about 50 yards from their apartment. IT'S A CRAZY WORLD.

During our first two weeks in town (yes, I know that my blogging is so way belated), Oksana's mom was also visiting, and they came over to make borscht. Real, delicious, Ukrainian borscht. 

Oksana's mom was a hit with the girls.

Lily needed a chef's toque. I didn't have one...so a plastic bag had to work.

Amerikrainians.

Our house here is really incredible in so many ways...but there are a few things lacking in the kitchen. Like a full-size grater.

The girls had the best time making "baby borscht" with leftover ingredients. They worked alongside us for a solid two hours.

And then we got to enjoy FANTASTIC borscht. And Russian black bread. It was delightful. Also: in true Ukrainian fashion, we polished off the better part of a 16 oz. container of sour cream. Can't do the borscht eating without massive quantities of сметана.

And then Claire realized that her piece of bread was in the shape of the US. What a great melding of cultures, right?

It's definitely been a happy surprise to have friends right here to hang with. And especially eat Ukrainian with. An extremely delicious time was had by all!

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

A couple days after we arrived in the District, I got a text from a local friend of mine (who is also Ukrainian...that we know because of Boston...and because they lived in North Carolina for a year...it's a long story). She asked if we wanted to go on a tour of the White House.

Um...? Don't you have to write to your congresspeople for that?

She had connections. 

Ok...Sure. Here's our info for all the background check stuff. We love the The West Wing, so why not?

And with that, we woke up bright and early the day after returning from Minnesota, met up with Oksana and her mom, and took the Metro two stops down for a short walk to the Treasury (the entry point for tours). At that point, we met up with Oksana's mil and learned that Oksana's connections were due to the fact that her fil is a U.S. representative. 

On our way!

Apparently, as adults, you don't tend to ask what your friends' fathers do. We've been friends with them for three years and didn't know this little detail until Mark's mom showed her spouse card to the security guys. 

In case anyone doesn't know what my dad's job is: he's a pediatrician. Can't get you into the White House, but he can give you a strep test, if necessary. ALSO VALUABLE.

Waiting in line. Lily was still a rather grumpy little gal, so we were singing and dancing to keep her from melting down.

Anyway, after waiting in a rather long line, we went through three security check points (including sniffing dogs) on our way into the White House. Side note: you can take almost nothing with you into the White House. Which is tricky when you have little people. I couldn't actually get a straight answer on whether or not I could wear Brynna in an Ergo carrier (you can't take strollers, so I decided to risk it. I had to take it off for it to go through the scanner, but no one said a word about it.). We took our i.d.'s, keys, and phones. I doubled Brynna's diaper situation and prayed for the best. It was rather trying not to have snacks at the ready, but alas.

Claire's favorite president, right inside the door

We'd been reading a book about the First Ladies, which included a little background on the White House china collection, so it was fun to see these on display.

The Vermeil Room. Anyone remember the West Wing episode where CJ spends the episode trying to figure out vermeil?

Claire was quite taken with this portrait of Grace Coolidge.

We were also rather impressed with all the chandeliers.

Green room. Can you see the security guard smiling for the picture?

Blue room. Claire was really into this couch.

Red room. OBVS.

This magnolia was planted by Andrew Jackson.

The State Dining Room

Accurate representation of her general mood.

Ronnie. Interesting fact: the current president is the one who decided which portraits are on display around the White House.

This turned out better than I could have hoped, honestly.

Our tour was only of the East Wing, so we didn't get to see everything (i.e. West Wing), but we really enjoyed getting to see so many of the historic rooms. We also saw the in-house movie theater, but somehow, I came out without a photo of it...

With Oksana and her mamichka

At the corner of Pennsylvania and Executive

The Treasury is right next door.

On the walk home, I actually carried the 3-year-old in the Ergo (you do what you gotta do, guys). She was much happier this way.

And Brynnie roamed free. You can see how happy she was about it.

And we were coming out of our metro stop before 10:00. All in a day's (morning's) work!