Taryn serenading us before Bed time - We Nigh Nigh

Labor Day Weekend Part 2 - Air & Space Museum

There are a few things that Tyson and I both remember from D.C. more than 10 years ago. For Tyson, The Air & Space Museum was on the top of his "Must See Again" list. He explained to me that when he was little, one of the things he loved was anything "Space."

 It's awesome to watch Tyson's eyes light up when we walk into a place he has been waiting to see since we moved here.

We spent the day there and Taryn had a blast running around, testing out the interactive displays and listening to "Story Time" from one of the staff members.

We knew from weeks prior when we walked D.C.  that Pennsylvania Ave on Capitol Hill holds so many great food stops. We browsed by a few before we stepped inside We, The Pizza  and decided that it was calling our names.  I could eat Pizza every day. Really. I miss the pizza we would eat in Italy and if Tyson asks me what I "feel" like eating, I will answer 98% of the time with Pizza. They had so many options on their cutting boards that it was hard to choose. My spinach & artichoke pizza was amazing! But the winner of the lunch time pizza testing for us goes to Tyson's choice of Colletti's Notorious BBQ Pie. I have never had a better U.S. pizza before. It is a must have if you come to visit us! Taryn must take after me and my love for pizza - she just grabbed her slice and feasted- so happy to have a delicious slice all to herself!

 

D.C. is beautiful and this Labor Day weekend was perfect. 

Sandwiched in between great sight-seeing we had a fabulous Sunday dinner with friends. It has to be one of the best impromptu dinner's we've ever been to. I think all of the 4 couples had a total of 20 minutes notice to pull together what they had, meet together, and feast while our kids played and napped. Part of the fun of moving to a new area is expanding your friendships and meeting great new people.

Labor Day Weekend Part 1

To start off our Labor Day weekend we went to the Arlington Cemetery.  We saw the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider, the Iwo Jima Flag Raising Statue, John F. Kennedy (and family) memorial sites and read many headstones as we walked all over. It's amazing to think that soldiers all the way back to the Civil War have been buried on these grounds. So many soldiers have sacrificed their lives to serve this country and we are so grateful for it.

  

 When Taryn decided she had walked enough, she grabbed a seat on the curb of the walking path letting us know she was ready to just sit back, drink water, snack and relax.

Date Nights, PlayGroups, Back to school

Date Nights
Tyson & I tried Alexandria Cupcakes in Old Town Alexandria. Good cupcakes (we like Sprinkles better!) We like Old Town Alexandria better during the day time because it just has so much character that really shines in the light of the day! We can't wait to go back!

Crystal City has a "half priced fill in the blank"  for almost every day of the week.
We were first introduced to it by our friends when they took us for the Monday night special of  awesome hamburgers. $3.50 for a huge burger and side of fries or salad- what a deal! Now I just have to figure out where the other half priced gems are. Living a block away from so many restaurants is really fun.

We met up with the Anderson's, our Bologna neighbors, who just moved to D.C. last week. Is it fitting that we picked an Italian Restaurant? :) It was really fun to see Ada & Taryn communicate across the dinner table and I'd like to think that they remember each other. 

PlayGroups

I think playgroups are amazing. Children and adults all have fun. Perfect.

Back to School

Tyson came home just beaming on Thursday & Friday after school orientation. He was able to see old "Bolognese friends", meet a lot of new people & his "SAIS family," and meet with one of his favorite professors. He is looking forward to the beginning of school next week and he is also really enjoying his internship with the International Trade Association. 

New Routines

Taking all the toys she can carry with her....and dropping a few on the way... as she heads off to read books for bed time.

I have yet to figure out Taryn's new nap schedule fully. It seems like the day she turned 18 months old was the day she decided to throw any kind of napping out the window. At least she is sleeping through the night. But I think I may have hit my limit of temper tantrums this week alone. I hope we can figure this all out soon! Even one nap would be great!

We're piling in as much fun as we can this weekend before we really get back into the routines of school! Happy Labor Day Weekend.

It feels like home.

When Tyson unlocked the door to our basement apartment Sunday night, he came back outside where I was waiting for some help with our church bags & Taryn and said, "It smells amazing inside!"

I had prepared a pot roast and left it in the slow cooker for the duration we were at church and for both of us, that smell means home. It's a classic comfort food recipe that we both enjoyed, especially on Sundays, growing up. Preparing it yesterday was like giving our little home our stamp of approval. This is our house now, and we are making it our home.

While we were assembling the last items for dinner, we talked about how we are so happy we are here. We both recounted instances during the 3 hour block of church of how we both became overwhelmed with the feeling of, 

"This is where we are supposed to be," 

We love our ward and we love the area where we live.

The Newseum

 

We heard about the Newseum in D.C. and how awesome it was but couldn't believe it cost $19.95 per person! Luckily for us we were able to get in free thanks to my sister's roommates- perfect timing! After walking through the museum we thought it would definitely be worth the admission price because it really is a great interactive place. 

Front pages of newspapers from all over the world are sent to the Newseum every day before dawn and displayed inside. They hold the newspapers dating back to the 16oo's and more! The museum also holds the Pulitzer Prize wining photos from several decades which will make you cry. They have captured moments from history so well. Of course, there is so much to see that it's hard to fit it all in!

 

Chilling in her stroller. We love that she rests on that bar and watches the world around her  as we walk around the city

 

One of those rare moments where we had someone who could take a picture of us! (Thanks, Brittany!)

 

We explored the Old Post Office building too which gives you the best view of D.C. for free! At the time, the clock tower was the highest sky scrapper of D.C. at a whole 12 stories :) I think as I get older I become more and more afraid of heights. Being up there- and it's not even that tall- was a bit scary to me. Maybe it's all the wind too?

Thanks, Brittany, for inviting us to come with you!  

There is still so much to discover. 

And now my sister lives her too!

 It took my sister all of a week to book her flight, find housing, and move back East after hearing us talk about the great area in which we live. 

Talk about spontaneity! 

It was all about good timing and we are so excited to have her around these parts. We've been having our own little adventures with her as we discover more of the greatness around us. Like today, we took the Metro into D.C., picked a Smithsonian Museum to visit and spent our time casually walking (and chasing Taryn) around the Natural History Museum. I have to admit, I really doubted the sound of this museum but boy, was I proven wrong the instant we walked in. My eyes lit up and so did Taryn's. It's a great place to take children and there's also the Hope Diamond on display which I have always wanted to see.

 It's a lot of fun to have family living near us again!