As residents of the nation's capital, we have made great efforts to get to know this new home of ours in hopes that the tourist feel will leave and we'll be hip, knowledgeable Washingtonians. :)
A while back we decided to use this cool rent-a-bike system they have all over DC & Northern VA to get to the metro and the Mall.
Excuse my grossness, it was still pretty humid when we rode.
We went to the Air & Space Museum and explored all the cool space stuff (thankfully before it was closed due to the shutdown for 3 weeks).
We specifically wanted to watch the sunset over the Mall and see the monuments all lit up at night.
Hello Capital Building! The shutdown headquarters
We still definitely look like tourists here but that's okay....
I love the Washington Monument lit up at night! Even with the lame scaffolding on it, it still is so pretty!
Right after Labor Day I started my new job in Northwest D.C. at a Dermatologist Office.
Brandon was a sweetheart and went all out to celebrate finally finding a decent job.
He has such great taste. :)
And he's becoming seriously such a great chef!! Brandon's decided he really like to cook and believe me I'm ALL FOR IT! He spoiled me with some chicken bacon ranch pizza that night.
Another night he concocted a tasty Italian feast with spagehtti, garlic bread, and salad.
And just recently, after I was telling Brandon how much I missed Zupas back in Utah (this amazing tasty sandwich, soup, salad place), he made me two of my very favorites from scratch!! Ultimate Grilled Cheese & the New England Clam Chowder. MAJOR husband points there. I LOVE that he loves to cook. Lucky me!
A few weeks ago I joined the Arlington Concert Orchestra, a little local group that is definitely not prestigious at all but a great excuse to get playing again. Do not be impressed that I got in as they take all who want to come and pay the fee haha. But I'm excited to have something to help me get back to playing and to be a part of the community! Our first concert filled with Halloween music is this weekend!
We've also discovered Bobby Flay's burger place here in DC! Bobby's Burger Palace is right next to my office and it definitely is tempting every day to get an amazing burger or shake!
I tried the Palace Classic and shake and was NOT disappointed. Bobby Flay knows how to make a burger!
Most mornings Brandon drives me to work on his way to school (rock star husband) and we love getting front row seats to the sunrise with the Lincoln & Washington Memorial as our skyline. We could definitely get used to this!
Look at those clouds! Makes waking up so so early a little less dreadful.
A few weeks ago our stake participated in a massive day of service for Virginia, Maryland, and DC and our ward was asked to help weed a portion of running trail/park. At the park, before our weeding area, were these beautiful rose gardens. I'm a sucker for gorgeous flowers!
On another Saturday we went to Downtown Alexandria, just a few miles away and loved walking around all their shops and and interesting stores. It's such a pretty area with stores from H&M & restaurants, to this awesome toy shop we found! (somehow we always find ourselves spending the most time at the kids places....)
All of my nephews love, absolutely love Curious George and have their own little stuffed animal George they have to sleep with every night. It's precious. So when we found this GIANT curious george we got a little excited in their honor.
And we found King Barbar rocking horse! I loved Babar & Celeste books back in the day!
Afterwards we got ice cream at this cute local shop called Pops! Brandon got cherry chocolate chip
and I got what the call, the Big Mama: vanilla with cookie dough AND brownie. YUM!
A very well-named store I must say! My dad is called Pop by all the grandkids and he definitely perpetuates our love of ice cream!
At the end of Downtown Alexandria is a little pier walkway to the Potomac River. It was so pretty!
We are very happy that October has finally arrived and with it our candy advent calendar! I get a reese's and Brandon a snickers or milky way every other day. Please observe my over organizational skills of the candy color scheme. haha it's a problem.
And with October comes my favorite: GENERAL CONFERENCE
We made some homemade buttermilk pancakes and bacon....
Then we sat down to listen to our beloved prophets and apostles! I am so incredibly grateful for the guidance and direction they give us. They are truly inspired of God and give us the messages we need to hear in this day and age. One of my favorite talks was by Elder Bednar. He spoke about recognizing the subtle but significant blessings God gives us, specifically by paying our tithing. "Sometimes we may ask God for success, and He gives us physical and mental stamina. We might plead for prosperity, and we receive enlarged perspective and increased patience, or we petition for growth and are blessed with the gift of grace. He may bestow upon us conviction and confidence as we strive to achieve worthy goals. And when we plead for relief from physical, mental, and spiritual difficulties, He may increase our resolve and resilience." I needed to hear these words and remember that God always answers our prayers and blesses us when we do what is right, though it may not always be how we expect. He always knows what's best for us.
Later we made some DELICIOUS carmel apples for our family home evening treat. Seriously SO good! We did the slow homemade carmel this time and they were so scrumptious! We cut them up and ate a little at a time all week. I love fall!
And I also LOVE, truly LOVE, going to the temple. It's been such a privilege to go to the Washington, D.C. temple on a regular basis. This majestic building always holds such peace, joy, and direction.
And finally! We were recently just called to be the sunbeam teachers in our ward! The sunbeams are the class of 3-4 year olds and we so far have loved it! We have four in our class and got to participate in the primary program today with them! We are learning a lot about how to teach sweet little kids with very short attention spans. :) I made this little prayer chart after my mom's template. She's taught the sunbeams for 4 years and is a PRO!
Fall in the Capital is pretty darn good! Busy with school and work but we feel so blessed to have each other, the chance to be here, and the gospel in our lives! Happy Halloween in just a few weeks! Any guesses on our costumes? (our sunbeams said that Brandon should be a donut and I should be a chocolate chip... haha stay tuned!!)
