Cherry Blossoms 2012

One of my favorite things about Liam being born early- I got to fully enjoy the Cherry Blossoms this year and he was able to come too. Picture opportunities are so much better with a photogenic baby. By this time my mom was in town so we were all able to get out, exercise, and breathe in fragrant fresh air together. Fresh air is the best sleep aid for this little guy, he didn't see much, but he sure enjoyed the outing. How fitting that he was born at my favorite time of the year in DC.

1 + week old

 At 2 weeks we were already experiencing some new adventures. Liam is awake more- not often- but more. We love looking at his baby blues. They are dark blue just like his dad's. Also Dad tried feeding for the first time, and mom had a night out... well 2 hrs... while the boys stayed home and watched March Madness.  Sports for the boys and mom is still getting out. Life is good for all!

First Family Outing

At 6 days old Liam was ready to see the world (and I was ready to get out of the house). We decided to start small- somewhere not crowded on a Sunday evening, so we headed over to the temple grounds. The fresh air was great and Liam slept the whole time. He is such a good baby.

Our Latest Adventure: Baby Liam

He is 5 days old and we really can't get enough of him. Every movement or stillness, sleeping or awake, crying or not... we are just fascinated with him and so overjoyed. He has brought out a whole new layer of love, care, and concern in both of us that has kept us on our toes (our own overprotective doing until we settle into this and figure it out more). But so far this has been our BEST adventure yet.
We have been so lucky to have such good friends and family who have come to visit and have called to check in. We were shocked at the response our first picture post received on facebook. The thoughtful comments and support that everyone gave us were wonderful, I was truly humbled.
So for those who have asked for more pictures here they are...

p.s. first set of pics is on facebook.

DC Bucket List catch up

So of my list of 26 things I wanted to do in DC (see original blog post Jan. 2011) I accomplished 10 plus outside DC I also went to Valley Forge on a trip to PA and a fabulous road trip with my mom to Boston where we stopped in Philadelphia and New York City. No historic sites in NYC but we did get front row lottery tickets to see Wicked- and shopped Fifth Ave, the damage was minimal. But had a blast with my mom doing all the girl stuff aka shopping and walking... lots of walking. Also I made a trip to Charleston, SC for a long weekend where I hit up some beautiful historic mansion homes (Aaron was also MIA for this trip so I saw a lot more home tours than he'd normally go along with). Over our road trip home for Christmas we also saw some sites in Kirtland, OH (along with numerous 'Drive-in, Diners, and Dives' eateries as per Aaron's idea- that's more like traveling with my hubby- good thing I was not on a diet!) So all in all 2011 was a good year as far as East Coast Historic sites go. I am very happy with the progress.

The jump start to my list was a visit from my friend Lindsey- who flew to DC just to help me accomplish my bucket list. Had to give a shout out because that's a good friend! Even better she was totally up for the idea of biking from location to location.


Postal museum- Check (cool old planes, trains, and stamp collection- I would recommend)
American History- Check
Air and Space (DC mall location)- Check
Smithsonian Castle- Check (now I know why I've never been- there's almost nothing there)
Arlington House (General Lee's home)- Check (it's a pass- no furnishings it's just a really really long hike through Arlington Cemetery that is up a very steep hill)
National Cathedral- Check
Lincoln's Cottage- Check (FAVORITE site of all of these- so much information I had no clue about the daily life and the accessibility people had to the president and all the civil war facts. very very interesting)
Old Post Office Pavilion- Check (nice view fun place to stop for lunch if so inclined)
National Zoo- Check
Embassy Open houses in May- Check (too many Embassy's not enough days and time to see! Will need to go again)


Goal for 2012- 10 more DC bucket list sites.

Weekend in Williamsburg

Towards the end of May some friends of ours invited us to stay the weekend with them at a timeshare in Williamsburg. We've been to Williamsburg before, but never to the other 2 cities in the "Historic Triangle" Jamestown and Yorktown. The weekend started out with a tour of the Jamestown Settlement Ruins where there was a big archeological dig going on. It was pretty interesting to hear the stories of the settlement and the finds and how they connected the dots to what happened there. After having lunch at a classic roadside diner we headed out to Yorktown, which is both a historic port and battlefield. What I remember most was the history of the 'Pineapple' and how it symbolized hospitality in colonial times- battlefields are basically just that...large fields, not so interesting, but a beautiful drive. Then to finish off the weekend we stopped in Williamsburg for a stroll through the historic shops and a stop for some fancy cheese and old fashioned root beer.

Yorktown Monument

Model of Original Jamestown- you can see one of the dig sites in the background.

Glassblowing House in Jamestown.

Aaron by the reconstructed Jamestown Fort barrier

Williamsburg 'Stocks'

Embassy Open Houses

In my last post I had a plan to be a tourist in my own city, well I am happy to report that I'm doing a good job at this! However I haven't been great at adding it to the blog. So here was my first adventure that I have pictures of. In May the Foreign Embassy's open their doors to the public, Camera's aren't welcome on the inside, but here are a few pics of some of the days stops. Many had lines so we we only able to go to about six total. Estonia, Ireland, Luxemburg, Portugal, Germany, and France.

Aaron at the German Embassy

Melissa at the French Embassy