White Coat Ceremony

^^ My HEART ^^

Watching Braedon receive his white coat was definitely a highlight for me.  He has worked SO hard to get here!  We are honestly just feeling lucky that he got in his first year, because it's definitely not easy.  It seems like there is no rhyme or reason to the medical school acceptance process.  

Tally didn't get a full nap before the ceremony and I was worried that it was going to be a disaster and that I would be spending the ceremony in the hall entertaining him.  I REALLY didn't want to miss it.  So I said a little prayer.  The first hour he was pretty bad haha.  But he was just SO tired.  However, after walking back and forth at the top of the auditorium and then sitting down with a movie quietly playing on my phone I looked down and he had finally given in and fell asleep in my lap...  which is so RARE for him!  He is very much a routine kid and does much better in his own crib, with a bottle before naps and bed time.  He slept for probably an hour and a half in my arms which allowed me to actually enjoy the ceremony.  I felt pretty emotional that day thinking about this new chapter we are beginning.  Braedon will be full time focused on school and I am full time focused on doing the mom thing!  We will be celebrating our 4th wedding anniversary next week and it's crazy to think we have just four years of med school.  Those four years of marriage went by so fast!  Of course then we'll have residency and who knows what else but I'm trying to take it all in small chunks haha!  

When Braedon walked across the stage, after reading where he is from and his undergrad degree they read two "fun facts" about him.  His two facts were 1. He loves finding new musicians on youtube and 2. He speaks Cambodia and enjoys Cambodian Karaoke haha!  I definitely cracked a smile at that because that is Braedon to a T.  I could tell he felt so relieved after receiving his white coat, but I knew that he was starting to feel a little stressed about starting school.  Braedon's dad Kelly gave him a priesthood blessing just before they left and it had us all in tears- every word calmed our fears and I could just feel the love that Kelly had for Braedon and especially the love that Heavenly Father has for him too.  He is truly such an incredible guy and I'm just lucky to have him by my side as we navigate life together!  Love ya babe, here's to starting medical school!w  

Leesburg

^^ Just blowing kisses ^^

Ok so Tally has started this new thing that completely MELTS my heart!  He will wrap his arms around my head or grab my face and just pull me in for a big hug or kiss.  It's something he only does with me right now and we never "taught" him how to do it so it makes it that much more endearing.  

Leesburg is one of the areas in Virginia that Kelly and Elise were SO excited to take us.  They loved to take little day trips to Leesburg back when they lived here and just tinker around in the antique shops- which is exactly what we did!  It was such a cute little area with a small town-colonial feel.  We had street tacos at Señor Ramon that rocked my world and then we went through a couple of antique shops.  I have to say, it's not 100% my "thing".  I definitely enjoyed it and it's cool to see though.  Everything reminded my of my Grandma Nana's house- especially the dishes!  I was having flashbacks of staying at her house for sleepovers when my brother and I were little.  

That night we drove through Embassy Row and ended our night in Georgetown.  Georgetown is SO fun at night!  We walked by the water, had dinner, and then just enjoyed window shopping.  Can't wait to go back.   

Iwo Jima

^^ WWII memorial ^^

Since we had family in town last week we got SOOOO many things checked off the bucket list!!  I was so consumed and honestly just content with hanging with family though that I neglected to take very many pictures ugh.  My sister in law Whitney and her husband Evan got into town a few days before everyone else and we had so much fun adventuring around the city.  Whitney has lived in Virginia so she was our little tour guide and we did so many fun things and ate ourselves sick!  

The first day we went to Arlington and hit the Iwo Jima memorial and then walked over to the Arlington cemetery.  It was so moving to just see rows and rows of white headstones.  We walked up to the tomb of the unknown soldier and got there literally right in time to see the changing of the guards which was amazing.  Tally had fallen asleep in his stroller and it was just so quiet and made me feel so proud to be an American.  I also thought about how grateful I am for all of those men and women who serve our country.  

The next day we went to Annapolis-which deserves a separate post!  And the following day Braedon had orientation all day so Tally and I adventured out with Whit and Ev to do the national mall.  We hit EVERY monument and literally walked our faces off haha.  I think we did close to 7 miles??  We also stopped by the white house, had chopped for lunch (holy yum) and then we were able to meet up with Braedon at the Lincoln memorial before heading back to the car.  Again, I am a dummy and took like zero pictures, but now I feel like I can go back with Braedon and be the tour guide for him when it's less hot outside.  Tally LOVED all of the planes and helicopters that were flying around once we got into the city and would point and gasp and ooohhh at EVERY SINGLE ONE.  He seriously makes everything ten times more fun because of his reactions.  

Honestly one of the best parts of the trip though was coming back to our place to eat junk food and watch fail videos on youtube haha.  It was so fun to just be together and laugh with each other.  I'm already trying to figure out how I can convince them to come back!  

First Week Of Med School

We had Braedon's family in town last week and I was so sad after we dropped them off at the airport!  Sunday night was emotional for me thinking about Braedon starting school and being gone all of the time.  I felt like I was just getting left behind a little and kind of jealous that Braedon was starting school.  Luckily I'm married to the most amazing guy out there, who offered to give me a priesthood blessing and it was exactly what I needed.  We took the evening to just enjoy time together and we talked about all of the (many) blessings we've been given and the great opportunity we have to be here in DC.  We are both just ready to get into a new groove, make new friends, and explore all that this amazing city has to offer!

I can't say I'm not nervous, or that I know I'm going to love it all of the time.  I already miss my family so much, and wish I could go to lunch with my girlfriends.  But I am SO grateful for FaceTime and phone calls!! I'm typically pretty shy at first so I'm doing my best to be more outgoing and make new friends here since I really can't count on Braedon to be able to do much with me. 

I was having a hard day today and my cute Tally boy must have sensed it because he climbed right into my lap and wrapped his arms around my neck for hug.  Then he gave me a kiss right smack on my lips!  Talk about melt my heart.  After that we sat in the playroom on the mattress and read books for 30 minutes or so.  He kept pointing to the bookshelf and showing me which book he wanted to read next.  He has never been super into reading so it was honestly such a treat and I loved seeing his reactions to all of the new pages and hearing him repeat all of the animal noises I was making.  Talk about MELT MY HEART.  My mother in law and I were talking about him and we both just agreed that there is something so SPECIAL about Tally.  He can truly make almost anyone smile!  It is rare to not get a smile out of the cashier whenever we go to the grocery store.  

Heavenly Father knew what he was doing when he sent Tally to us.  If anything else, I know I've got my little side kick to experience DC with me- and he makes everything WAY more exciting.  I love getting to see the world through his eyes!

^^ Just doing his "wink-y" face ^^

 

Date Night in Old Town

Lately Tally has been giving his kisses out like candy and I'm so glad Braedon caught it on camera!  In the mornings I sit him on the kitchen table and we usually share yogurt or cereal or whatever and after EVERY bite he leans in and gives me a kiss.  I don't even care that his face has food all over it, it's the sweetest thing.  

This picture is super grainy but we stumbled across this beautiful garden and couldn't not get a picture!  

Old Town Alexandria has been one of our very favorite places to go so far because it is so close to us and there is so much to see.  I love the cobblestone streets, the little shops, ice cream parlors, hundreds of places to eat and being able to walk down to the Potomac and watch the boats or feed the ducks.  It is seriously SO pretty.  

For our date night we decided we'd just pick a place to eat once we got there and we had plenty of options.  We went with a pizza parlor and had a relatively good experience considering we were cutting it close to Tally's bedtime! (Still haven't found a sitter we feel comfortable with).  Our waiter was SUPER busy and took FOREVER to get us our check and at this point Tally had had enough!!  He was being crazy so I grabbed him and the diaper bag and we started heading out to walk the shops while Braedon took care of the bill.  This cute older mom saw me on our way out and smiled at me. She gave me that look like, "I've been there, you're doing just fine".  It was so nice of her and I love it when other moms just give you that look like they "know'.  

Of course once we left the pizza parlor Tally was as happy as a clam.  He loved running around the fountains and there was this little stage in the back that he got up on and started performing for us haha.  He was just dancing and being so silly.  It was such a beautiful evening and Braedon and I had planned to go walk by the Potomac but forgot that we had only paid for two hours of parking so we had to leave (one of the bummers of living here, parking is terrible).  But it was still such a fun date night.  When we got home we put Tally to bed and then we had popcorn and brownie brittle and played cards.  We definitely count down the days of the week until date night comes around! 

American History Museum + Washington Monument

Interesting story about this photo!  I was trying to get a picture of Tally and Braedon when this cute girl came up to us to ask if we'd like a picture all together.  After, she asked us if there was anything we'd like her to pray for us about.  Turns out she was in DC for a church mission-how cute is that though?? I wish there were more people like her in the world, and I hope I can be more like her too.  

Just aboard the hogwarts express ;)

One of our mornings before Braedon had work we headed into the city to see the American History Museum.  Tally LOVED the "transportation" exhibit with all of the trains, motorcycles, planes, etc.  I love taking him to the museums because he makes everything seem SO much more interesting.  He has the best GASP there is and is always "oooooh-ing" or gasping at every little thing.  They had this cute area for littler kids that he enjoyed too since it was more interactive for him.  

Since we had an awesome parking spot and we were so close to the Washington Monument we decided we might as well walk over and see it.  I think it might've been more enjoyable if we weren't melting our faces off! haha! I legitimately sent my friends and sisters a snapchat of my mascara ALL over my eyes when we got in the car because it was SO hot and humid!  I think I need to invest in some water (sweat) proof makeup.  

I feel so lucky to be able to be out here with my little fam.  Tally makes me so much more adventurous and I find us going on little adventures that I probably wouldn't have thought to do without him here.  

Typical Evening

This has got to be my FAVORITE picture of Tally and Braedon right now.  It captures him perfectly.  We have been making nightly trips to the pool just before bedtime to wear Tally out and it has been so fun.  Braedon usually swims a few laps while Tally and I practice him jumping to me in the pool, and then Braedon joins us and we all play for a bit.  

Then, usually Braedon puts Tally down for bed while I go to the gym at our condo.  When I get back we've been working on painting furniture, catching up on The Bachelorette or we watch a few episodes of The Office haha. I've been trying to really take advantage of this time I have with Braedon because I know once school starts our little "routine" will be much different!