The Ellsworth Vacation

I wasn't sure if I was going to write about this or not because I didn't think I had that many pictures, but I had more than I thought, so her goes.  This is about a week late, but that's okay.

We had some fabulous times with Steve's family.

We started off in Harrisburg, PA for the weekend.  We had a fabulous BBQ on Sunday night and lots of Olympics watching.

Then, we headed to Philadelphia .  This is Cadance eating her first Philly cheese steak, or at least the bread of one.  She was really excited.  I was probably more excited.

Cadance's cousin Annie sharing some lemonade.  It was pretty cute.

This is in front of Independence Hall, and I was excited, again, to stand where Abraham Lincoln stood.

Excitement again at this fabulous poster.  I don't remember where I saw it.

Cadance made it all the way up the "Rocky steps." (Thanks Uncle Brant for the help).

Walking around and enjoying the view of downtown Philly.

We spent one wonderful relaxing day at the beach.

Then, we headed to Richmond.  The fam stayed for three nights and I got to show them around.  One of the high lights was the James River.  We wish we had dressed to swim, although the girls didn't really seemed to mind and jumped right in.  Cadance was completely agitated until we finally just let her loose.  She was only disappointed that she couldn't go down the rapids :)

Happy 4th of July!

Steve and I were so excited to celebrate Independence Day this year!  It was a HOT day, and I was half expecting to melt into the sidewalk, but we had fun through it.

We started the day at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens.  After the free gardens in Fort Worth we were a little disappointed to learn that Richmond's is $11 to get in, so we took advantage of the 4th being free!

She wouldn't let go of the pin wheel the entire day

Looking at the lake from the treehouse

A piece of art constructed by weaving branches together.  Seriously, it was the coolest thing

Wondering around the rose garden

I'm seriously excited that hydrangeas grow here

By the reflecting pool

The butterfly exhibit

We let Cadance take a nap during the afternoonand then we headed out to the Diamond to watch Richmond's own Flying Squirrels face off the Mets (the lesser known minor league version).  

You know, I was a little worried about the game.  Benches, sitting, late night, etc, but Cadance actually had a lot of fun.  I know the picture Steve posted on Facebook doesn't show that, but she really did.  She enjoyed climbing on and off the bench, looking through the program, tearing up the program, watching the game, and making friends with people sitting around us.

Can you tell how hot it is?  Her hair was soaked in sweat!

What I was most excited about was the fireworks.  I was so excited to see Cadance's reaction.  It wasn't what I thought it would be.  She didn't get really excited or started talking and pointing.  She sat completely still and gazed at them.  She was in complete awe.  It took her several minutes and some prompting and all she did was point and make so random noise.  I loved it though, fireworks are pretty amazing.

Washington D.C.

Last Thursday when my brother asked if I wanted to come up to D.C to watch him perform at ACDA symposium at the Library of Congress we were all for it.  We figured it was as good a time as any to get our feet wet into the workings of D.C.  Thanks to some great advice we found some great parking really close to the library, and it turned to be a pretty good day as far as crowds were concerned.  We figured the 100 degree weather mixed with the crazy storm from the night before were in our favor.

Before I get into the pictures of everything we did, first let's make a list of some of the most memorable moments.
1. Turning the corner on I-395 and the Washington Monument popping into view- we were instantly excited.
2. Cadance dancing in the Gershwin exhibit
3. Watching Stephen Colbert in the Bob Hope exhibit, looking down, and Cadance being no where in view.
4. The recognition on Cadance's face when she saw "Where the Wild Things Are" book on display.
5. Not being able to stop myself from laughing while playing on the teeter-totter at a nearby park after we ate lunch.
6. Being kicked out, not once, but three times from Peter's concert.
7. At about 4pm noticing that Cadance's legs are pretty much sunburned- whoops!
8. Running across the lawn in front of the white house and realizing that it felt pretty good after a day of walking.

Here are some pics from our great day!

Playing at the park.  It was a sad time when we had to leave.

Library of Congress in the background.

Not wanting to have her picture taken while playing in the children's garden.

A little homage to Thailand- we loved the orchids

Whether or not Washington actually said this I think it's pretty fantastic

Having fun with Uncle Peter

In front of the Lincoln Memorial

My first time seeing Lincoln.  I was so excited!

Belle Isle

We just completed our first three weeks in Virginia.  The week was busy with things like

Painting our toes

Creating a compost bin

Mowing the lawn for the first time

And going out for frozen yogurt

Steve also completed orientation for residency.  We watched the craziest one hour storm ever and were slightly worried for a minute that we might have to figure out what to do if our power didn't come back on.  We attempted to get library cards and I got completely lost while driving one day.

Today technically starts our 4th week here.  We started if off right by registering our vehicles and applying for driver's license.  I'm pretty sure while we were there somebody must have thought we were the worst parents in the world, but Cadance never cried or screamed, so whatever else she was doing, like wondering around in a circle and laying on the ground, pretty much mean success in my book.

Afterwards we went to Belle Isle.  It's a small island in the James river that is only open to foot traffic. It has a walked path around the island with walkways out to rocks.  There were lots of people out for picnics, sunbathing and swimming in the river, so next time we're bringing out swimsuits.

Foot bridge that hangs under the main highway

View from bridge to downtown Richmond

Stopping for lunch

Cadance wanted to get right in

  

We just thought this was a funny face

Wading in the river

A Bold Move

So we know we've talked to some people about our painting adventures, so here are the pictures.  We still have one more day of touch up, but it's pretty much done and we're super excited!

This is our pre-painted room.

Day 1
We bought paint and supplies and blocked the walls for the first coat.

Day 2
We painted all the walls this fabulous grey color.

Day 3 
The orange was added to the diagonal walls and window wall

Day 4
Steve blocked for the stripes to be added.

Day 5 
White stripes were added!

We love how much more awake this room is!  Cadance got very excited when she saw it this morning.  We think it's going to make a great play room and craft area.

Steve did most of work, with me in supporting roles, so thank you Steve for making this possible.  It's going to be so much fun!

The Move

So here is what should be like 5 posts in one.

This is what our apartment looked like in our last few days in Fort Worth

What's more amazing is how quickly Cadance caught onto the fact the meals were now served in the middle of the living room.  After a wonderful weekend in San Antonio we came back up to Fort Worth on Sunday, said good bye to friends, packed up the truck, and left Monday morning.

With fabulous Steve and his dad taking the lead, my dad and I took a not so leisurely two days to arrive in Virginia.  We drove through Arkansas in the craziest storm ever

Entertained Cadance

Ate what some believe is the best BBQ in the country.  (I'm still thinking about the pork tips!)

And, dealt with this little beauty

Can I just say, once again, thank you dad for taking the journey with me.

The house is coming along.  Here are some things I love about our new digs: I can pretty much get from 7am to 8pm without turning on a light, Target, Barnes & Nobles, and groceries are within walking distance, water from the tap is drinkable, the backyard, and all boxes we don't want to deal with are conveniently stored upstairs and out of sight.

Also, Cadance seems to be liking the house a lot too.

More updates soon, maybe, we still don't have internet at home yet.