I’ll be the first one to admit that I have gotten really bad about taking personal photos! I have spent so much time documenting the lives of others, but when it comes to documenting mine? Ehh I could be A LOT better. With that being said, I’ve been trying my hardest to get just a LITTLE better about taking my camera or phone out during real-life moments. Can I be honest? It can be hard to keep up with! However, I do know that I love to look back on personal photos, so I’ve really tried to make this a priority.
Which is what leads me to my next little mini-series right here on the blog: my family’s recent visit to the East Coast! For the next three days, I’ll be recapping their time here with me in DC, our time together in Stone Harbor, AND our family portraits that we took while at the beach!
First up: DC! This was the second time that my parents and brother came to visit me (We missed you, Meg!!), and we had so much fun. Though some of our plans didn’t go as we had hoped thanks to some pretty crazy rain, we made the most of our time together! Let’s start off with their first day:
Wednesday
The fam arrived to DC around noon! We had great plans to visit the Arboretum and to kayak/stand up paddleboard… but sadly, these were all rained out! Instead, we checked in at their VRBO, got settled, & explored some of my favorite shops in my neighborhood (AKA: Trader Joe’s and Little Leaf). We finished the evening with dinner at Farmers Fishers Bakers in Georgetown! My family and I all have crazy dietary restrictions, and we love how easy it is to eat here! I highly recommend for gluten-free/grain-free friends! Turns out… I don’t have too many pictures from this part of their visit!
Thursday
Thursday was my family’s full day in DC! We started with breakfast at their VRBO and an Uber ride to the Museum of Natural History. I had a few classes on the schedule at the studio, so I didn’t end up bringing my full camera along (It would have been a LONG day with a lot of gear…), so these are a few of my favorite cell images from the day!
We had so much fun in the butterfly exhibit! I think this was one of our favorite parts! 
The butterfly on my mom’s leg laid an egg on her… not really sure what’s going on over on the right 😂
I left my brother and parents down on the mall to explore while I went to teach my lunchtime class! We met up afterwards for Starbucks & snacks. 
Later that afternoon, everyone was then brave enough to take my second class of the day: Arms & Abs! Everyone did GREAT, and it was so much fun to have them in class!
One of my favorite places in DC: Meridian Hill Park! We quickly walked through here on our way home to grill dinner!
We finished our busy day with grilling out on my apartment building’s roof!
Friday
Their last (half) day! We finally got to the National Arboretum!!! After teaching class at lunch (Tom was brave enough to come back for his third barre class ever!), we grabbed salads and headed to the Arboretum. Thankfully, there wasn’t a giant monsoon to wash out our visit this time… though it was HOT! We started off our very sweaty tour with salads in the shade.
I still can’t get over this tiny pineapple! 
Shoutout to the self-timer and a camera propped up on a column! 
After our visit at the Arboretum, these three hopped in the car and headed off to Baltimore to visit my sister! Thanks for tuning in today! Tomorrow, you can expect a recap from our time in Stone Harbor!
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