Leaving DC

 Living in Arlington for the summer was an absolute blast! We were in an ideal location, 15 minutes from the national mall by car and a three minute walk to the metro station. I had anticipated a mellow summer since we were leaving home, family and friends in Utah, but it was anything but mellow. We dove in with two feet and got to know the area, ward, and fellow Foreign Service families. Plus we had lots of visitors which was so fun! We will miss being close enough to have visitors. I guess we’ll see who really loves us by who makes it to Wuhan 😉 

Leaving DC was harder than I had anticipated. One tender spot was leaving friends, particularly the Belnaps who had been assigned to Wuhan also. We were so excited to have them be part of our Wuhan adventure. We clicked instantly and hung out with them all summer. Because Xiayou is from mainland China they hadn’t been cleared for assignment in Wuhan, waiting for clearance to move forward. We said bye to them not knowing if they’d join us then found out soon after (for me in the Seoul airport) that they were denied and would not be able to go to Wuhan. It was a bit of a blow to find that out right after we had said goodbye to them and were arriving in China. Hopefully we could have a post together in the future. 

This pic shows Yuna Anderson (going to Mongolia—I will miss her so much!), Lillian Barton who is an FSO learning Chinese to come to Wuhan with her family next summer!!!, and Xiayou Belnap. 

Anderson, Barton, Belnap, Birk kids 

Another tender point for me was leaving the temple and our ward. I did an endowment session on Saturday, two days before we left and Adam took the girls to do baptisms. It was hard to leave the celestial room, not knowing when my next temple experience will be. Knowing I’ll be without it has emphasized to me how much the temple means to me. This year our family has had a goal to have at least one of us in the temple weekly. I think we missed a week or two but have been very blessed with lots of time in the temple this year. We aren’t sure yet what our church experience will be like here. We’ve been told we’ll be part of an online branch. It is weird knowing that there is not a congregation or community to worship with here and o have felt the void. One night I dreamed I found a church with a small branch and was so excited to find other members! General Conference was a wonderful first Sunday here because it felt so normal to just be home watching. In the next few days we’ll try to connect with whatever church unit we’re part of. 

One pinnacle highlight of DC was going to the House of Representatives with Blake Moore. He is a representative from Utah and is married to my cousin. I reached out to his office for Capitol and White Hoisw tours which they helped us arrange (they were super helpful!). Then we had the amazing opportunity of going to the actual House of Representatives with Blake. It was incredible. We all went to the balcony above the gallery where all the representatives were mingling and chatting. We went on a Monday evening where they were doing a suspension vote (voting on non controversial issues so the rules of debate are suspended). The current guideline under Kevin McCarthy is that the representatives have to be in person to vote, so they all show up, mingle, connect, etc. and vote. The staff from Blake’s office explained the different groups/cliques that were chatting and we could see so many people we’ve seen on the news. We observed for a bit, then Blake took the kids to the floor! The only people allowed are the representatives, people under 18, and the few House staff and clerks. The kids met many of the representatives, many of whom even let them vote for them! They vote by inserting a card into a reader installed on the back of some of the House chairs, then hit yes, no, or present. The kids got to do that for several of the representatives. The bills were a veterans benefits bill, a natural resource bill, and one other. The representatives were so kind and friendly to them. Virginia Foxx, NC-D, previous chair of Ike education committee beelined to them and had them vote for her. It was so cool! The kids totally got into it and realized what a unique experience it was. Not many people can say they have voted in the House of Representatives! When the voting was done Blake took all of us on a backstage tour of the Capitol. We saw the rotunda and former House chamber (including the cool whisper spot where you stand across the room from each other and the acoustics carry the sounds of your voice. Kind of like the playground equipment you whisper in to each other except there was so equipment), as well as the office of the speaker, a chapel with scriptures, altars, and a George Washington stained glass for members of Congress (Blake had made sure there’s a Book of Mormon), and the crypt where Congress wanted George Washington’s body to be kept. Then we exited through a door and outdoor stairs that only Congress members and guests get to use. We are so appreciative of Blake and his staff for making the experience possible for us!!