Washington, D.C

Couples, community and a bunch of baby animals: Good news from the DC area in 2025

Published

2 months ago

December 27, 2025

Couples, community and a bunch of baby animals: Good news from the DC area in 2025

Whether 2025 was the best of times, the worst of times, or both, congratulations: You made it to the end, dear reader, and a fresh start is just around the corner.

Maybe you clicked on this good news article because you want to keep the warm-and-fuzzy holiday vibes going. Or maybe you clicked it because you needed something to pick you up again after one too many hits.

Whatever the reason, let’s take a second to appreciate the good stuff — and no matter how hard times get, there is always some good stuff to be found.

Baby animals were born. Neighbors helped each other through hard times. Problems were solved, and new plans were made.

Cheers to everything we accomplished together in 2025… even if it was just making it to 2026. Let’s take a look back.

We saw some beautiful love stories

Katie Lettie and Vincent Bauer got married at the Arlington Central Library after winning a contest for a free wedding at the library.

Back before Valentine’s Day, the Arlington Public Library announced a contest to host a free wedding for one lucky DMV couple.

In July, that couple — Arlington residents Katie Lettie and Vincent Bauer — tied the knot at the Arlington Central Library location.

It made sense: The pair has the kind of love story you read about in books. The pair has been together for more than a decade, sometimes on opposite coasts, sometimes an ocean apart, according to the library system.

“Arlington was the first place that we were ever able to live that was permanent,” Lettie said. “Or had a sense that like, the future could go on, as the current moment was.”

The couple’s nuptials are a testament to the community they found and built in Arlington, with library patrons, staff, volunteers and local vendors coming together to pull off the wedding.

“This is such an amazing gift,” Lettie said. “It’s such a magical experience. It’s so cool.”

A Northern Virginia couple was so grateful for the care their daughter received in the Inova Fairfax NICU that they decided to have their wedding there. News4’s Aimee Cho shares their sweet story.

Later in the year, in nearby Fairfax County, another couple’s wedding was boosted by a community that lifted them up — and literally kept their family alive through hard times.

Timeshay Brown, a nurse at Inova Fairfax Hospital, and her now-husband Jarvis Parrish, had been planning their dream wedding for October.

But then their baby, Jayla, was born earlier than expected, at just 25 weeks.

“We went to the ultrasound, and the doctor came in and she was like, ‘Well, you’re gonna have this baby today,’” Brown said.

Taking care of baby Jayla became their priority. But amid their long nights in the NICU, Brown and Parrish knew they still wanted to be husband and wife.

Then, Brown had an idea, and her fellow nurses — many of whom had helped care for baby Jayla — ran with it.

Brown and Parrish exchanged their vows in November in the NICU, in front of their baby daughter and the medical team that saved her life.

“Because of you, our daughter will never have to wonder what real love looks like,” Brown told Parrish. “She’ll see it in the way you love me, and the way you protect her.”

Parrish, in return, promised Brown he’s committed to “always being a place of comfort and safety that you can rest your heart in completely.”

You did it, DMV! 1,435 couples came to Anthem Row in Northwest D.C. to break the Guiness world record for most couples kissing under the mistletoe in a single venue.

And about a month later, D.C. broke a world record — and maybe even started to turn the tide on its rocky romantic reputation.

A whopping 1,435 couples turned out to Anthem Row in Northwest D.C. to break the Guinness World Record for most couples kissing under the mistletoe in a single venue.

The Downtown D.C. Business Improvement District (BID) is now the proud owner of that record, beating out the previous record holder of St. Louis, Missouri with just 488 couples.

Community members came together

Speaking of love stories and community: Friends to Lovers bookstore in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, is an expert in both, at this point.

The romance novels are the main draw of the first romance bookstore in the D.C. metro area, of course. But after owner and founder Jamie Fortin poured her heart into her dream and then watched it go up in flames, Fortin learned that love also comes in the form of community – lifting it up, and being lifted in return.

The store’s first grand opening was in November 2024. But just three days after it opened, disaster struck.

“That night, really, I just got a call at like 11 p.m. that the store was on fire,” Fortin said. “Like I just got a text, ‘There’s a fire,’ in all caps, which was terrifying.”

The inside of the building was torched, and three women-owned businesses inside, including Friends to Lovers, were forced to close the night of Nov. 18.

But then the next day, the business owners from that building gathered with others on the block.

That’s when Fortin, who wanted to build up women and people in the LGBTQ+ community with her business, learned the community wanted to build her up, too.

“We all really rallied together immediately,” she said.

Within a week of the fire, the GoFundMe campaign raised $46,000, Fortin said. Donors ranged from local business owners to grad students sharing what little cash they had pitching in to help Friends to Lovers get back on its feet. Most of them were people who had never been in the store.

“About five months later, we were able to fully open a new location,” Fortin said. “And we are so grateful for where we’re at now.”

Over a year later, the bookstore is thriving, with a new location on Cameron Street and its own booth at the Downtown DC Holiday Market.

There are plenty more examples of communities rallying after chaos caused by forces of nature. Back in June, you may remember, a series of powerful thunderstorms walloped the D.C. area several inexplicable weekends in a row.

If you remember those storms, you also remember the damage they did to several neighborhoods, including one in Arlington. One resident of that neighborhood told News4 that her backyard tree, estimated to be 80 years old, split in two and largely fell on her 90-year-old neighbor’s home.

When the tree came down, it crashed into an area of the house where that 90-year-old typically sits. She was thankfully elsewhere in her home at the time — and other neighbors took her in.

“My neighbors brought her over. They sat her down on their porch and had her relax and called her kids,” the resident said.

“The people here are nice. Everybody watches out for each other,” she continued. “My neighbor who lives on the other side of me is out of town and texted me to see we were OK and if we needed anything.”

“It really says a lot because this is an urban area. But people know each other. We watch out for each other.”

As the region braces for another day of high temps, officials in Montgomery County are making an urgent call for help as the AC goes out at Derwood Animal Shelter. News4’s Walter Morris reports.

And communities stepped up for each other, even for community members with four legs and a tail.

An animal shelter in Montgomery County, Maryland thanked residents for stepping up when its air conditioning went out amid a June heat wave in the D.C. area, and the animals needed temporary foster homes.

About 20-30 dogs at the animal shelter were at high risk in extreme heat due to age or other health conditions and needed to get out of the overheated building as soon as possible.

After the shelter put out a plea on social media, more than 40 animals got temporary foster homes from nearby residents, allowing crews to work overnight to repair the A/C system.

“THANK YOU for all of your help during this crisis,” the shelter said on its website.

Baby animals arrived in D.C.

Giant pandas Bao Li and Qing Bao played in the snow Monday at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, D.C.

From dogs and cats to panda bears, D.C. saw plenty of new animals arrive.

The most pandemonium came with the public debut of Bao Li and Qing Bao at the National Zoo in January. The 3-year-old giant pandas made their official debut on Jan. 24, and the zoo’s Giant Panda Cam returned shortly after.

Before the public could go visit Bao Li and Qing Bao in person, the zoo gave us all a sneak peek with some footage of them both playing in the snow, after D.C.’s biggest winter storm in years dropped 5 inches on the District.

The pandas went on a brief hiatus again during the lengthy government shutdown this fall, but their brief absence just made DMV residents all the more excited when the National Zoo reopened.

The zoo’s reopening after the shutdown also brought exciting news about the cheetahs that live at the Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Virginia.

On Oct. 17 and 18, a litter of four new cheetah cubs was born, and they were doing well when the zoo announced their birth after the six-week shutdown ended.

Their mom, Amabala, is a 5-year-old adult cheetah that was also born at the Front Royal facility back in 2020. It was a full-circle moment for an endangered species, and for the conservation program at the zoo.

The baby elephant could arrive anytime between February and March, the zoo said. News4’s Megan McGrath reports.

The good animal news will continue into 2026, too. The zoo announced one of its elephants is pregnant, and sometime this winter the National Zoo will welcome its first baby elephant in 25 years.

It’s not yet clear whether 12-year-old Nhi Linh will welcome a boy or a girl when she delivers her first baby.

It marks a landmark moment for Asian elephants, an endangered species with an estimated number of fewer than 50,000 living in the wild.

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Washington, D.C

Storm Team4 Forecast: Thick fog to clear before storms, rain Thursday night

Published

9 hours ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Storm Team4 Forecast: Thick fog to clear before storms, rain Thursday night

4 things to know about the weather:

Grab the umbrella
Big temperature ranges
Thunder possible Thursday night
Warmer days on the way

Heads up commuters! For Thursday morning, there will be some thick fog in spots with some rain possible, especially around the Mason-Dixon line. The fog should clear out by 10 a.m.

Throughout the day, some sunshine should develop with highs warming into the low 60s. Those in Northern Maryland could see some showers throughout the day but those near the D.C. area will stay relatively dry except for a stray shower or two.

Some rain and evening storms by 8 p.m. will impact the area Thursday night. Although it’s a bit unusual for this time of year, don’t be surprised if you hear thunder Thursday evening.

Warmer temperatures coming this weekend

These next few days will come with some major forecast challenges.

Much, much warmer air is just to our south and cold, high pressure is moving into New England. The front separating the 40s from the 70s will be laying right across our region for the next two to three days.

So keep in mind, when you’re looking at the forecast highs in the text below, that it will be warmest in Fredericksburg, VA and coolest in northern Maryland.

Friday’s weather will be similar as a front system remains just over the area, separating chilly air to the north and warmer air to the south. There might be a stray shower or two, too.

For the weekend, Saturday looks to be the warmer of the two days with highs in the low to mid 70s. Some rain overnight Saturday will lead to cooler temperatures on Sunday.

Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to check the weather radar on the go.

QuickCast

THURSDAY:
Mostly Cloudy
Stray Shower Possible
Big Temperature Range
Wind: Southeast 5 mph
Chance of Rain: 40%
HIGHS: 62° to 72°

THURSDAY NIGHT:
Cloudy And Chilly
Rain Likely
Some Thunder Possible
Wind: Northeast 5 mph
Chance Of Rain: 70%
LOWS: 44° to 54°

FRIDAY:
Mostly Cloudy
Cooler For Most
Isolated Shower Or Two
Wind: East 5-15 mph
Chance of Rain: 20%
HIGHS: 52° to 68°

SATURDAY:
Partly Sunny
Breezy And Warmer
Isolated Shower
Wind: Southwest 10-20 mph
Chance of Rain: 20%
HIGHS: 66° to 78°

SUNDAY:
Mostly Cloudy
Cooler
Few Showers Possible
Wind: Northwest 5-15 mph
Chance of Rain: 20%
HIGHS: 64° to 72°

Sunrise: 6:35 Sunset: 6:05
Average High: 53° Average Low: 36°

Stay with Storm Team4 for the latest forecast. Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to get severe weather alerts on your phone.

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Washington, D.C

Tax expert explains DC filing season amid Congress-District dispute

Published

22 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Tax expert explains DC filing season amid Congress-District dispute

WASHINGTON (7News) — D.C. taxpayers may be confused by back-and-forth between the D.C. City Council and Congress over taxprovision. The city’s financial officer sent a letter to Mayor Muriel Bowser and D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson, that said the District’s tax laws will not change, despite recent actions by Congress.

7News spoke to director of Tax Policy at the Center for American Progress Corey Husak to explain the complicated tax policy.

“The short answer is, nothing changes. Filing Season can continue as it has been, continue as planned, and according to the laws as we understood them in January,” said Husak.

“If you’ve already filed your taxes, you don’t have to change anything. And if you want to file your taxes, the rules are still the same as they were on the books before,” said Husak.

RELATED | DC Council Chairman talks taxes, budget, bodycams, federal surge

Chief Financial Officer Glen Lee’s revenue estimate issued Friday does not include an estimated $180 million expected this fiscal year from the city’s decoupling law, “due to the uncertainty of the associated revenue as a result of Joint Resolution 142,” according to a released letter.

“The CFO was in a tough spot here. If he agreed with Congress, then businesses and overtime workers will get bigger refunds. But if he agreed with the Mayor and the Attorney General, then families with children and lower income workers would get bigger tax cuts,” said Husak.

SEE MORE | Development of new Commanders stadium scrutinized at DC oversight hearing

“We as District residents can’t control, you know what happens in the courts, what happens in, you know, what Congress does in the future,” said Husak. “But for now, the CFO has said, you know this is, this is a law as it stands, and the law that I’m going to enforce so, you know, file your legally obligated taxes, and maybe in the future, there’ll be a surprise.”

WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW

7News spoke to director of Tax Policy at the Center for American Progress Corey Husak to explain the complicated tax policy (7News).{ }

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Washington, D.C

CHERRY BLOSSOM COUNTDOWN: Peak Bloom prediction drops Thursday

Published

1 day ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

CHERRY BLOSSOM COUNTDOWN: Peak Bloom prediction drops Thursday

WASHINGTON (7News) — The nation’s capital is just about ready to be transformed into a breathtaking pastel landscape of cherry trees in bloom. The famed blossoms around the Tidal Basin are not only a symbol of spring’s arrival, but also of a long-standing friendship — a gift of more than 3,000 trees from Tokyo, Japan, to the United States in 1912.

So what is considered “Peak Bloom”?

The National Park Service (NPS) defines peak bloom as the time when at least 70% of the Yoshino cherry trees around the Tidal Basin have opened their blossoms. This is the period when the blossoms appear most full and spectacular and most ideal for photos, and soaking up spring’s beauty here in DC.

Because cherry trees respond to the cumulative effects of winter and spring weather, especially daily temperatures, it’s very difficult to predict peak bloom more than about 10 days in advance. Warm spells accelerate blooming; cold snaps slow it down.

Average Timing — What History Shows

Since 1921 overall, national data indicate peak bloom typically fell around early April (April 4), based on historical averages.

Average date peak bloom – cherry blossom trees Washington DC Tidal Basin

Since 1990, the average has kept shifting earlier and earlier. In fact, the last 6 years our peak has occurred in late March.

These shifts reflect how warmer springs have nudged peak bloom earlier over the decades.

Earliest & Latest Blooms on Record

Earliest peak bloom: March 15 — recorded in 1990.

Latest peak bloom: April 18 — recorded in 1958.

Of course, most years fall between those dates, with the last week of March to the first week of April historically being the most consistent window for peak bloom.

Earliest Peak Bloom Washington DC

Recent peak blooms show how variable and climate-dependent the timing can be:

2025: The National Park Service predicted peak bloom between March 28–31 (and confirmed the official peak around March 28).

2024: Peak bloom arrived very early, on March 17, several days ahead of NPS projections — tied for one of the earliest peaks in decades.

These examples demonstrate not only how much each season can differ, but also a trend toward earlier spring blossoms in recent years.

What to Expect for Spring 2026

As of early March 2026, the cherry trees are still dormant. The buds haven’t begun significant growth yet. The weather will become more critical in the weeks leading up to the bloom will be the biggest factor in determining when peak bloom happens in 2026.

Heavy winter cold, as experienced this year, tends to delay bloom compared with recent early springs. In contrast, an early warm stretch could push peak bloom earlier — as long as it doesn’t come with subsequent frost.

Look for the green bud stage first. This is when the buds are small, tight, and green, with no sign of petals yet. Trees are still several weeks from blooming.

Tips for Cherry Blossom Visitors

Plan in the “sweet spot” — peak bloom often lasts a few days to about a week, but weather (rain, wind, heat) can shorten that window.

Visit slightly before or after the predicted peak dates for smaller crowds and extended color. Blossoms can be gorgeous even before 70% bloom or as petals begin falling.

Check NPS updates and First Alert Weather forecasts in late March for tweaked peak bloom dates.

The cherry blossoms of Washington, D.C. remain one of the most iconic harbingers of spring in the U.S., and while exact bloom dates vary year-to-year, history and natural patterns point to late March through early April as your best bet for seeing the Tidal Basin in full floral glory.

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