As someone who moved from NY, I always find it a bit amusing that people from the DMV area stress just how unbelievably different NOVA, MD and DC are from each other. With the exceptions of Dupont, G-twon, Logan Circle, and a few other neighborhoods that are much more city-set- the whole area seems pretty damn similar to me and I know I cannot be the only one!

I think you'd be happier in Logan Circle or Bloomingdale than any if those suburbs.

OP has kids. You need to remember that many, many families chose not to live in DC because the public schools are so heinous. If you have multiple children, why pay upwards of $50K per year on private schools when you can move just outside the city (within the beltway even!) and attend some of the best public schools in the country for free?