Upon the arrival of the Vance family at the vice president’s residence within the National Naval Observatory, the historic halls will reverberate with the sounds of children’s laughter and the delightful commotion typically associated with a young family.
At age 40, Vance will be the youngest vice president since the 40-year-old Richard Nixon entered office in 1953.Â
Vance and his wife Usha, who also turned 40 on January 6, have two sons — Ewan, 7 and Vivek, 4, and a daughter Mirabel who just turned 3.Â
Not since Al and Tipper Gore and their four children resided in the home in 1993 have there been young children living in the vice president’s residence, despite the fact that the Bidens frequently hosted their grandchildren in the premises, and Vice President Kamala Harris received visits from her young nieces.
The children will have access to a grand 33-room home with a wraparound porch, grand staircases and elegant turrets.Â
After the inauguration, the Vance family will move into a home they have never visited before and only seen in pictures.
It was recently mentioned that Kamala and Doug chose not to provide the Vance family with a tour of the property before the inauguration, diverging from the amicable tradition of offering such tours to incoming families.
It’s a sudden transition for a family moving into 9,000 square ft Queen Anne style home, typically eased by a cordial tour of the property by outgoing vice presidents.
Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife Lynn welcomed incoming Vice President Joe Biden in 2009 and the Bidens extended the same courtesy to the Pence family in 2016.
JD Vance and his wife Usha, and his three children, Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel Â
The official residence of the vice president of the United States on the ground of the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington
The Pences failed to host Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff to the residence, as it was during the coronavirus pandemic and the politically tumultuous environment surrounding the contested 2020 election. Vice President Harris appears unwilling to restore the dropped tradition.
As a United States Marine, Vance will be living on property filled with naval history as the home owned by the United States Navy was once a pristine residence for Naval Admirals.
The secluded home is located on 13 acres, giving the Vance family plenty of privacy and space for the three children to explore.
‘They’re going to have challenges having really young kids, but I think that observatory is such a lovely private place,’ Kate Andersen Brower the author of the book First In Line, Presidents Vice Presidents, and the Pursuit of Power told DailyMail.com.Â
Modern Vice Presidents have put their own mark on the property, as Dan Quayle installed a putting green and a large heated swimming pool on the property.Â
Vice President George HW Bush put in a horseshoe pit and a jogging track. Biden installed a tree swing, and the Pences added a basketball court and a beehive.
Vice President-elect JD Vance, left, and his wife, Usha Vance, arrive to a dinner event at the National Gallery of ArtÂ
Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, his wife Usha Vance and children, arrive to vote at the St Anthony of Padua Maronite Catholic Church
The Vance children will have access to a grand 33-room home with a wraparound porch, grand staircases and elegant turrets
Had Harris welcomed the Vance family to the vice president’s home for a visit, the pair could have shared their love of cooking in the kitchen that was recently upgraded before she arrived.Â
Vance enjoys baking with his children, as he celebrated the Christmas holiday sharing video of him making biscuits with his daughter Maribel.
‘I feel like biscuit-making is a lost art and I think that every American family should have a biscuit on their table during Christmas dinner,’ the vice president-elect commented.Â
Earlier in the campaign, Vance told a story of baking an Oreo cheesecake with his son Vivek.
‘I’m a big baker,’ he admitted to podcaster Joe Rogan.
Kamala Harris speaks at the Naval Observatory
Kamala and Doug plant a tree at their VP residence at the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington
Vance revealed to a campaign audience that he made cinnamon rolls, dulce de leche rolls, and chocolate chip scones with his kids for three days in a row.
Usha praised JD during her RNC convention speech for being a ‘meat-and-potatoes guy’ who had ‘adapted to my vegetarian diet.’
But the future vice president still indulges in food from his midwest upbringing that includes the occasional fast food order aboard the Trump plane and fried bologna sandwiches, a childhood favorite.Â
Vance revealed during the campaign that he enjoys fishing but also has the reputation of a nerd who spends his time reading a lot and enjoys ‘dorky interests’ such as occasional roleplaying games of Dungeons and Dragons with friends and playing the collectible card game Magic: The Gathering.Â
The Vance family also lives in a mixed faith household. Vance is a recent convert to Catholicism while Usha is a practicing Hindu. Â
 Second Ladies, typically in a different stage of life, usually have signature issues they focus their talents on as their husbands serve the president.Â
Vance’s wife Usha’s primary focus, however, will be on her family and young children.
‘Giving them a stable, normal, and happy life and upbringing is the most important thing to us,’ she told Fox and Friends in a rare interview in July, saying it would be a priority to ‘let them have their lives as children and let them spend lots of time with their father.’
Vice President-elect JD Vance and his wife, Usha Vance, kiss each other as they attend the vice president’s dinnerÂ
Vice President-elect JD Vance’s wife, Usha Vance, listens as her husband speaks during a dinner event at the National Gallery of ArtÂ
US Vice President-elect JD Vance plays on the sea wall with his children Mirabel Rose (L) and Vivek (R) at Mar-a-Lago
Usha Vance values her privacy especially for the sake of her children, those close to her say, sharing a common desire with First Lady Melania Trump who was fiercely protective of her son Barron.
‘If that’s sometimes seen by other people, great, and if it’s at other times private, great, but I don’t think to expect to make them a real feature of any of this,’ she said.
The 40-year-old daughter of Indian immigrants, grew up in the San Diego suburbs before attending Yale where she met the future vice president.
The family moved to Del Ray, the left-leaning Washington, D.C., suburb of Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband when he was first elected as the US senator of Ohio.
Life will change significantly for the Vance family as JD transitions from the life of senator to the more detailed busy life representing the entire United States.
The easy-going Ohio native will now be tasked with keeping up with Trump, matching his energy levels with schedule that begins before dawn and ends late in the evening.
‘The most important part of that job is to make sure you’re in the room, so that you are at the table and not kind of sidelined in a way that a lot of VPs have been,’ Bower said.
It’s a familiar schedule for people working in the West Wing, and Vance will be juggling his busy life with his duties as a father.
 ‘The most important part of that job is to make sure you’re in the room, so that you are at the table and not kind of sidelined in a way that a lot of VPs have been,’ she added.Â
Vice presidents typically take a beating in the press, as they are frequently on camera but never in control.
The wrong look, an awkward verbal slip, or an assertion that might cross with the president’s agenda typically go viral in an embarrassing fashion.
U.S. Vice President-elect JD Vance and Usha Chillukiri Vance arrive on New Year’s Eve at Mar-A-Lago club on December 31, 2024 in Palm Beach,
Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, left, and his wife Usha Vance kiss as they arrive at a campaign event
Vance earned a taste of the position when his critics ridiculed him for the awkward way he ordered doughnuts at a local bakery. But since then, his official actions have been more coordinated.
In the days leading up to the Inauguration, Vance visited his family’s small cemetery in Kentucky where five generations of his family including his grandmother (affectionately called ‘Mamaw’ by Vance and his family is buried. Later he visited a the Kountry Kitchen diner where owners graciously hosted him for a meal.
During the campaign, Vance earned positive reviews from Trump for handling media interviews and has a sharp social media presence to highlight allies and shut down critics.
The carefully honed art of media combat will likely be a highlight of Vance’s vice presidency as Trump has noted approvingly of Vance’s skills on camera.
‘I think the fact that he’s a millennial, he’s going to be much more aware of social media how to get messages out, he’s obviously really good at conveying Trump’s message to his voters,’ Brower said.Â
Vance has earned respect from Trump for his loyalty, but that can vanish in an instant if he messes up. He will always have the looming example of former Vice President Mike Pence to remind him that one wrong slip-up could separate him from Trump and the MAGA movement forever.Â
But on Inauguration Day, the incoming administration typically enjoys the magic of the ceremonies before the political grind begins.
Usha and Vance will attend inaugural balls on Monday evening, as the kids will likely be in bed.
Amidst the unprecedented pageantry of the momentous occasion, however, there’s no question the newly inaugurated vice president will be distracted.
That same evening his alma mater Ohio State Buckeyes football team will be playing the fighting Irish of Notre Dame in the championship game of the season.
