Washington DC

During our visit to the east coast, we were able to spend one day in Washington D.C. Since the traffic and parking is terrible in D.C., we realized our best way to get in was on the Metro. Thanks to my husband who plans and maps our destinations out so nicely, we had a stress free ride into the city.

The boys loved riding on the "train." Josh insisted on standing the whole time and holding onto the pole.

It was a treat to site see with my brother Jared and sister in-law, Samantha. We don't get to spend time together like this very often, so it was fun to be together all day. 

This is how Emmi rides the Metro, fast asleep.

We knew our time was limited, so we went straight to the big ticket things to see.

Josh's #1 place to go was the White House. This is the front of it but, initially saw the backside of it first (thinking it was the front). The backside was a little disappointing. It looked so small. Later as we headed to see some other monuments we looked behind us and sure enough, there was the front. We missed it. So our last stop was to the front of the White House. We were all surprised how the White House is tucked in between so many other buildings.

Here is the backside, quite a difference.

As we turned the corner from the White House the Washington Monument was right behind it.

Josh said it was pretty heavy, but he managed.

While we stopped to look at a map this butterfly flew past me and landed right on Dave's shoulder. It hung out there long enough for me to take a couple pictures. I don't know if that means something, but the boys were impressed.

We started walking along the Patomac River to what we thought was the Lincoln Memorial. Once we got a clear view we realized it was the Jefferson Memorial. Sorry Jefferson, Lincoln was higher up on our to-see list, plus the walk was too far.

It is beautiful though.

I hate to say anything is disappointing, but the Reflecting pool was drained. Disappointing.

We stopped for a much need walking break. Thankfully there was a nice park on the way to the Lincoln Memorial with ice cream.

Emmi enjoyed her first ice cream sandwich. She actually stuck her tongue out and licked the ice cream. This was a first. She also has four teeth now so she surprised me by taking some bites! This picture cracks me up, just look at Emmi and Josh's faces. 

Talk about NOT disappointing! The Lincoln Memorial was incredible. As a child, Lincoln was my favorite president to read about (which I think isn't very unusual). I always dreamed of seeing the memorial in person. I was amazed by the stone work and quotes along the walls. When Josh and I met up in front of Lincoln he looked at me with such excitement and said, "MOM! This is SO cool!" It was one of those moments where I knew he was appreciating something as much as I was. What a neat experience, I love when I get to see my children make a memory.

It was pretty crowded, but we squeezed in for a picture.

As for Parker and Emmi's memory... well maybe we'll have to make a trip back in 6-7 years. 

Sam loved seeing D.C.. She was great taking pictures for us while our hands were full fulfilling needs. She is a kid at heart, so her, Josh, and Parker made sure to pick up a couple of souvenirs (hence Parker's angry bird hat earlier in the photos). After this picture we headed back to the Metro. We were meeting up with the families for a "rehearsal" dinner. 

 

When we got off the Metro we took this escalator to the parking garage. See those two lights, that was the top! Notice how small the people are. It was the longest and tallest escalator any of us had ever seen. 

We can't wait to go back to Washington D.C. and see all the museums. It was a beautiful place to be.