Washington DC

Mostly pictures, and a few thoughts- this trip was amazing!  We did so much, saw so much, ate so much, and just loved being together so, so much.  Washington DC is so rich with history, and we barely scratched the surface of all there was to see and do.  Everything looks so darn small on the map, but those buildings are all huge!  Our nation has a truly amazing capital.

First things first- we headed to the Washington Monument

 and the Lincoln Memorial.

 The first day concluded with visits to the WWII Monument, Arlington National Cemetery, and Iwa Jima.

 Day Two- The Smithsonian Castle, Museum of American History, White House, Ford Theater, Old Post Office, Smithsonian Portrait Gallery, and Union Station.

Slowing down already?!

Day Three- The Washington DC temple, visit with Linda and Richard Eyre, FDR and Jefferson Memorial.  We went to the temple and found out that Linda and Richard Eyre (the founders of Joy School and authors of several parenting books that are on my night stand right now) were going to be speaking at the visitors center that night.  We rearranged our plans and headed back up to the temple to hear them speak.  We got there early and had the chance to visit with them- I felt so goofy and star-struck, but I really admire them!

 Then we grabbed some ice cream and headed back into DC to see the monuments at night- that was a true child-free moment!  Out at night with no curfew!  Look out!

Day 4- Church, Mount Vernon, visits to old neighborhoods-this was the day I really started to slow down.  Mt. Vernon is beautiful, but huge!

 Day 5- Museum of Natural History, Bureau of Engraving and Printing, USDA, Air and Space Museum

We probably would have done things a bit differently had we realized that our flight left at 6:00 on Monday night, not Tuesday night like we were planning!  Talk about the ultimate moment of baby-brain.  We had a bit of a stressful evening repurchasing airline tickets and had to let go of our plans on the last day to visit the Capitol Building and Library of Congress.  We had saved the best for last, but now we'll just have to save them for next time!

Now we're home- exhausted, but so so grateful that we were able to take such a fun trip, just the two of us.  We can't say enough thank you's to Grandma Morales and Auntie Emily for caring for Leah and Adam while we were gone.  And now we're glad to be home for the summer.