We just got home last night from an extended weekend in Washington, D.C. While it was nice to get away and escape the day to day life, the trip wasn't exactly one that topped our list as one of favorites. 1. AR was sick so we spent majority of Friday and Saturday in the hotel 2. Walking long distances and history isn't really a four-year-old's idea of fun. Either way, we made the best of it and still had a pretty good time. Here's our trip in pictures...
AR got her Elsa suitcase for her birthday last year. This was her first trip flying with it. It mainly housed extra snacks and our pajamas on the way there. On the way home, it was our dirty clothes. She did pretty well taking care of it all by herself.
We got there late Thursday night and it was a little chilly. Other than Friday night, this was the only day that we needed our coats. By Sunday, I was wishing I'd brought some shorts or at least short sleeve shirts for AR.
Like I mentioned above, AR wasn't feeling great on Friday. She and I skipped the Capitol tour and stayed in the hotel. Thank goodness my sister brought her Firestick! The hotel had a shuttle that drove us to the grocery store where we stocked up on oranges, water, bananas, and of course, AR's favorites cucumbers.
Friday afternoon we decided to venture out for dinner. You can see in her eyes that she doesn't feel good but she was going as stir crazy as I was in the hotel.
And when we found
Sprinkles, she was a VERY happy girl!
Candace, the owner of Sprinkles, is the judge on Cupcake Wars! They even had little dog cupcakes that AR wanted to get for Shadow but I told her I didn't think they'd make it home in one piece so we didn't get any.
Friday night we did a Monuments by Moonlight tour. The first stop was Lincoln Memorial.
Right after Matt and I got engaged in 2007, we went to visit his friends on the East Coast and did a little day trip to D.C. I tried to recreate some of the photos the two of us had taken together with AR.
H took this pic and I think it turned out pretty fantastic!
I love this picture of the side of the Lincoln Memorial, very cool! Oh, while we were at the top of the stairs, this group of teenage boys came up. They had our back to us and were taking pictures of the Washington Monument. I looked over and they were all dressed in red, white, and blue patriotic clothes. I walked over to one of the boys and was like, "Hey, let me see your phone." He turned and looked at me like I was crazy. I assured him I wasn't stealing his phone but capturing an awesome pic. He finally gave it to me and yeah, the pic was awesome. I thought it might be a little too creepy if I asked him to send it to me so you'll just have to take my word.
Washington Monument and the reflection pond.
Battle of Iwo Jima which always reminds me of Mr. Reutzel. If any CHS Spanish alumni are out there, you'll know what I'm talking about.
The last stop on the monuments tour was the MLK Memorial. We also saw the Korean Memorial but there were seriously rats running through the bushes and across the sidewalk so I took two pics and ran the opposite direction.
Now, the whole reason we went to D.C. was because I had a signing for
Lyssa Layne. It was Saturday afternoon in the hotel that we were staying in. AR took this pic and I have to say that she did a fantastic job! It may or may not be my LL profile pic...
My baby girl stayed with me all day because she still wasn't feeling too great. She did an excellent job handing out swag and we found an awesome book that I can't wait to read with her. If you're a mom to a little girl, teenager, or daughter in general, go check out
Adjust Your Crown.
My biggest fan that I love sharing all of this with!
Saturday night, we stood in line for over 30 minutes for some Georgetown Cupcakes. It was worth it! I had milk chocolate buttercream frosting and it was AMAZING!!! The locals said if they had to rank the cupcake stores, it would be Baked & Wired, Sprinkles, then Georgetown Cupcakes. My sis and H had Baked & Wired and said they were good but OMG, I'm still dreaming of the GC frosting!
Sunday was our big day out because AR was finally feeling better! We checked out the White House, not that you can see it all that well.
She told a secret serviceman "thank you for your service" and he gave her this candy "straight from the President's desk." Don't mind her middle finger, it's not a political message!
This is the front of the White House in the distance. When I was there last, a decade ago, you could get a LOT closer, but I think a lot of the fencing and other construction was leftover from the inauguration.
We found a Shack Shake and had to indulge!!! Yes, I'm doing a weight loss challenge at work. Yes, I indulged in 2 cupcakes and split a milkshake plus more. But when you walk 2-3 miles per day, majority of that carrying a 45 lb child, well, then I'm not too worried about gaining. In fact, I weighed today and I lost a little so I'll happily take that!
AR wanted to do ONE thing and in the process of doing that. We passed through Chinatown where AR also sampled a green smoothie which she loved... and got pretty much all over!
AHA! The highlight of AR's trip!!! We found a playground! This was all that she wanted to do. So we walked a mile to the JFK Recreation Center and played on the playground. She was one happy little girl!
We also went to the Spy Museum. We did a game called "Spy in the City" which for older kids is really awesome. We each got a tablet with GPS on it. We had to go to different places and find clues. AR was NOT digging this at all so we only made it halfway through then later in the day, we walked through the museum some.
After all that walking, playing, and spying, it was time for dinner. Where would us STL girls pick? PI Pizza of course! I've never been to the one in STL so this was a first for us. For those of you that don't know, PI Pizza has all their specialty pizzas named after towns in STL. AR was starving and chowed down on this yummy Italian feast!
Monday, we visited Arlington Cemetery before we headed to the airport. Holy hills and even more walking! It's such a sombering place and makes you reflect on life in general. Here is the eternal flame for JFK.
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Changing of the Guards
Then it was time to head home! D.C. is a great place to visit but I would definitely recommend waiting until your kids are old enough to understand/appreciate everything it has to offer.
