Washington DC with kids

i’m writing this post because:
1)  it’ll recap our summer vacay, and i want to document it
2)  this is the kind of post i wish i could have run across when we were planning our trip to DC this summer.  so i’m writing it in the hopes that if any of you are going to DC with (or without) kiddos, this might help you formulate a gameplan!

i’m no travel expert or trip advisor…just a momma who wants to pass along to you a few fun facts that you might find helpful if you ever find yourself planning a trip to DC.

we decided that since we are presently living on the beach, our typical summer vacation to our friends’ beach house just didn’t make a whole lot of sense.  so we thought it would be the perfect summer to enjoy the city life.  so off to DC we went, with the plan to hit up everything we possibly could!

we chose DC for a few reasons:
–  we thought that it would be a great combo of fun and learning
–  almost everything is FREE, which is always great in our book
–  we have sweet friends who live right outside the city and offered to let us stay with them…major fun and major score!!

(before i jump in, i have to ask you to excuse the terrible quality of some of these pictures.  the IPhone is just too easy to cart around and whip out for a quick shot!  looking forward to the day i can update to one with a better cam.  but for now, just thankful i have one!)

as soon as we drove into town, we headed straight into the city, and took our first picture with the Washington Monument:

if you look closely at the Washington Monument, you can see a change in color on the lower part of the bricks.  the construction of the Monument was started in 1848, but stopped in 1854 due to a lack of funds.  building didn’t resume again until the early 1870’s, but by that time, the original materials had all been used up to build bunkers for the Civil War, so a slightly different color rock had to be used to finish the process.  interesting, huh?  there are cool facts like that all over DC.

 we then took the kids to the Vietnam Memorial:

which was completely fascinating.
here’s a little fact for you:
there is one of three symbols after each name, each signifying something in particular.
1) A diamond = a confirmed death
2) A cross = Missing In Action/Prisoner Of War.
(If an MIA/POW’s death is confirmed, lines are etched over the cross to make it a diamond.)
3) A circle around a cross = an MIA or POW who returns alive.

would you believe that out of the 58,183 names listed on the wall, we happened to randomly come across 2 of the 8 who share our last name??

we then headed to the Lincoln Memorial.  in an attempt to connect history with everyday life for small kiddos, we gave them pennies before heading in:

and Jake took just a few quick minutes to explain who Lincoln was:

and why he is important to our nation’s history.

my favorite site in DC is the Reflection Pool, which is just outside the Lincoln Memorial.  unfortunately, it is currently under construction, but i can only imagine how wonderful it will be once its completed:

we began the next day at the Holocaust Museum:

here’s my take on this with kids.
there is an awesome, interactive, and very well done children’s portion of the museum on the first floor, before you get to the actual museum.  its called Daniel’s Story, and you basically walk through life as a Jewish child living in Poland during the Holocaust.  its heart-wrenching, but paints a very real but age appropriate picture of the Holocaust in terms that children can understand and be touched by.  they even give you an opportunity at the end to process and write down your feelings about what you’ve seen and place it in the “mailbox” for Daniel.

we did take the kids through the main portion of the museum as well, because we felt like Canaan’s personality is such that he could not only handle the content, but that it would deeply affect him in a good way.  we believed that Bella is just young enough (at 5) to have it pass right over her head, and we came to find that we were correct to make both of those assumptions.  it was also helpful that Jake had been there before and knew which parts to shield them from, as there were some parts that neither of them necessarily needed to see.  
as an adult, my heart literally hurt the whole time we were there, and if you make it through without shedding tears, then i just might have to wonder if you have a heart.  just kidding…but seriously…it is one of the most moving things i’ve ever seen.
we totally switched gears, and headed to the Air and Space Museum next.  
one of the best things there is the moon rock, which (i think) is the only moon rock in the world that you can actually touch:

i think we might all agree that this museum was not necessarily our favorite, but Jake made sure to take some time to give a few history lessons.  afterall, he was a history major and a history teacher, so he can’t miss any opportunity to pass along historical information!

this picture as taken during one of those moments.  i was sitting, far away, because in all honesty, i was beat and could care less about any more history lessons for the day, especially ones that have to do with planes :)  i guess if our kids have an interest in all things historical, then we’ll know just where that came from :)

we made a quick trip through the Natural History museum, but we are not evolutionists, so we used alot of our time there to teach the opposite of what a large portion of the museum is about.  however, we did happen upon an impressive nature photography exhibit which was right down my alley and SO WONDERFUL for this momma who was, by this time, completely history-ed out!

bella found this picture and could not handle herself.  she thought it was the funniest picture she’d ever seen:

we had gotten tickets (for free) earlier that day to come back in the afternoon for a tour of the Bureau of Printing and Engraving.  this was a highlight of DC for our whole family!!  it was completely entertaining and so very interesting to watch how money is made.  and kinda fun to be in the presence of billions and billions of dollars!!  i highly highly recommend doing this if you are in the area.

this is how tall my kids are in dollar amount:

i think DC is such a beautiful city overall, and so very clean and well maintained, that its refreshing just to walk around and enjoy some of the parks.  during one of those moments, i caught the kids pretending to be statues and memorials.

 before taking a quick little rest on some benches:

the next morning, we headed to the much anticipated National Geographic Museum.  this is one of those that is off the beaten path, but in one of our travel books that we checked out from the library, it said that it had a weather exhibit, where you could feel the simulated winds of a tornado.  if you know my kiddos personally, then you know that this is HUGE!!  they are completely obsessed with all things weather (in most part because they have an uncle who is a meteorologist), and this was what they were looking forward to the most.
unfortunately, upon arrival, we came to find out exhibits at this museum change very regularly, and apparently our travel book was very outdated.  the Crazies handled it like little troopers, and i think seeing this great white shark jaw just outside the museum might’ve helped ease the pain just a little:

we had a tour scheduled for the Capital, but had a little time to kill so we hit up the National Archives.  SO VERY COOL!!  they don’t let you take pics, so i can’t show you anything, but so awesome to be in the presence of the actual Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.  definitely something to put on your bucket list!

we then headed to our scheduled tour of the Capital.  if you ever want to take a Capital tour, just call up your local representative, and they will set you up with a very educated intern from their office to give you an official tour.  (its best to call well in advance of your trip if possible.)

our friends who we were staying with happen to work in the Capital, so we didn’t have to set it up with our representative.  however, we did stop in his office to sign his guest book:

and the office staff was so wonderful and welcoming.  they LOVE visitors, and even took some time to give us a little lesson on our district.

 Canaan getting into the spirit, i guess:

 the exact center point of Washington, DC is inside of the Capital:

and there are all kinds of little secrets and fascinating facts that your tour guide will share with you.  can you guess what this fun fact is all about??  (hint…there is something missing from the statue)

this picture was taken in the original Supreme Court.  and of course, the crazies had to act like judges:

 being inside of the Rotunda was so very breathtaking.  its worth the tour just to see it:

this is the exact staircase that the President walks down right before giving his Inaugural Address.  the outside balcony where he stands is just at the base of this staircase:

such a beautiful and intricately detailed building:

later that evening, we headed over to Georgetown, and hit up:

have you ever seen the TV show, DC cupcakes?  this is it!

we knew we’d be breaking some of our clean eating rules while on vacation, and this was the perfect way to do so!  we went with a vanilla birthday, a strawberry, a key lime, and a marble brownie fudge.  wow….there are no words!

the next day we headed over to the White House in the hopes of catching a glimpse of “Arock Babama” as Bella calls him, but there wasn’t much action going on behind the gates that morning:

but we enjoyed seeing the White House anyway.  did you know that there are 132 rooms, 32 bathrooms, 28 fireplaces, and 6 levels??  it also has a tennis court, a jogging track, a swimming pool, a movie theater, a billiard room, and a bowling lane.

my one regret was not setting up a tour of the White House in advance.  our family would’ve really enjoyed that!

us beach folk couldn’t leave the city without at least taking one ride on the Metro.  you might’ve laughed at how many different people we had to enlist help from to figure out how to buy tickets, get through the gates, find the right train, and get to where we wanted to go.  we are most certainly not urbanites!!

 totally worth the quick 2 stop ride just to say we experienced it!

our ride took us to our most favorite meal of our entire vacation, everyone agreed!  once again, we broke lots of rules, but we met up with some friends at a place called BTS (Burgers, Taps, and Shakes) and my mouth is still watering just thinking about it.

after lunch, we headed to Ford’s Theater.  here is the balcony where Lincoln was shot.  so crazy cool to be so up close and personal with history, even for one like me who can only handle it in small doses!

right across the street is the Peterson House, which is where Lincoln later passed away after being shot.

they have maintained the looks of the house from long ago, and even have the same bed in the same room where Lincoln lay.  go.  its totally worth it!!

we finished off the day at the American History museum, and we all agreed that we wished we had done that one first.  its one where we could’ve spent alot more time!

Bella and I especially enjoyed the First Ladies Dress Exhibit:

and did you know that Abraham Lincoln created his own Bible?  he cut out parts from these two books and pasted them together to form his own Bible, eliminating anything that he considered to be supernatural.

might this be a glimpse into the future of our first female President??

 and seeing Dorothy’s actual ruby red slippers from the Wizard of Oz was very exciting:

we went non-stop, trying to fit in all the highlights of DC before moving on.  the little Bug has her daddy wrapped around her little finger, and was most often carried like a little princess because her feet were just so tired.  

considering all we did, and how much we walked, she really was trooper!  afterall, it was the Boy who finally had it one evening and just plopped down right in the middle of the sidewalk, weeping over how tired he was.  Jake proceeded to carry him to dinner, and once he had some nourishment, he was good to go!  however, i think that sealed the deal for the real trooper of the trip being the Hubs.

on our last morning in DC, we headed to the Arlington Cemetery.  these signs that were posted all throughout the cemetery made me slightly nervous to tote 2 Crazies through a place that asks for silence and respect…

but we made it through without being escorted out!
we watched the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers:

and then stopped by to see the resting place of JFK and Jackie Kennedy, which was really neat for Canaan because he did a large project and report on JFK this past year:

its actually really beautiful grounds, and represents so much life and loss for our country:

we were sad to leave this great city behind, but we sure packed in a whole heck of a lot in a just a few days.

my final take on DC…Canaan at age 8 was the perfect age.  he enjoyed everything we saw, and really engaged in the learning aspect of what the city had to offer.  Bella at age 5 was a bit young to grasp the historical significance of most things, and some things quickly became boring to her, but overall, she was totally engaged and entertained.  Washington DC as a family vacation = well worth it!

we continued our journey north to the Eastern Shore of Maryland:

 to visit my brother and sister in law.

who were great hosts, and took us to all kinds of local hot spots!
our first stop was the Ocean City Boardwalk:

which was definitely an experience.  quite different than our little beaches here:
anyone recognize what movie this is from?  (we didn’t actually waste our money.  just posed for this shot.  not sure i wanted him to get any “Big”ger anytime soon!)

Ocean City Boardwalk is apparently known for Thrashers Fries.  they don’t have ketchup, and i’m warning you…its best to not even ask.  in fact, be careful if you happen to order a large but then want to change it to a medium.  they don’t seem to handle annoying tourists all that well.  but their fries sure are good.  especially if you put vinegar on them, which is what i guess you do when you don’t have access to ketchup:

and we couldn’t possibly be in Ocean City and not indulge in some Salt Water Taffy:

we also tried our very first Fried Oreo.  i mean…what’s the point of going to a Boardwalk if you aren’t going to taste the local fare? (clean or not??)

we hit up lots more in Maryland, such as Assateague Island (a state park on the beach where wild horses roam), and the Blackwater Wildlife Refuge, which was like a scavenger hunt for wildlife.  unfortunately, i forgot to bring the Nikon along, so there are no photos to show, but we saw tons of wildlife, and even kept score on who saw the most, with more points going to the most unique creature found, which we decided was a family of about 10 raccoon putting on a show for us!  super fun!!

on our way back down south, we stopped for a night in Jake’s old stomping grounds at W&L:

we took the kids the next day on a tour of the campus, which is seriously the most beautiful college campus i’ve ever been to.  Jake got to show them his dorm where he lived his freshman year:

and Lee Chapel, which is where Robert E Lee is buried:

and we had to stop in on Jake’s old football field to toss the ball a bit.

bringing back lots of memories for Jake:

i have always said that i SO wish we had gone to college together.  i think that would’ve been a blast!

love this pic of my boys.

the Bug and i had to stop in at the Chi O house just for kicks:

this is the house where Jake lived for a few years with all his buddies.  the stories that have come out of that place can keep you laughing and entertained for many hours!  wish i had gotten to experience them all firsthand!

after our stop in Lexington, we headed to our last stop in Greenville, SC to spend a few days with our dear friends.  a yummy Italian dinner was awaiting our arrival:

Greenville is such a fun fun city!!  the little downtown area has so much to do.  there is a park with natural waterfalls called Falls Creek park:

and the cute downtown area boasts what they call Mice on Main.  there are 9 mini statues of mice all along Main Street, hidden in different places, which was right down the Crazies alley.  we had a little book with clues, and we got to search the area for all the mice.

we had a great time with our friends, and it was the perfect ending to our vacation:
we did make a stop in Trader Joe’s before heading home.  

 and made it home with lots of goodies:

we wore the Crazies out completely, and they slept a good portion of our drive home.

sad that vacation is over, and that summer is ending.  school starts for us too soon, so hoping to find some time this weekend to share some back to school stuff with you!