D.C in Eight Days

Hi Everybody!
We're back! We had such a wonderful trip, and saw so many places in a short time, it was a bit of a whirlwind. I would have liked to post while we were away, but with no laptop (yet) and no way to post pictures, there really wasn't the opportunity.

We arrived in D.C. last Sat (22nd) and immediately headed out to walk Embassy Row. What a neat part of D.C. We even saw a very lavish Cameroon wedding at that embassy. We also walked by the Islamic Center(below) and a great old part of Dupont Circle.
On Sunday, we went to Mt. Vernon, George Washington's home, and explored the mansion, slave quarters, riverside and his farm. What a beautiful place.

We also went to Arlington, but upon arriving there, we realized there were too many people, and I have a bit of a problem with walking around somewhere as sacred as a cemetery with 1000's of people. I do wonder how people who have loved one's buried there feel about all the people. We did walk over to the Marine Memorial (Iwo Jima) and after reading Flags of our Fathers, that had much more meaning. I don't think one can really appreciate that memorial without understanding the horrors of Iwo.

Monday we had our Capitol and Library of Congress Tour. Wow. What neat places (despite the fact that I question how well our gov't is working). The Library of Congress and its history were really, really amazing. And- absolutely gorgeous.



Tuesday was our anniversary (8 years!!!) and we celebrated by going to the Smithsonian Air and Space museum, as well as the Natural History Museum. Both places had so many things to see - and great history! We also got to go on a tour of the Pentagon - also interesting, even though you don't get to see much. We did see the 9/11 memorial and Chapel. 184 were killed there on that day, and it's amazing that had the plane hit anywhere else on the building the toll would have been much higher. At that time, the area his was under construction, so not all of the area was being used. The person who gave the tour told us that had that area been used to capacity, it could have been over 1000 killed! Unfortunately, there are no cameras allowed, so no pics of that tour - but here's Jeff at Air and Space (he loves the stuff on the Apollo Missions).

Wednesday we went to more museums, and back to Arlington. We were blessed to be surrounded by MUCH fewer people and were able to walk the area in peace and quiet. We also located the headstone of one of Jeff's relatives and saw Gen. Lee's mansion on the hill. Later that day we got to go to the Bureau of Engraving (where our money is made), which I have to say, was probably one of the coolest places to see. And, the fact that the workers have such a sense of humor was also neat. Again no pics, but above one of the machines, a sign was posted stating "I print more money in one day than I make in a year ... and you think your job sucks!" and another saying "Tomorrow - free samples to all employees" Funny, but I guess you'd have to be there! We did get the boys some cool gifts from there. We also got to see how much we're worth in height. So, in the following picture, I am the height equivalent of that much money when it's stacked up (In 100's)


Thursday was a "free day" as in we didn't have much planned, so we walked to National Cathedral - WOW! What an amazing, gorgeous place. The pictures didn't turn out so well, but really - it was breathtaking. We hit Ford's Theater (Where Lincoln was assassinated) as well - Jeff really enjoyed that. We also went back to some of the museums to get gifts for the boys and family members. We would have liked to go back to the memorials, but we were SO tired and it was really humid that day. I am glad we saw all of the memorials when we were there in 2002, so I didn't feel so bad about missing those.

We did see WWII memorial though. It is amazing and at the same time so sad, that our country did not recognize the efforts of the Greatest Generation until way to late. Those who served in WWII did so with grace and valor, and were not recognized until a few years ago. It is sad, but at least there is now something - except for the fact that most of our WWII vets have either passed away or are too old and ill to make the trip to see such a great monument to their efforts. One such monument is a bench there which states "Americans came to Liberate, not Conquer, to Restore Freedom and to End Tyranny." So true of that time. There is also a quote from Roosevelt on the wall, which I did take a picture of, in reference to the women of WWII -

Finally, Friday - we rented a car and drove to Colonial Williamsburg, VA. We had also wanted to see Jamestown, given it is the 400th Anniversary of the European arrival, but a huge thunderstorm broke out right as we arrived. I was so, so disappointed, because I had really wanted to see that - given the year. Instead, we took the scenic route back, along Chesapeake Bay. We didn't get back into DC until late, but it was neat to drive in a different place - made me miss ND though! Saturday we were READY to get home! We made it (despite my panic attack at the Chicago Airport - LONG STORY) and got to Mpls. at 3:15 - and drove straight home!

We had a great time on this trip. We learned a few things:

1.We really enjoy each other's company, even after all the years. So often, once people have kids, it becomes very easy to forget that you have anything in common (besides the kids). But I think this trip gave us that chance to see that we are really best friends. At home, everything is about work, school, diapers, laundry, errands, finances, and on and on, and on. It gets stressful.

In DC, we had such a great time together, enjoyed each other's company and were allowed to just be us. It was wonderful. I think - no, I know - that EVERYONE who is married, especially once children are in the picture - needs to make the effort, find the time, find the cash - to rediscover why they're together and those little things that made you fall in love. That said...

2. We missed our kids TOO much to ever be away that long again! By Tuesday night we were both really homesick for them! We so enjoyed the time to ourselves, but man, Lucas and Alex are really the most important people in our lives!

3. Home is ND/MN. We may like to see other places, but this is it... I don't think I ever want to leave this area. There is much to be said about the low population and MN/ND nice.

SO hope you enjoy the pics!