CAN'T GET ENOUGH

After the tour van dropped us back off at the hotel Friday afternoon, Mark, the girls and me went back in to D.C.

We just can't get enough. Even if the museums close at 5:30 (which is way to early) there is still stuff to do and it's nice just to walk in D.C.!

Joey was really excited to go to the archives. Yes, you read that correctly. You see, we had shown her the movie National Treasure in preparation for coming to D.C. So she wanted to come here and get her own "Map of Independence."

We ate our hot dog lunch at the sculpture garden across the street from the Archives. 

Sam was SO CUTE, the way she would dip her feet in the water, then yank em' up... then slowly let them down... and then scrunch them up!

 Too much walking for a 3 year old you say? My daughter has done a full day of Disney... back to back! She not only walked all of D.C., she ran most of it. Especially the mall. Her and Mark were playing tag as we walked from the Archives to the Washington Monument. 

 Of course we had to stop for ice cream and ride the carousel. 

 Sammy's 1st time!

(And the beginning of a long list of things that Sam will do at a younger age than Joey. Something, as an oldest child myself, I used to see as a little unfair but as a mom I understand.)

 Joey's favorite from the D.C. trip was the Washington Monument. 

 She pointed it out every time she saw it.

Every. Single. Time.

 We just kept on walking! 

The walk from the Washington Monument to the Jefferson Memorial is a bit of a trek, but beautiful!

 What a pretty sunset.

Now, the walk back to the metro was sobering. It isn't as fun to do all that walking when you aren't walking to some neat next destination. All of a sudden Joey turned into a normal slightly whinny 3 year old who's legs hurt.

 Thank you to Cracker for picking us up at the Metro Station by the hotel so we didn't have to walk that last bit home!

GOOD BYE C.J.

A young C.J. (Before Cassie)

The Dog Clan in their prime.

Shadow, C.J., Cassie, Chili

?Donuts?

These two are patiently waiting for Grandpa to come outside with the white bag of powdered donuts from the Circle K and start distributing. 

C.J. may not have been as verbal as Shadow with his love of donuts, but it was as strong!

D.C. BY VAN

Kaki rented a tour van for a dozen of us to go sight seeing in. It came with a driver and a tour guide and was a great way to see and learn a lot real easy!

 The first stop was the Korean War Memorial. It is beautiful and moving on its own, but when you have a guide to point out all the details and explain their significance, it is even more significant. 

 For instance, did you know there are 19 soldiers, so that when reflected in the marble wall, there are 38 soldiers... for the 38th parallel. 

 Madison & Austin were going to do presentations in school about there trip to D.C. so they were taking lots of pictures and pamphlets and trying to retain all this information!

 Kaki & Paka Rick's Grandbabies

 This was in front of the Lincoln Memorial with the reflecting pool, Washington Monument and Capital  visible in the background.

 Asian tourists asked Mark if it was OK to take pictures of Sammy. 

He told them sure, and that they should see his other daughter too!

 Being the history geeks and general nerds that we are, we prepped Joey for her trip to D.C. We showed her pictures and explained to her some of the things she would see and their significance. We pointed out things on dollar bills, backs of coins, and showed her the movie NATIONAL TREASURE. She was just SO EXCITED to see this stuff in real life.

They have recently marked the spot where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did his "I have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

 Another benefit of a tour guide is getting a better explanation of these accompanying pieces to the Vietnam War Memorial. 

 Meant to represent the 3 branches of the military and (below) the aide, they were added after complaints that the Vietnam Memorial was too cold and impersonal. 

 This was my first time seeing the Irwa Jima memorial. 

 It is actually in Virginia, because they didn't want to be hindered by the height restricitions in D.C. (Nothing can be taller than the capital.)

 Thank Mark for the pretty pictures, I was in the van nursing Sammy.

 I really like the WWII memorial. 

 I like the water features and its location between the other monuments and memorials makes for a beautiful backdrop, no matter where you look!

 Can you believe that not only are they already preparing the area in front of the capital for the inauguration, but they are already behind schedule?

 Group pic in front of The White House.

(Auntie Ro, Uncle Tom, Aunt Marti, Michael, Me, Sam, Mark, Kaki, Paka Rick, 

Madison, Austin, Joey)

 Sammy, of course, was paying close attention and soaked up all this wonderful knowledge and will remember it for the rest of her life. 

A GAME OF PASS THE BABY

Sammy was passed around the dinner/breakfast table so much, I am surprised we don't have more pictures of everyone holding her. It seems like everyones favorite game is pass the baby!

Pat & Sammy

Auntie Ro and Sam

 How Kaki & Paka Rick got a turn when they always get to see her at home, I don't know.

 Auntie Ro never misses an opportunity to hold a baby.

PLANES, TRAINS OR AUTOMOBILES

Mark and I are so glad that Pat introduced us to the idea of taking the AUTOTRAIN to D.C. for his wedding. 

Flying with children is difficult. (And my babies are well behaved and travel well.) But you have to limit what you pack or pay a lot, you have to lug car seats and rent cars and all of that jazz.

Driving allows you your vehicle and car seats and space for luggage... but you have to drive and the babies are in stuck in car seats for long periods of time.

 But the train was awesome. We handed our car over to the valet, boarded the train and let AMTRACK do the driving, and feed us.  We had a mid size sleeper car. (There were bigger and smaller.) It was quite comfortable for the 4 of us. Even Mark was able to sleep, and he doesn't even sleep well in the motorhome.

Dinner and breakfast were nice, as was the wine and cheese tasting in the lounge car when the train departed from the station. Joey Bogarted one window seat, of course, and Mark took the other one. 

The sacrifices a mother makes!

 Woke up to a pretty Virginia sunrise. (Well, some of us woke up anyways.)

 And pulled into the Virginia station on time, at 9 AM.

 It's a shame they don't have an Auto Train that runs East/West... We would so totally take it to California!

WORLD'S BEST BABYSITTER

Uncle Chris!

(He's also vying for the title of World's Best Brother too.)

SHE'S MY LITTLE ROCK & ROLL

Our little STONES fans. 

(Not like they had a choice.)

GORDITA

Sam is getting just as many "Ah, Gordita!" as she is "Ah que linda".

Now the abuelitas that say this, say both with an equally sweet tone. And I know they mean it as a compliment. And after having to basically force feed Joey, when she was little, I'll take it!

My Sammy girl doesn't skip a meal!

THE WHOLE WORLD SMILES WITH YOU