Day 3

--National Archives: Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, Constitution
--National Sculpture Garden: lunch, cool fountain, bizarre "art" sculptures
--National Air & Space Museum: planes (commercial, military, WWI, record breaking, Amelia Earhart's red, Spirit of St. Louis), rockets, Space Stations, lunar crawlers, Apollo craft, paper airplane contest, Wright Flyer (super cool!)
--Mall: frisbee in the warm rain, completely and insanely memorable!

Day 2

We took our first ride on the Metro. The kids thought it was pretty cool, and it was. We went on a tour of the National Capitol with an intern from Congressman Jason Chaffetz' office. The rotunda was a powerful sight and we stood on the star in the center of the Capitol (and the original center of the city).

Next we went to the Library of Congress. The architecture was beautiful, and we saw a collection from Thomas Jefferson's library.















We spent a few minutes at the Supreme Court.








We walked to Union Station, another cool place.

Day 1

Our plane left at 6:55 a.m. This was the first airplane adventure for them and they loved it! I was fun to watch the kids be responsible for their own luggage, boarding passes, and carry-on stuff. They seemed very grown up. The pilot let the boys sit in the cockpit and explained how some of the instruments work. Griffin said the best thing about the plane ride was the sprite, Zachary liked the roller coaster feeling.


















































We arrived in Baltimore mid-afternoon and enjoyed dinner with my sister, Mindy, and her family. Then we went to the Washington, D.C. temple. It's a very commanding, beautiful temple. We walked on the nature trail and saw deer and then spent a bit of time in the Visitors Center.

first day of kindergarten

Wow, Jane is in kindergarten all day. I miss her. Lincoln misses her. She is loving it. She is in her element. She is following all of the rules, has new crayons, and already has two best friends (and one "sort of" best friend, but only because he goes to church at the same time as her).

first day of school

On the first day of school, the kids got to shake hands with the principal, give Sharky a high-five, and walk in on the red carpet. School is going well, the kids have good teachers, and we're walking to and from school most days. I appreciate the structure of school and the way it helps us to manage our time.

at the drive-in

We realized on the second to last day of summer vacation that we hadn't been to a drive-in. The kids packed up the bean bags, Jer filled the cooler with otter pops, and off we went. We saw Toy Story 3 (fabulous!) and Despicable Me (I understand it was really good, I fell asleep). Now that's a fun tradition!

cowabunga

We had a fantastic day at Cowabunga Bay. and yes, it is as fun as it looks! The lazy river and pool were so comfortably warm that Lincoln fell asleep while we were in the water. There were clever squirt guns on the walks up to the water slides and lots of cool slides. An added surprise bonus was seeing some friends there.

Wheeler Farm

We filled the last couple of weeks before school started with good things. We enjoyed a couple of hours at Wheeler Farm with friends.

Erin and I met in 1997ish and worked together for several years. Erin made Zachary his favorite blankie, we drove to Idaho for Erin & Mike's wedding, and we camped a time or two. For lots of years we spent time together. Our lives got busy and we didn't see much of each other for a long time even though we live close. It was so great to visit and catch up.

I'm grateful to the blogging world that has allowed me to keep up with her sweet little family, and allows me to stay connected with many great people even though we don't see each other or talk. I'm grateful for Erin and for all the good friends in my life who lift me and who impact my life for good.

imagination

sweet