Washington DC ~ Sights

I know, it's about time right?!?

I have SO many photos from DC, so I decided to break it up into two posts.  This one is mostly sightseeing and the next will be the marathon and a few more last minute sights.

Two days before we hit the road my mom flew in to join us on this little adventure.  And let me just say, I could NOT imagine doing this without her.  The city was PACKED that weekend and it was a huge blessing to have her helping hands along.  Thank you mom you were a life saver!!  Anyways, on the road my mom had the very comfortable seat in between the two car seats.

Over all, it was an easy 6hr drive.  The kiddos were busy playing.....

and sleeping.....

yes, that would be grandma passed out ON Gavin, who was equally passed out in his car seat.

We checked into our hotel room Friday afternoon and settled in for the evening.  Bright and early Saturday morning we all got up and out the door and made it to the nearest metro stop by about 9:00am.  I thought that was pretty good for 3 adults and 2 kiddos sharing one bathroom, BUT as I mentioned above the city was crazy packed this weekend.  Not only was the Marine Corps Marathon going on the next day with 30,000 runners + all their spectators........on this day, John Stewart from The Daily Show was hosting the (in my opinion, very annoying) Rally to Restore Sanity on The Mall.  We had NO IDEA this was going on, so when we showed up at the metro we were pretty surprised to see the crowds.  We missed the first train because we were just not prepared.  After it passed we quickly folded up the stroller, plopped Gavin in my beloved ERGOCarrier, plastered Kayla to our leg, and squeezed into the next train.  We were about 6 stops the from the city center and believe it or not, even more people managed to worm their way in after these pictures were taken! 

This all was during Gavin's usual morning nap time and this little guy was OUT COLD snuggled up next to me :)

We finally made it out of the sardine can and into the crisp fresh air.  First stop....the White House of course!  And a view of the Washington Monument.

Then it was off to the main attraction for the day.........

The Smithsonian Natural History Museum.

We knew time was limited and we'd only be able to see one museum and a few monuments so we picked the Natural History Museum because (a little known fact) Kayla loves dinosaurs.  I really can't tell you why......but she just does for some reason.  SO, we knew she would LOVE seeing the life size dinosaur fossils up close and personal.  We made our way to the dinosaur room.....and I SOOOOO wish I had the video running because as soon as we walked in Kayla was wide eyed and exclaimed over and over again 'oh my goodness!' as she ran from exhibit to exhibit.  It was such a precious reaction that none us were expecting.

Another very exciting exhibit at the museum was the live butterflies.

 

We grabbed a quick bite to eat at the museum cafe and then decided to split up.  Garrett needed to rest up for his big run the next day and the kids were ready for a nap.  Since this was my moms first time in DC I wanted to take her around to a few more sights.  Upon leaving the museum this was the unwelcoming reality greeting us thanks to that stinkin' rally!

Time was still limited because we had to make it back to the hotel in time for an early dinner put on by St. Jude for the runners and their fam.  Mom and I pushed our way through the crowds and completed probably the fastest walking tour ever from the museum down to the Lincoln Memorial.  We passed through the World War II Memorial,

Reflection Pool

Vietnam Memorial

Lincoln Memorial

When we finally made it to Lincoln we were seriously pressed for time and the nearest metro station was several miles away!  So we hoped into a taxi bike and away we went!

Despite the crowds, it was a great day full of memories!