Category: Travel

Hello!

How is your week going? I didn’t mean to take a short blogging break, but last weekend was busy from beginning until end, and Monday night the kids had a track meet. So, I just couldn’t find the time to write anything.

Anyway, I’ve shared parts one and two of our spring break trip to Washington, DC, and today I’m sharing the final part.

Wednesday:

Wednesday was the rainiest day of our time in Washington, DC, but we still had things to see, so we didn’t let that stop us.

When we were ready in the morning, it wasn’t raining, so we decided to get going.

We stopped in the hotel lobby for a quick Starbucks breakfast before walking to the Metro.

We were “pros” at Metro riding by this point 🙂

As soon as we exited the Metro and went up the stairs, we were met with a cold rain. The kids pooled together $8 cash to buy an umbrella from a guy selling them by the Metro.

(FYI – We’d brought a golf umbrella, but I’m not sure why Travis continued to leave it at the hotel!)

We headed straight to the…

…World War II memorial.

It was a really pretty memorial, and we took our time walking around it.

When I went to DC with my mom and brother in 2004, there was a kiosk where you could look up WW2 soldiers. I tried to find it again, but…it is twenty years later and 2024, so now, there was a QR code to scan that takes you to the website registry.

I looked up my dad’s uncles and showed their pictures to the kids. They thought that was really neat.

The cold rain was more than a mist at this point, but we were close to the cherry blossoms at the Jefferson Memorial.

Even though it was an overcast and rainy day, we were glad they were still in bloom.

The Jefferson Memorial in the distance:

Hadley took this pic:

…and this one…influencer in the wild 😆

Then, we started our walk to the American History Museum…and it was BeReal time, and this was Hadley’s post for the day. She sent me the silly selfie.

We all enjoyed a couple of hours in the American History Museum.

I loved the First Ladies exhibit…

…with the White House China. Then, we learned about the different wars and the Medal of Honor.

We spotted Dorothy’s ruby red slippers…

…and the Rockford Peaches! I love the movie A League of Their Own.

Travis checked out the beer display.

Hadley played Prince’s guitar, and we saw Archie Bunker’s chair and all about Micky Mouse Clubhouse.

Of course, Hayden loved seeing Muhammad Ali’s robe and Michael Jordan’s jersey.

The Star Spangled Banner exhibit was neat, and we were in awe of the original flag (but no pictures allowed in the exhibit)

Once we wrapped up at the museum, I’d hoped we could go to the National Archives, but it was still raining, and everyone was hungry. We still had Georgetown University on our list, so we rode the Metro…

…back to our hotel because the kids knew there was a Chipolte next door. At first, Travis and I tried to convince them to try somewhere new, but honestly, they’d been troopers, and it was raining pretty hard…and Chipotle makes everyone happy.

After we ate, we headed to the hotel to get our car, and we drove over to Georgetown University…

…because of course Hadley’s souvenir was a hooded sweatshirt. Hayden got a t-shirt.

We didn’t see much of the campus, but it looked pretty!

We went back to the hotel for a couple of hours to warm up, shower, and rest.

Travis and Hayden had big plans to go to the Wizards vs Lakers NBA game, so they left around 6:00 to ride the Metro there.

Hadley and I left about 6:30, and drove back to Georgetown to meet friends at Founding Fathers Fishers & Bakers.

Our good friends (Hadley’s bestie) were also in DC for spring break, so we made plans to meet up with them while Travis and Hayden were at the game.

Hadley had salmon (her fave) which was the special, and I had a Caesar salad.

Travis sent me this pic to tell me they’d made it:

…but Hayden worked his way closer to the action. haha

After dinner, the girls wanted ice cream, (of course they did!), so we walked to a nearby place.

Then, we drove back to our hotel around 9:30, and Hadley took this pic out our window:

We started to tidy up and pack and Travis and Hayden got back a little after 10.

Thursday:

Well, we had big plans for Thursday before we left, but the only real thing we accomplished was that Hadley was able to get an acai bowl from the nearby place she’d been eyeing since we got there!

Our plan was to go to Arlington Cemetery before heading home, but when we got there, there was a line a mile(s!) long. We parked, got out, and contemplated waiting, but we would have been in line for hours. I’m not sure if it was the fact that it was spring break or if because the weather was finally beautiful…or if that’s normal, but I was bummed we couldn’t make that happen.

We stopped in Charlottesville for lunch, but it was blustery and raining there, so we skipped Monticello (again!…I knew that would happen). We ended up driving through snow in West Virginia which was so crazy.

We got home around 9:00, and the next day was pretty cold and dreary at home. That gave us time to sleep in, do laundry, unpack, and be lazy.

Overall, it was a really great trip, and I’m so glad we made it happen. I was impressed with DC and how clean it was and how safe we felt there.

I do wish we’d planned a little better on a few things. I knew we’d need to get Holocaust and Air and Space tickets in advance, but I wasn’t really on top of that. So, if we ever get back there, we’d like to prioritize those two things and see Arlington Cemetery. Somehow, we missed the Vietnam Memorial, and I wished we’d seen that as well.

Anyway, I think the kids really enjoyed it, and will have great memories of our time in DC. Let me know if you have any questions about our trip.

Hello! I can’t believe it’s already Thursday. We’ve had really dreary weather which has made the early alarms feel even earlier!

Anyway, I’m picking up where I left off with Part 1 of our spring break in Washington, DC.

We were a bit late seeing about a tour, but through a contact of Trav’s she helped us get a private tour appointment given by an aide to one of the Virginia representatives.

We met him at his office in one of the other buildings.

Then, he got us passes to walk to the Capitol. We walked through the underground tunnels like the representatives do to get to the Capitol building. He told us that high school students can submit artwork to their representative, and then if chosen, their work hangs in the tunnel for a year.

I stopped and took a pic of the Kentucky students’ selected artwork:

Once we got to the Capitol, we traded in our tunnel passes for passes for the Capitol tour. Our guide was really good, and we learned a lot about him, and he asked us a lot of questions about Kentucky.

Some of our favorite pit-stops on the tour included learning about The Statue of Freedom, Abraham Lincoln, and the center point of DC.

The ceiling of the Capitol Rotunda was stunning.

The Rotunda included famous paintings and statues – Washington, Reagan, the Pioneers for Women’s Suffrage, and Henry Clay.

The Old Supreme Court Chamber (1810-1860) was really interesting…

…as was the Old Senate Chamber (1810-859)

Our tour lasted about an hour, and the last stop was at the 9/11 Memorial.

After we left our tour guide, we had access to the House of Representatives chamber of the Capitol. No phones or smart watches were allowed, but it was really interesting to see.

Once we left the Capitol Building,there was just a bit of light rain, so we walked around the National Mall since we’d only seen it at night.

A nice Duke fan took our photo and then gave Travis condolences on UK losing in the first round of the tournament…since Trav was wearing a UK zip up. haha

Hayden had seen his cousin “touch” the Washington Monument, so he wanted to do the same…which meant Hadley wanted to do that as well.

We planned to walk to White House but the rain picked up so we got a snack at the art gallery and then headed to the Natural History Museum.

We were there about an hour and a half. It was nice that the museums were free because we saw as much as we could, but also didn’t feel like we had to see everything. It was kind of crowded, but it wasn’t too bad. Hayden and I like museums a bit more than Trav and Hadley, but they enjoyed themselves too.

When we left, the weather was better, so we continued our walk to the White House.

My mom had sent me this pic of my brother and me at the White House in 2004.

This is what that same spot looks like now:

We’d spotted a Metro stop, and the kids were tired at this point. Well, so was I…haha…but I assumed we’d at least be able to see something on the other side of the White House. It didn’t take long, and we made it to:

…and ta da….

We got a couple of photos.

…for memory’s sake, of course.

The White House was pretty neat to see in person. The kids thought it was cool.

As we walked toward the Metro, we looked back, and the flowers were pretty even on the overcast day.

We made our way to the Metro stop.

Once back at our hotel, we relaxed for about an hour. Then, we headed to Georgetown. We went to the Metro station by our hotel, and the employee said the bus right outside makes stops in Georgetown.

So, we rode the city bus a short drive across the river, and walked to our restaurant for dinner.

We gave il Canale a 10/10. The atmosphere was great, and the food was delicious.

Then, we walked a few blocks to Georgetown Cupcake. I was excited to go there because I watched every episode of DC Cupcakes back in the day!

So many choices!

I settled on Lavender Early Grey, and it was so good.

At this point, it was probably 8:30 or so, and we were tired. Rather than figure out the bus situation, we got an Uber back to the hotel.

While we waited for the Uber, we saw our friends (Hadley’s bestie and fam) who were also in DC for spring break.

Once we were back at the hotel, the kids went back to the room, and Travis and I had a drink at the hotel bar.

It was an earlier bedtime for all…we were tired! I walked over 18,000 steps that day…and the kids and Trav had more.

I guess I will have one more post to wrap up our trip, and I will share that next week.

Hello!

Well, all good things must come to an end. It’s off to school we go today with around thirty school days left in the year.

Before too much time passes, I want to start recapping our spring break trip to Washington, DC last week.

We are the worst at planning spring break trips. Honestly, as a teacher, I’m tired by the time spring break rolls around. Since the kids started elementary school, we’ve just made it a point to go somewhere nearby for a few days. It is nice to have the family time, but it’s also nice to be home and do things that we don’t normally have time to do.

Anyway, for once, we kind of did plan a spring break trip in advance. A few schools around here take 8th grade trips to DC, and while I knew that wouldn’t be the case for my kids at their school, I always “earmarked” the idea of going to DC during their 8th grade year. I figured it would be something they’d remember for a while and are old enough to appreciate it.

Thanks to a few friends who have been in the past year, we had an idea of what to see and do in a few days in DC.

Anyway, here’s a recap of the beginning of our trip.

Charlottesville, VA

Sunday:

Trav’s aunt wasn’t hosting Easter this year, so we decided to start the drive to DC after church on Easter Sunday.

We left around 1:30 and drove the six hours to Charlottesville, VA.

Our hotel was in a cute part of town…and I immediately spotted a Trader Joe’s, so I knew I’d like the area. haha

Anyway, before we even checked into the hotel, we saw Torchy’s Tacos which looked like it would hit the spot. So, we had dinner there and then went to the hotel to check in and settle in for the night.

Monday:

Monday morning, Trav and the kids got up early for a track workout. Travis had planned ahead and found a high school track for the workout.

Once they were back, Travis hit the treadmill in the gym, and the kids and I hit up the hotel breakfast! I knew it was our only free hotel breakfast, so I told the kids to eat up! haha

Then, we packed up the car and headed to UVA’s campus. We love a college campus, and of course, they wanted to check out the track.

The pic doesn’t do it justice, but it was a nice facility.

We then drove around campus a bit, and spotted the football stadium. It was neat that the stadium was right in the middle of campus.

Then, we checked out the Rotunda which was really pretty.

Multiple people had suggested Citizen Burger for lunch, and it hit the spot!

We’d planned on going to Jefferson’s house, Monticello, while in Charlottesville, but when we left lunch, it was raining pretty hard. We discussed catching it on the way back through on Thursday (which I was afraid wouldn’t happen), but it made sense to start the two hour drive to DC.

Washington, DC

We arrived at our hotel in Arlington, VA after a couple of hours and a pretty easy drive.

We stayed at the Hyatt Centric Arlington, and it ended up being a nice hotel in a great location.

From our room, through the buildings, you could see the Potomac River and Georgetown across the way.

We had about an hour to get settled and get our bearings.

We took an Uber for a quick dinner at DC’s Union Market. This was a cool place with foods from all around the world. We had less than a half hour to eat because we needed to get to our tour, so we just got slices of pizza from Parachute Pizza, and the kids got a cookie for dessert too.

I have a feeling Travis thought this was near Union Station where we needed to go for our tour pickup because when our first Uber driver mentioned it being a couple miles away, we realized we needed to eat quickly.

Anyway, we took a second Uber to Union Station to board one of those open air buses for the tour.

Numerous people suggested a nighttime tour of the monuments, and I’m so glad we did that first. We were able to see so much on our first night, but we also were able to get oriented on where everything was in the city.

It was a chilly evening, but we mostly stayed warm. We wouldn’t have had very good views if the plastic windows were rolled down.

Our tour guide, Jason, was really good. He was funny and of course shared the history and lots of facts (and dad jokes!)

Capitol Building:

Supreme Court:

The National Mall and Washington Monument

There were three stops on this tour. Our first stop was at the Iwo Jima Memorial. It was a powerful sight to see. We were here about fifteen minutes before getting back on the bus.

We drove past other sights and then our second stop was at the Lincoln Memorial part of the mall. Before going to see Lincoln, we checked out the Reflecting Pool and the Washington Monument all lit up.

Hadley is great at getting a family selfie!

There were quite a few people there, but we were able to get some pics of Abraham Lincoln…

…as well as Abe with the kids and a family pic with him too.

I’d forgotten to get a pic of the entire monument, but Hadley saved the day.

View from Lincoln Memorial looking at the Washington Monument.

After thirty minutes, we got back on the bus, and Jason drove us to our final stop: the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial.

It was so pretty with the trees…

…and the monument was massive.

We were able to see the Thomas Jefferson Memorial lit up in the distance.

The bus driver mentioned that if we let him know ahead of time, he would drop people off at their hotel if it was on the way. Trav talked with him about a good hotel to catch an Uber, and he suggested the JW Marriott. It meant a shorter Uber ride than if we left from Union Station.

He dropped us off and we hung out in the JW Marriott hotel until our Uber driver picked us up. It was a coincidence, but our driver was the same one that picked us up at our hotel to go to dinner.

It was about 10:15, but we were a bit hungry, so we ate at a bar near our hotel. It wasn’t crowded, the women’s final 4 games were on, and we had a few appetizers before going to bed around 11.

Tuesday:

Needless to say, we were tired, so we slept in a bit. Travis always gets up early, so when we woke up around 8:45, he’d already figured out the Metro system and got us each a card to ride.

The Metro was right outside our hotel lobby, so that was very convenient.

The escalator down to the trains was a sight to see. I feel like we were on it for a couple of minutes.

The kids had fun looking at the maps. I swear riding the Metro a few times was one of the highlights of the trip.

Travis had planned ahead, and a few people had suggested Ted’s Bulletin for their homemade Ted’s tart, similar to a Poptart. Once we got off the Metro, we walked a few blocks to one of the Ted’s Bulletin locations.

Our breakfast was delish! Hadley got the s’mores tart, and Travis got a big breakfast with the cherry tart on the side. I had a bite of both, and they were both really good…but the cherry was delish!

I ordered avocado toast, and it was amazing. Hayden enjoyed his biscuits and gravy.

Then, we walked a bit to the Capitol Building for our scheduled tour.

I was worried about the weather for our few days in DC because it looked like a good chance of rain the entire time. On Tuesday morning, it was mostly overcast but no rain. We arrived at the Capitol Building early, so we checked out…

The Library of Congress and…

…the Supreme Court (in the daylight)

…before meeting our tour guide.

An aide for one of the Virginia reps gave us our tour, and I will pick up there when I get to Part 2 of DC.

Have you been to DC? What was your favorite thing that you saw?