Last week we took a trip down to Washington D.C. We left after church and drove to Hershey, PA. Little Bird had a great time reading books and napping on the drive. But she was very glad to have a hotel to run around in before bed.
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Monday, we visited Hershey's Chocolate World where we took a ride through the fake factory with singing cows. Little Bird wasn't sure what to think, amaze to think, amazed and scared, notice her nervous hands across her chest.
We also got to go in a mini factory setting where we could make our own candy bars by choosing the type of chocolate and inclusions. Then we watched it go down the line.
We took the trolley tour of Hershey with the entertaining tour guides and at that point LB finally fell asleep, totally exhausted.
Nearby were the Indian Echo Caves, so we stopped there next. The different formations are always so amazing. Then there was time for running around the grassy area before it was back in the car for the rest of the drive to DC.
Out like a light.
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Tuesday, we headed to Mt. Vernon. Little Bird loved the bowling green with all the wide open space to run around. While we were standing in line for a tour of the house, she found Bob, an old and friendly dog that she kept going over to pet. LB loves dogs and was probably missing her Sadie and Sylvester.
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Wednesday, we were joined by Judy and Dale as we went to the Mall. Little Bird took her first Metro ride and enjoyed watching all the people.
We started out by the Capitol and slowly made our way around, stopping at several statues along the way. We walked through the outdoor sculpture garden and ate lunch there. Then we headed to the National Archives to see the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights. We stopped by the White House for some pictures and then headed up past the Washington Monument, still off limits since the earthquake. Our final stop before heading back to the hotel was the WWII memorial.
Little Bird did great with all the time in the stroller but took advantage of every possible opportunity to run around and explore.
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Thursday, we headed to the National Zoo. After some delays with the Metro, we finally made it. We didn't get to see everything but we saw a lot--all sorts of birds, leopards, pandas, crocodiles, cheetahs, an octopus, elephants, a sloth bear, snakes, ducks, turtles, etc. We had a lot of fun and LB really liked seeing the different animals.
Sleeping with LB in the same room with us at the hotel was an adjustment. Once we put her in bed, we had to be quite so we wouldn't wake her. That meant reading books or watching something on the ipad with headphones. To help create a barrier, we rigged a sheet up to create a tent so she wouldn't be able to see us if she woke up and so would hopefully go back to sleep. Well, on the 4th night (Thursday), she got up and gave that sheet a tug and down it came, she figured us out.
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Friday was rainy but we headed out anyway. In the morning we went to Arlington Cemetery and watched the changing of the guard and visited Arlington house.
When we first got there we couldn't go to the JFK grave because there was a funeral going on for a senator who had just died. But by the time we returned to the visitor center that part was open again. So, while Dale and Judy went there, we stayed inside and let Little Bird wander around and get some energy out. She was particularly fascinated by the mannequin of the a guard of the tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
After lunch we headed to the Udvar-Hazy Center (Air and Space museum annex). We listened to a tour about some of the planes there. It was cool to see all the planes on display all over the place.
LB once again enjoyed wandering around and liked looking at the planes. She even learned a new skill (see above picture where she pulled herself up onto the railing).
Dinner that night was a crab feast, which the boys quite enjoyed, at the Quarterdeck. They had been looking forward to it the entire week.
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Saturday we packed up to head home. On our way out of town we stopped by the DC temple for some pictures. It seems so huge up close.
About halfway home we stopped at Milton State Park for some running around time for LB and a snack. She did a great job with all that driving. But by the end we had succumbed and given her the ipad to watch Sesame Street for the last while. She was entranced. We had a great trip but it was also nice to be home to our own beds.
