Randoms

Every time a good friend visits, you have a few moments that really make the trip. We saw some incredible things, experienced history firsthand, enjoyed our beautiful country. Those are things we will remember.

But the downtime, the conversations, the giggles and disasters are just as important. I may not remember the exact thing that made me laugh, but I will remember laughing with Jen and the kids over and over. Like when Teagan lost her shoes for the third time at the zoo, or me having to run into the airport because I had to pee so bad, or Jen emptying my dishwasher for the 60th time and making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches over and over and over. Sites define a trip, laughter defines a friendship!

Wegner Family, we love and miss you! Thanks so much for being our friends.

Here are some things I'll remember from this trip...even though I may want to forget them.

Gavin refused to smile for the camera. So I have to post the one picture have of him in the Air and Space Museum even though it's out of focus.

And catching him with a digit stuffed up his nose...well, he's four. I guess we need to remember that too.


The kids probably had as much fun playing in the backyard as they did traipsing about the city. Love Teagan in the helmet holding the "gun." Sorry about the weapon Jen...even if we don't buy 'em, the boys figure out how to build 'em.

And me being a dork. What trip would be complete without that? There were a lot of dorky moments...this just happened to be one that Jen caught on camera.

And then you see the things you don't expect (and I'm not talking about an anti-war rally in front of the White House). Mickey Mouse bushes? Really?

I wish I had taken a picture of Jen hanging through a little opening on the top deck of the ship we sailed on at Mt. Vernon. Kai is a total coin collector, and his awesome mom shimmied her way out over the edge to grab a dime someone had dropped onto the 18-inch wide overhang. He was so excited!

I don't know what was funny, but something was! Maybe it's that we were all covered in mud and the Wegners bags hadn't made it to our house yet?

Mt. Vernon? Maybe? Jen was lucky to get Gavin to look at her!

Cutest little booty-bums! Love it.

We had such an awesome time. Who's coming to visit next?

No Repeats!

I know, I know, you've already seen pictures of the Air and Space Museum three or four times on my blog. But, after 4 p.m. the parking is free. So Jen and I took the kids for one last hurrah. And it was really fun! We ditched the strollers and let the kids run around like maniacs.

They had a ton of fun.

Can you guess the boys' favorite exhibit? Yep, Transformers was a hit. The Udvar-Hazy Center is the backdrop for one scene. The SR-71 Blackbird (which you can't miss) is a Decepticon (that means he's on the bad guys' team). A flat screen TV shows a clip of the plane turning into a transformer. The boys would have stood there and watched it till their eyes fell out of their heads. The "shark" plane was another favorite.

Strangely, the Cherry Blossoms were in full bloom for our second visit to the Museum. Just another good reason that we went!

BEAUTIFUL!

What should you do when you're in the Air Traffic Control tower? Act like a plane of course. Jen and I sat on the floor and watched our kids fly around for a few minutes. They were so happy!

Sorry...she's just so cute.

Her face is hysterical.

Don't worry we didn't leave Gavin out. He and I probably had to pause to have a good heart-to-heart about appropriate behavior in the museum.

Sunday Trip to the Temple

We took the Wegners to the Washington D.C. Temple on Sunday. The weather was incredible and the grounds were beautiful.
Who needs bluebonnets when you have wild daffodils? They grow all over the place!

Not a perfect picture, but I love that she is laughing so hard!

I don't know why I only got the thumbnail size of this picture, but I love Teagan's face! Her hands are full of acorns.

Too cute!

Thumbs up for a great trip to the temple!

Smithsonian Natural History Museum

Gavin hates to have his picture taken, but at least we tried! We are standing inside the dinosaur exhibit at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum.

Laynie loved looking at the live bug exhibit.

And Gav loved holding the caterpillar. He wouldn't touch the cockroach. Good boy!

Kai was a little braver about all the disgusting bugs!

And he loved the turtle. We could hardly pull him away.

The girls favorite part was the "ant tunnel." Can you see the ant window on the left?

We stopped at Famous Daves on our way home. Laynie's favorite part was the Oreo cookies. Can you tell?

Thanks for dinner Jen! I owe you like ten meals.

Not Your Weekend Trip to the Mall

So we were a little early to get the Cherry Blossoms in full bloom, but Jen did get this awesome picture of our trip to the National Mall.

No one was really all that enthused to go...but someday they'll be glad they went. Right?

No. They aren't holding hands. We only make them do that when they cross the street.

One of my favorite pictures of the day. What exactly is Gav looking for in the WWII Monument Fountain? Pennies?

Nothing more honest than this picture. The weather was beautiful. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. See how much the kids enjoyed it? (Gav's nursing a bumped elbow).

Then we crashed on this bench on the way to "President Obama's" house. Jen's cousin, Ariane, lives in Washington D.C. She was an incredible help. We could not have taken the kids as far as we did without her. Thank you Ariane!

Who's Vernon Mom? It's a place, Gav.

I'm finally posting some more pictures from Jen's visit. Here the kids are outside Mt. Vernon. I had to convince Gavin that Mt. Vernon was just a place, not a person. He kept asking, "Then why are we going to see them?" My response: "It was President George Washington's House." He's answer: "See, I knew we were going to see people."

Okay then...
A lot of endangered breeds of farm animals live at Mt. Vernon. Sadly, they don't let you pet them. The kids had fun looking and in some cases bleating at the sheep.

Mt. Vernon is very hilly, and the boys took every opportunity to rest. Even if they'd only walked ten feet.

The coolest picture I've ever taken! This hawk had just launched itself out of its nest. Incredible!

We took a boat tour on the Potomac River. It was awesome and I learned so much (i.e. Did you know that walls of Fort Washington are 25 feet thick at the base and 12 feet at the top?) I won't bore you with all the details, but I loved it!!

Laynie was posing all day. On the water...

On land....

Running like a crazy person...

One quick note: If you are going to a farm don't let your children A) wear khakis and B) wear pants that are too big. You end up with dirty pants that fall down all day.

Mt. Vernon was awesome. I can't wait for my next set of visitors so I can go again!

Story Time in South Riding

After the Air and Space Museum, we decided to rest...at least for a little while. That evening, my community was hosting a storytime. They invited teachers, firefighters, pilots, military members, and of course a dad dressed as Captain America to read to the kids.

It was actually a really fun, well-organized event. But my favorite part of the night was when Laynie walked to the front of the classroom, smiles at the teacher and says, "I pooped my pants!" The teacher smiled politely and said, "Excuse me?" Sure enough, Laynie had loaded her britches and I had to do a quick clean-up.

A few moments later she met the fireman. This time she said, "Do you like my slippers?" He smiled at her and told her they were beautiful. She flirted with him for the rest of the night.

Beasts Take Flight

Gav and Kai loved the Air and Space Museum!
Since Gav has been here a couple of times, he decided to be the tour guide.

Kai and Gav loved the "gun planes." See the awesome tough guy face?

The girls kept each other entertained...neither was terribly enthused about the airplanes. Oh well, can't please everyone!