Typical Tourists

Today we drove to Washington DC to tour the many national monuments. Even though we had done this before, this time the kids were older and could appreciate their meaning a bit more.

The plan was to head downtown early and get tickets to go up in the Washington Monument. Well, we weren't early enough. By the time we arrived, there was a sign posted saying that no more tickets were available. Bummer. So we had to settle for a few pictures outside instead.

At the Lincoln Monument with the Washington Monument in the background."The Wall" at the Vietnam War Memorial. This wall has the names of all the soldiers who gave their lives for our country during the Vietnam War. 58,195 names. Incredible. And very sad.

One of the newest national monuments (for me, anyway) was the World War II Memorial.

I especially love this picture of Jonathan at the World War II Memorial with the Lincoln Monument in the background.

The Korean War Memorial.

One of my favorite monuments was the FDR Memorial. It was interesting to walk through the four outdoor "rooms" that represented his four terms as president. Of course, the kids had to stand in the breadline for a picture.

We sure did a lot of walking today. Thank goodness it was such a beautiful day today. After seeing the monuments, we took a lunch break and ate our picnic in the back of Dad's truck. Next, we went to Arlington Cemetery and saw the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknown soldier. I still can't believe that they have someone posted there 24 hours a day, 365 days a year!

After this, Sammy had to go to the bathroom, so she and Christy headed to the visitor's center while Dad, Jonathan and I walked over to see the Kennedy gravesites. When we were done, we called Christy to see where she and Sammy were. She said they were waiting for us at the truck. Sure enough, when we got to the parking garage, they were sitting in the back of the truck eating snacks and having what looked like a fun little party together. No wonder Christy was so willing to take Sammy to the bathroom! (Just kidding.)