Thursday morning the weather was beautiful and we woke in hopes of getting started early and heading into downtown DC to start our day of sightseeing. We had a few roadblocks and had to change hotels due to our original hotel being overbooked. After changing hotels and taking the Metro downtown it was already after noon. Once we finally reached our trolley destination we met up with our friends Sarah, and Cooper and Bergie.
We decided to take the Old Town Trolley around DC so that we could see all the sights and not have to worry about transportation. It was a great idea until in the chaos of getting started we realized that we had taken the blue line instead of the green line. Instead of getting right down to seeing the monuments we took a longer route out to the Washington National Cathedral. This picture isn't the best, but it's the only one I've got on my computer!
It turned out to be a good stop and we were all glad that we were able to take a look around. The architecture and stained glass windows at the Cathedral were beautiful. There was a ton of history in the cathedral to enjoy. Riley's favorite part was hearing her voice echo inside the Cathedral. One little known fact. See the circle on the middle window? How tall do you think it is? 6 feet!
After the Cathedral we hopped back on the trolley and stopped in Georgetown for lunch. Georgetown was so cute. The row houses were great and there were a ton of little shops. Unfortunately we didn't stay to do any shopping. We decided to eat lunch and go. Riley decided to sleep and go...
Riley was pooped. Who can blame her...it was a long morning!
After Georgetown, we decided to stop and see the White House, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean War Memorial, and World War II Memorial. This is where Riley's obsession with Abe Lincoln was born! I can't even describe how awesome of an experience seeing these memorials was. Just the meaning behind them leaves me speechless. But, to see and feel the pride in our country and its history that these monuments represent was awe inspiring! I don't know how many times I said "this is so cool" and "I can't wait to bring Riley back here when she's older."
The White House
World War II Memorial
View of the Washington Monument from Lincoln's Memorial.
Some pretty flowers.
The outside of the Lincoln Memorial
So, here is where I'll begin the story of Abe and Riley:
The minute we got into the Lincoln Memorial Riley's eyes were glued. She kept saying "wow!" and in every picture that we have she's turned around looking at him!
She was so sad to leave Abe. This is the look she gave us!
Needless to say, we left Abe and heard the echoes of his name for the next two days. Let's just say that Riley is STILL talking about him. I found the perfect souvenir for her to bring home with her, The Story of Abraham Lincoln! We read this book every night while Riley yells "ABE" and "wow." Not only did Riley love seeing Abe's Memorial, she loved all photos of Abe. So much so that she asks to look at "Abe" every time she sees the camera. Not only does she look at the pictures, but she gives Abe kisses. Kinda weird, I know!
After our day of sightseeing we all headed back to the hotel. The girls decided to head out to find dinner. After a stop and a quick margarita we headed back to the hotel to eat with the kids and the guys. We had fun hanging out at the hotel chatting and watching the kids play!
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