D.C. - Day 1

Jason and I visited Washington, D.C. for our 10 year anniversary that we will be celebrating this August. We were so excited to get away together and visit the city of D.C. My parents are THE BEST!!!! They kept the kids for us for a week last year when we went on our cruise and they offered to keep the kids for us this year so that we could get away together. I am so appreciative for all that my parents do for our family.

We woke up around 3:30am on Wednesday and rode with my dad to the airport on his way to work. We flew out of Nashville into Baltimore, hopped a bus over to the train station, and from there caught a train over to Union Station. Union Station was absolutely gorgeous and we were able to grab a quick bite to eat. I don't think that I have ever been in a place where there was such a wide array of international food. Out of all the different choices, Jason and I chose Johnny Rockets.

Union Station

After eating lunch, we decided to go check in at our hotel. We hopped on the metro and I quickly found out that my metro card wasn't working right. Apparently if you put your metro card next to your cell phone, you will demagnetize it. After a couple of different stops and talking with a few metro workers, I got a new card and we finally got off at our stop for the hotel. Our hotel picked us up in their shuttle and took us to our hotel.

We were so excited to be in D.C.! We set off to see a few of the sights that very first night.

A church near George Washington University

This was our first glimpse of the Washington Monument near George Washington University.

On our walk down to the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial, we found (and heard) this Momma duck and 5 of her ducklings. One of the little ducklings was lost from the rest of the pack and he was actually heading toward the street. He stumbled off the sidewalk onto the side of the road before the wind from a passing car actually knocked him down! Luckily, Jason was able to run over and scoop him up before he wandered farther out into the road. Jason took him to a grassy area and he took off calling (quacking) for his Momma! She came running to find him with all her little ducklings waddling along behind her - it was hilarious! Thankfully, they had a little family reunion right there and we were able to go on our way knowing that the Duck family was together again!

The Momma duck and all 6 of her ducklings
Joshua and Abby Kate love hearing us tell the story of the ducks that we met in Washington!

Jason at the Washington Monument

While at the Washington Monument taking pictures, we looked over and saw the White House!!!

The Lincoln Memorial

This is taken from the spot on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial where Martin Luther King Jr. stood when he delivered his "I Have A Dream" speech.

The Lincoln Memorial

After visiting the Lincoln Memorial, we made our way over to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. I didn't take any pictures that first night because the sun was long gone. As you may already know, the Memorial is made up of two black granite walls that list the names of all the soldiers either killed in action or missing in action at the time the memorial was built. We read that the memorial designer purposefully shaped it as a "V" so that as people walked through it, they would increasingly become aware of the sheer number of servicemen who lost their lives during the Vietnam War. It was really powerful to see the number of names etched on these walls. I'll post some pictures of the Vietnam War Memorial later in the week.