(April): Stacie's visit

It's fun when people come to visit and I get to see some familiar sights, but a little different each time - maybe a different time of year, or with/without kids, or just a different experience.  My old roomate, Stacie came to visit me this past April, and we had so much fun together.  We were able to go into the city each day thanks to cooperative kids when they came with us, some help from friends, and Mike's work-from-home days (have I mentioned how much I LOVE these?  I can leave Isaac with Mike during his nap time so I can run errands, volunteer at the school - or venture into the city :) - and it doesn't interfere with Mike's work!!)

Just a pretty view of the capitol building.  By car, this is about 30 minutes from my house  - without traffic, and let's face it, there's always traffic here!.  Regardless...pretty cool, right?!?

We had to see Dorothy's slippers at the American History Museum

Somehow I've missed this on our previous visits.  One of the sunstone's from the original Nauvoo temple.  By the way, on a previous excursion with the kids, we found a painting of Joseph Smith at the Portrait Gallery!

National Archives Building.  Isn't it a pretty building?  We couldn't take pictures, but we were able to see the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.  I hadn't been inside of here yet, so seeing those original documents was really neat!

Stacie and I went to the temple. The tulips out front were gorgeous!

We met another roomate of ours in Alexandria for lunch one day.  This is another beautiful part of the city

Stacie and I at the Jefferson memorial

National Cathedral

We stopped for a bathroom break at a chocolate shop in Georgetown.  And when you stop to use someone's restroom, it's only appropriate to buy some chocolate from them!  They were so pretty, it was hard to eat them!  Ok, well not tooo hard!

Stacie, at Sprinkles.  This is a store owned by one of the judges on Cupcake Wars.  I don't follow the show, but I do get excited eating cupcakes at places that are somewhat notorious! :)

The Old Stone House.  The oldest standing house in DC, which dates back to Pre-revolutionary times

Stacie and I in the garden behind The Old Stone House

And, the infamous Georgetown Cupcake

At the White House

As Stacie and I were walking around the block from the front of the White House to the back, we were stopped by a policeman.  We realized we were at the corner of the entrance for White House official staff parking, and policemen were stopping traffic in all directions.  I realized that this would be someone important, so told Stacie to get out her camera - quick!  We were right, and just a few seconds later a motorcade led by 2 police cars, 2 limousines, and several SUVs sped right past us.  We looked inside one of the limos and could vaguely see President Obama in the backseat.  Pretty cool!!  And definitely a first since I've lived here.  

I came home bragging and excited about seeing the President, and just a few weeks later Mike's team got a phone call from Mr. President himself to thank them for their work on a Health Care initiative they've been working on.  My first thought was "great networking skills honey!!  Let's see what kind of connections he's got and if they can get us anywhere!" :)  But really, it's just kind of a boost to get a thank you from the President of the United States on your work.  It kinda makes you feel like all these years of schooling are finally paying off a little bit ;)  Pretty exciting for Mike

Anyway, back to our sightseeing.  After calming down after seeing that motorcade drive by, we walked around to the back of the White House, otherwise known as the South Lawn

Just another cool view of the Capitol

Our other roomate, Misty, met us in DC for the day with her two kids.  Hard to believe that it was over 10 years ago that we all lived together!  We saw the monuments and memorials in the city the rest of the day

Stacie got this great picture at the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial

Our crew at the Lincoln Memorial

I've actually never been up to the steps where Martin Luther King stood when he gave his "I Have a Dream" speech.  Not sure why I haven't looked for it before (maybe because I always have a stroller?), but here is the little inscription that marks the spot, although it's barely legible.

 

A good shot of the Korean Veteran's Memorial