Washington DC - Day 2

We kicked off Day 2 on the National Mall.

We had a nice picnic lunch under the trees (it was still 96F!).

Elsie had a lot of fun with Aunt Becky feeding the birds her hot dog bun. This mostly meant that Elsie chased the birds as she ate the bread!

Elsie took a nice nap as we walked down to the Lincoln Memorial.

Washington DC - Day 1

We took a great vacation out east for the end of the summer. We spent the first leg of the trip in DC visiting Aunt Becky and Brad. J-Ma and Papa Pete came down, too, for a few tourist activities.

First stop was the Air and Space museum. It hasn't changed one bit since my last visit 15 years ago! Elsie was in a particularly photogenic mood on the second floor overlooking all of the airplanes.

Family photo in front of the Hubble Telescope.

Elsie was very accommodating - she took her naps in the stroller (even in 96F weather!!). Here is Elsie and Papa Pete enjoying the fountain in the sculpture garden.

One of our favorite sculptures - a large metal tree!

At the Museum of American History, they had a fun room for kids exploration in the Science and Technology wing. We also saw a great exhibit of transportation, Julia Child's kitchen, and the first ladies' dresses.

At the exit, we each took a photo with something fun. Jack chose C3PO, and I chose the old field hockey stick.

We took a nice walk to the Washington Monument. Elsie kept her trusty friends, Elmo and the hat, nearby during most of the day.

We posed for a few pictures at the Washington Monument overlooking the reflecting pool and the Lincoln Memorial. J-Ma and I were dressed as twins! Can you figure out who is who?

We left DC for Becky's house at 5:00. Oops. All of the commuters were headed home for the day, and there was a train delay. We were really packed in, and Elsie did not enjoy the train ride as much as we had hoped.

Aunt Becky mad a delicious birthday dinner and cake for me! Happy Birthday to me!

Brookfield Zoo

We went to the Brookfield Zoo (nice and early to beat the heat and the crowds!) recently. We saw some butterflies. When Elsie was younger, we used to do "flutter flutter" on her cheek when we read about butterflies. She has remembered this "sign" and does it every time she sees a butterfly. In the picture below, she is doing "flutter flutter".
Then the butterfly flew away and Elsie motioned "Where did he go?".

We saw the dolphin show. Elsie was not impressed.

In the children's part of the zoo, we got to pet some goats. This was fun and really gross at the same time. Elsie kept going back to the basket to get different colored brushes for the goats.

We also took a trip to the Shedd Aquarium this summer, but forgot the camera. Elsie really loved the aquarium, especially the bottom floor, which is designed just for kids. I highly recommend it - and get there early!! They open around 8:30, and most of the crowds don't come until noon.

Crosley Zoo again

This time during our visit, we were able to feed the ducks! Clearly the highlight of our visit for both Jack and Elsie. Instead of saying "quack quack," Elsie did her best to imitate the ducks' real sound, ending up with something between a cough and a grunt.

They had a snake out for petting, and Elsie took advantage of this opportunity. She stuck out her tongue and wiggled it back and forth just like the snake!

A little off topic, but I wanted to show you all my fabulous garage sale find for the season. All of these tents and tunnels for only $5! And the best part is that they all fold up into a small bag for storage!!! I don't have to find a large place to store them!

Girls only

Jack was recently gone for a full week for work. So, it was just the girls at home!! Aunt Candice came for a quick visit as she was driving from Atlanta to Seattle (her new home).

One evening as I was cleaning up from dinner, it was suspiciously quiet... Elsie was in the mud room trying to put on my shoes. I gave her a little help and she loudly walked all the way around the house with my shoes on! So cute!