This year we took a trip to Washington D.C. for the 4th of July. James and Kathryn had the idea and asked us to come along. Since we are so close to D.C. we thought why not? It's not every day you get to see fireworks and celebrate our freedoms from the country's capital.
We had a wonderful surprise of seeing Mary as well. Love spending time with our Michigan peeps. We visited Arlington Cemetary the afternoon of the 3rd.
Gavin and Xavier watching the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Both of them were quiet for the entire thing!!
Look at these beautiful and handsome faces! They were such great company.
The 4th began with a ride on the Subway.
Followed by a seat to watch the Parade.
It was unbelievably hot and humid on the 4th (I think it was over 100 degrees with the humidity) We were seeking shade and fluids like nobody's business. The last thing I wanted was my precious little guys getting dehydrated. The biggest kicker was when we bought 2 water bottles and 2 small Gatorade drinks for $14. YOWZAH! They sure were milking the weather situation like no other.
We left the parade early to get out of the heat and into the air conditioning for a bit at the Natural History Museum. Xavier was practically bouncing off the walls in excitement over all the dinosaurs. I felt like he was pulling my arm and running through the museum from one dinosaur to the next. There was also an entire floor with ocean life. Double win for X-man!
We left the parade early to get out of the heat and into the air conditioning for a bit at the Natural History Museum. Xavier was practically bouncing off the walls in excitement over all the dinosaurs. I felt like he was pulling my arm and running through the museum from one dinosaur to the next. There was also an entire floor with ocean life. Double win for X-man!
Next it was out in the heat to walk the National Mall.
First we stopped at the Washington Monument.
The last time we came here Gavin was in my belly still.
Pit stop- enjoying our fabulous red, white, and blue popsicles! Refreshing!
We didn't stop sweating the entire day. But we did get a little relief putting our feet in the fountain area of the WWII Memorial. Hey, everyone was doing it!
The boys found a sprinkler and started running through it. So many laughs and giggles we couldn't resist letting them get soaked from head to toe.
Lincoln Memorial
Miss Kathryn was so awesome to listen to Xavier talk and talk and talk and talk. Isn't her dress awesome? She made it herself. Patriotic, stylish, and fitting for the occasion. Love this girl.
The best fireworks show around! The fireworks were amazing. I realized as we were watching the fireworks that Xavier has seen fireworks in 4 different states during his 5 years of life. (Michigan, California, Pennsylvania, and even though D.C. isn't in a specific state it's still a different place from all the others) Gavin fell asleep half way through the show and slept the entire way home. (I guess 12 hours in hot hot heat and running around all day will do that to you) It took us a while to walk through the crowd of thousands of people and get to the subway. Luckily we had asked a Subway attendant the day before where he recommended getting on the Subway after the firework show. He gave us the best advice and we avoided the crazy huge line of people at the main Subway entrance. We didn't have to wait in line for hours, we got on and all of us got seats right away. Thank you subway attendant!!!
It was especially neat to visit all the war memorials on the day we celebrate our independance. It definitely hits closer to home when you visually see how many people have sacrificed their lives to keep our country the Land of the Free. We are so lucky to live in this country.
These three awesome people came back to Pennsylvania with us, so we felt it called for a visit to the Jersey Shore. Point Pleasant, New Jersey.
Beach Beau and Babes
Gavin and his silly sense of humor. He makes me laugh! He's ready to snorkel.
TIm and James turned Gavin into a cow- one of his favorite animals.
Then they turned Xavier into an Octopus.
Mary and the G-man.
I couldn't help but snap a shot of Gavin sleeping. I just love the way his hands are clasped together.
After playing in the waves and on the sand all day we walked the boardwalk for a little while. Xavier rode in the boats and
Whacked a few moles.
He was so excited to win this stuffed dolphin. He named it Stitches.
I've decided that I could totally retire from life and become a beach bum. Who's with me?
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