Well, why not?! Travel with kids is always so much fun, and so easy, why not travel to DC with your husband, mother-in-law, and 3 kids aged 4 and under? I must say it WAS a marvelous trip start to finish, and the only thing I wanted to come home for was to cook a meal as we'd eaten out the ENTIRE trip. Here's one of the only pictures of Georgia's face....all nestled & snug in her kangaroo sling. Sebastian & Eloise would have nothing to do with being tucked away like that. They wanted to see all the action. Which isn't to say they aren't snugglers---cause they are for sure---but Georgia takes it to a whole new level. She pretty much spent the entire week in the sling, except for eating, and a few rare appearances now and again. Why DC, you ask? An organization I co-chair an event for (www.strength.org & www.portlandtaste.org) was holding its annual conference, and Dave has family back there we wanted to see. I'd been hearing for years about how wonderful, inspiring, and worthwhile the conference was, and I was not disappointed. We arrived late Wednesday night. Spent a couple nights in Alexandria visiting with Dave's cousin Chad & his family (wife Karin & 6 mos old little girl Lena), and touring the sights of Old Town Alexandria. Friday we headed into the city, staying just steps from the White House at the Capitol Hilton. We took a long walk around the White House, WWII Memorial, Vietnam Memorial, reflecting pool, Washington Monument, and Lincoln Memorial. Georgia and I spent the better part of Saturday and Sunday in seminars, luncheons, cocktail receptions, award dinners and service days. Georgia was a champ and except for a 20 minute gassy interlude of screaming, was a silent appendage in the sling for all my seminars. Sebastian, Eloise, Oma & Dave hit the sights those two days, taking in the Air & Space museum, the National Gallery, a carrousel, Jefferson Memorial, and other sights I am certainly forgetting right now. Monday Oma toured the Library of Congress, and Dave scored us some tickets to go up to the top of the Washington Monument. We met Dave's aunt (Oma's sister) Margie at the Museum of Natural History, and that evening Dave, Georgia & I managed to sneak out to the Taste of the Nation DC event. Fabulous food and a marvelous setting at Union Station. They even had a mixologist giving lessons in making your own drink....the name of which completely escapes me now, but involved vodka, fresh limes & berries, crushed ice and simple syrup. YU-UM. I'm not much of a drinker anymore (no, really!) but that was tasty! Tuesday we did a quick tour of the National Geographic Whale exhibit, then off to Mt Vernon, the best place in DC for 4 year olds. Dinner with Margie, then back to the hotel to rest up for our early flight home. Yah vacation!! The pics you see here are Georgia in her sling, Dave with Sebastian & Eloise at the Ramsey House in Alexandria, Dave with Lena, Dave & Chad with more kids, and the Fleschner family outside the White House. LOOK AT THE CAMERA! You don't even have to smile just LOOK HERE! Forget it...
