Day 40: Archives, Ford's Theater, White House, Smithsonian Museum of American History, The National Mall at Night
We were so thankful to be able to stay with our friends, the Parals in Fairfax, VA. Kristen and I grew up together and it was a blast getting to reconnect. Our kids had an amazing time together too, so it was so hard to say goodbye!
We started the day at the National Archives where we saw originals of the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, and The Bill of Rights. It was incredible. Bummer was, no pictures allowed! After the archives, we walked to Ford's Theater. Learning and seeing Lincoln sites has been a surreal experience. I keep mulling over in my mind how our nation would have been different if Lincoln had survived and his goal for after the war, had been achieved. The picture on the right is the home where Lincoln died, after being shot at Ford's Theater across the street.
John Wilkes Booth's gun and the theater box where President Lincoln and his wife sat.
This was a beautiful book display. All the books are about Lincoln. (although, they are not real books, but made of metal for the display)
We then walked over to the White House. I wish you could get closer!
The Blair House, where Robert E. Lee was offered command of the army from Lincoln.
This fountain in front of the White House was a welcome relief, and probably Joey's highlight of the day.
We were so hot and tired at this point that our goals shifted to the necessity for air conditioning. We ended up at the Smithsonian American History Museum. We stayed till it closed, but didn't see everything. Bekah loved the display of First Lady gowns, and it was amazing to see Lincoln's top hat.
We were going to walk the mall and see the monuments, but it was too hot. So we ended up going to check in to where we were staying in Roslynn, feeding the kids popcorn for dinner, and then headed back in time for dusk. MUCH better idea! This was one of my favorite things to do. It was beautiful at night, and SO many people had the same idea! We later went grocery shopping and fed the kids ice cream for the second dinner.
Korean War Memorial
WWII Memorial with the Washington Monument in the background. The kids loved that they were allowed to put their feet in the fountain here (I did too). We took photos in front of the Kansas and New York monuments to honor our grandfathers who fought in WWII.
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
Jefferson Memorial
Love, love, love these photos! Thank you for taking the WWII Memorial pictures!
ReplyDelete