Spring Break Part 1

Spring break 2015 has been one I will never forget!! Ethan and I were lucky enough to go visit his brother and his family in Washington, DC. It was such a blessing to have a place to stay and spend time with family.  First of all I just want to tell them how grateful we are to them for all they did for us during our trip . They went above and beyond to feed us,  house us comfortably,  and make sure we got to see everything on our list and more.  We had a blast!!

 Our week back east was awesome and felt so unreal. For the most part, the weather was pretty nice. We brought the sun with us for the first part of the week and then had some light rain towards the end of the week. 
Prior to our trip Ethan bought us fit bits,  so we decided to track our steps all week. Surprisingly,  we got more than we expected with a total somewhere around 100 thousand steps. I don't think my legs/feet have quite forgiven me yet but it was all so worth it!

-------------------------------------------SUNDAY--------------------------------------

After arriving and relaxing Saturday night,  Sunday arrived and we went to church with Jaron and Tana. I love attending church in places where being a member is almost rare and not as common as Utah.  We met some friendly people and had one of the best lessons I've heard in a long time. 

That night we drove into town to see all the monuments lite up! It was a great way to kick off our week!

The Lincoln Memorial

 

 

  

 

The Jefferson Memorial

He loves having his picture taken!  

 

View of the Washington Monument from the Jefferson Memorial

 World War I Memorial

World War II Memorial

 

Vietnam Memorial Wall

 

---------------------------------------MONDAY---------------------------------------- 
STEPS: 13,767

We started off our day bright and early by riding the subway into town with Jaron on his way to work at 7am.  I'm not sure if the subway will ever get old for me Haha Watching the business men and women of DC was so interesting to me. As soon as you went down into the subway they were everywhere,  rushing through the gate and onto the train in their business attire with their cellphones and newspapers in hand.  Being new to the subway life I learned a few things. Number one: that you file along quickly with the crowd, they are ALWAYS  in a hurry.  Number two: Never  look people in the eyes on the train,  they usually get super uncomfortable and awkward. Number three: when riding the escalator,  right side is for standing while left side is for walking.  Because they just can't  get where they are going fast enough and they aren't afraid to tell you!!! 

We started at the Holocaust Museum and spent most the morning there. It was such an amazing and humbling exhibit. If  you ever get the chance, I highly recommenced it. Ethan claims it was his favorite Smithsonian. I wish I would have gotten more pictures there but this was all I got.  It was a actually one of my favorite rooms.  Every wall was covered in these pictures from the floor to the ceiling. 

The Holocaust Museum

The Washington Monument 

 

Ethan taking a nap on the benches below the Washington Monument before our tour. We may have looked crazy but after all the walking we did that morning, we could care less.

 

Some of the views from the Washington Monument. Way out there in the distance is the temple.

 

The Jefferson Monument surrounded by a frozen lake.

The White House

 

Uncle Ethan was great to help carry Desmond and as you can see he was a happy boy when riding in his pouch.

 

 One of the cutest places we ate! Apparently, it's a popular place for presidents to go after being elected. Fun fact, the only people who eat free here are the current president of the US and Bill Cosby,  who actually courted his wife here! 

 

------------------------------------TUESDAY------------------------------------

 STEPS 21,733

The Library of Congress

 

 This morning we took a tour of the the US Capital and went under the tunnel to the Library of Congress for a self tour. The capital was under construction on the dome while we were there but still so magnificent. All week we had seen a street full of food trucks so today we decided to check it out. We decided to be bold and try the Greek truck, which didn't disappoint. After lunch we continued touring some of the Smithsonian's. 

The Air and Space Museum, the US History Museum, the Natural History Museum, and the Botanical Gardens.

 

President Janson addressing the public. 

 

Botanical Gardens were so pretty and warm, especially on a rainy day like today.

Ethan found this place so relaxing and wanted so badly to stop and take a nap here!

--------------------------------------WEDNESDAY----------------------------------
 STEPS:20,866

Arlington Cemetery

 This was definitely one of my favorite days. First we stopped at Arlington Cemetery in the morning. It was sprinkling all morning which left a sort of gloomy, peaceful feel, that felt appropriate. The spirit you felt here is unreal. May we never forget the sacrifice they made that we might know freedom.

 

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It only took about 30 seconds of silence before the tears came. What a wonderful thing to witness and something I'll never forget.

 

 The National Cathedral

After touring this huge and beautiful cathedral we headed down Embassy Row and it was amazing to see all the different Embassy's with their flags outside and their identities showing through their architecture.