Washington DC Getaway...{huge post}

This past weekend the family and I headed to Washington DC for a much needed mini vacation/getaway from everyday life. Jared took Friday off and we headed out early. It took us about six hours to get there, but it was worth it. The kids were actually fairly well behaved (can't say that for the trip back home...) so that was a nice little surprise. We stayed at a hotel called the Westin, in Alexandria, VA. It's just a stones throw from all the sights and sounds of DC...with a view of the city from across the river. Thanks to Priceline...we were able to afford a two night stay -YAY! love that.

This place was really something. We drove through the streets of Old Town Alexandria, which was so charming with it's cobblestone roads, gas lamps and old town houses.

here are a few web images...

On Saturday, we awoke to a crisp day; blue skies and sunny with a high in the mid 50's....perfect Zoo weather huh!

Smithsonian National Zoo, Washington DC

best parts were that the zoo was huge and it was FREE... except for $20 parking ;)

My bum got a major workout hauling this sucker (double stroller) up what seemed like mountains at the zoo...

I'll just warn you now...there are quite a few pics of the backs of our heads (or sides) while we oooed and awwwed at the animals ;)

A quick stop for some gummy bears and some souvenirs.

Here's a little FYI: Roo is REALLY into bears lately; His favorite book is "Brown Bear Brown Bear, What do you see?" we read it like 18x a day. Lucky for us...the newest addition to the Zoo were the Sloth Bears (we didn't actually see any Sloth Bears...but we had good intentions of doing so. This zoo is huge, and after 4hrs, we were tired).

Then it was on to the reptile house...one of the favorites.

Everything was in bloom...it was so beautiful.

Lunch time! -then Panda Bears!

Here are my boys, doing exactly what they were told not to do; climbing on the guard rail at the zebra exhibit.

Four plus hours later....we left the Zoo, loaded up and headed over to the

Cherry Blossom Festival.

(click on the title for the link)

half of my clan were passed out in the backseats...so we decided we'd check out the kites and celebrations from the car -the cherry blossoms were just gorgeous.

Kites peppered the sky.

The pics above were taken by me. However, below are a few web images, because I really needed a break from being behind a camera lens. So, I just enjoyed seeing the blossoms in real life ;)

Pink Magnolia trees and Cherry Blossom trees were in bloom absolutely everywhere in DC. They were all along the streets and in the parks...just breathtaking. After seeing all the earth in bloom like this...it makes me think of the Savior. It's Easter week this week, and despite the fact that I was skeptical as to wether or not spring would EVER come...alas, it is here. It's a pleasant surprise every year. I truly am reminded of the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior.

We eventually headed back toward the hotel, and after we grabbed some shut-eye (the boys watched Alvin and the Chipmunks), we took a dusk drive over to the Monuments. While there, I couldn't help but feel such an appreciation for the courageous men, who set forth to make America what it is today.

(sans recession, but who's asking)

On the drive home, we visited a little town called Harpers Ferry (best known for it's role in the John Brown Raid and the American Civil War...you can read about it here ), it's located in Jefferson County, WV - where my husband, Jared, grew up. It's the cutest little town nestled in the Blue Ridge mountains, right were the Shenandoah and the Potomac rivers merge. We hope to go back again sometime in the fall -it's gorgeous in the fall.

And then came the drive home...not so pleasant when the kids are sick of being in the car! I don't blame them. All and all, we had a good time. Oh, and sorry there are no pics of the White House...who goes to DC and doesn't take a pic of the White House?

apparently me.

Anyway, what a great family trip; can't wait to go back!