Washington DC

Derrick and I got to take a vacation, just the two of us!  We haven't had one of those since our honeymoon five years ago, so we figured we earned it.  The kids are at a good age to be able to leave behind, and we had a volunteer babysitter that we love and trust, so it was an opportunity that we had to jump at.  Indiana is really a crossroads.  There are so many things fun places that are easy to get to - usually just a few hours drive.  We decided to forgo a Utah trip this summer to visit some of the places that we knew would be a lot harder to get to if we moved back home next summer.  Derrick had been wanting to go back to DC since his mission (Served in NYC South, but visited DC with his parents on the way home) and I had never been. We originally were planning on taking our kids with us, but Derrick's mom offered to fly our and watch them, which was perfect because DC isn't a very kid friendly vacation with the heat and all the walking.  Not to mention how boring it would have been for them. We also have some really good friends out there that we were excited to see again.  We stayed with our friends Melissa and Aaron.  Derrick, Melissa, and I worked at the same place - which is where Derrick and I met.  So Melissa was there to see the whole thing unfold.  When she moved she had no more connections to Utah, so I wasn't sure if I would ever see her again. This made me so sad because she is amazing! Luckily we have kept somewhat in touch and were able to come stay with her.  I am SO SAD that I didn't get a picture of us together.  So sad.  Just picture an adorable pregnant lady and that's her.

So here are some pictures of the stuff we did.  It was HOT.  REALLY HOT.  Even I got sweaty.  We drove to Gettysburg (on the horrid PA turnpike) and stayed there the first night.  The next morning we went to the visitor's center and toured some places around there before heading on to DC.  The first place we stopped was the temple!  As a bit of an anniversary tradition we did sealings together. It is such a gorgeous temple!  A definite favorite. 

The next two days, we did the usual touristy stuff.  Capitol building, Washington Monument, WWII Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Ford's Theater, Smithsonian Museums, Holocaust Museum.  We did the museums the first day, and the second day we took a bus tour of the city and stopped at a bunch of places. Pardon my dorky running shoes with shorts.  My feet decided it wasn't worth it to try to look cute.

My very favorite part was in the Smithsonian museum of American History.  Julia Child's kitchen!  It was amazing.  Didn't even get a picture. Lame.

The last day we also got to see some friends that Derrick knew growing up and we saw at USU.  They live there now and it was so fun to be able to see them again. They are such a fun family and made us a delicious dinner.  I love having friends all across the country!

It was a wonderful vacation.  I loved having Derrick all to myself and I didn't miss diaper changes, disciplining, or doing dishes.  Although I really really missed my kids, I did so good keeping the worrying and sadness to a minimum.

I do have to say though, that if I were to pick another kid free vacation, it would be a lot more relaxing, like a cruise or a beach house.

Up next: what the kids did while we were gone.