The Lee Family: Spring Break Day 3: Museums

Before arriving in Washington D.C. we decided to spend Monday and Tuesday visiting museums and then head to Mt. Vernon and Arlington National Cemetery on Wednesday, leaving Thursday open for anything we missed or wanted to go back to see. So, we were excited to get our vacation started by visiting the Smithsonian museums on Monday. Surprisingly, we actually slept in until nearly 10am! I can't remember the last time that happened for any of us and it certainly felt good to get a little extra sleep. After getting showered, dressed and ready, we walked two blocks to Eastern Market and ate at Le Pain Quotidien which was a relatively new breakfast/lunch place that opened before we left for Texas. It is a relaxed French-style place that is just a cozy and yummy place to eat (although a bit pricey. Welcome back to D.C.). We headed to the Metro after eating and the girls loved taking the escalator down into the Metro and really loved watching the Metro trains arrive and depart.

Of course, they loved actually riding on the Metro even more and they both wanted to stand up while the train was going and hold onto the center pole. Once they were comfortable with holding on, it was fun to let go while the train was moving and try to walk to the other pole. Lots of laughter and fun was had on the Metro train! We took the train the few stops to the Smithsonian exit and got off. Half of the Mall was under construction with all the grass torn up and new irrigation was being added. Plus, the Capitol dome was under scaffolding, so it wasn't a particularly picturesque view looking back at the Capitol. We were able to take pictures with the Washington Monument in the background though, as it was not under construction. A few weeks before our trip, CK looked into getting tickets for the Washington Monument and found that they were sold out through June! We were then told that a few are available each morning at 8am, but we realized getting us all dressed, fed, and down to the Washington Monument by 8am would be pretty close to impossible. We decided we'd have to hold off until our next visit.

We walked over to the Natural History Museum which we were all really looking forward to visiting. Sofia was particularly excited to explore it in light of the "Night at the Museum" movies she loves so much and her interest in dinosaurs, bugs, animals and pretty much anything. Once we arrived, we decided to split up with CK and Sofia heading off and I stuck with Olivia and followed her around wherever she wanted to go. Since Sofia can read and has particular interests, we figured we would all have more fun by going at our own pace. Olivia and started in the ocean section and I tried to read to her about what we were looking at, although she moved pretty fast. We then headed to the early human section and then to Africa, where we looked at all the African animals. It was very fun and the Smithsonian has done some impressive upgrades since my last visit many years ago.

We met up with Sofia and CK near the dinosaur exhibit, which includes a T Rex and a Triceratops and a few other dinosaur bones. The entire dinosaur section is under construction and should be fully renovated in a few months. We all visited the section on Mummies and ancient Egypt which was really interesting. Near that exhibit was a man giving a demonstration of insects from around the world and Sofia was immediately transfixed. She asked to hold the Madagascar Hissing Cockroach, which then caused other kids to ask. I don't know how she holds that huge cockroach, but she enjoys it!

From there, we headed to the Imax theater to watch "Titans of the Ice Age 3D" about the Wooly Mammoth. It was our first 3D experience and was really well made and interesting. Of course, Sofia loved it! Olivia enjoyed it too, although I'm not sure how much she totally understood. After the movie, we visit the Hope Diamond and the minerals and gems section. It was very crowded, but well worth seeing. The mineral and gems were incredible! After, we headed back toward the Metro for a late snack and to enjoy the beautiful weather! It was in the mid-70s and sunny and just a beautiful Spring day!

Once back at Eastern Market, we bought animal crackers and waters and sat outside on benches while CK headed to the Capitol Hill Used Book Store, one of his favorite haunts from years ago. While he browsed, the girls and I snacked and fed the pigeons. I called Aunt Shirl too, since their house is just two blocks away and she walked over and met us. From there, she walked us bad to our apartment, which Aunt Shirl wanted to see. Olivia even got a shoulder ride from Aunt Shirl! Sofia showed Aunt Shirl "Patches," the giraffe outside our apartment (she came up with the name when we first arrived). We showed Aunt Shirl our cozy apartment and chatted for awhile before we headed over to CK's friend Paul and Andrea's house for pizza and to catch up. Paul and Andrea don't have kids so we tried to keep the girls playing quietly until pizza. After pizza, Andrea turned on the Disney channel and the girls were completely glued to the t.v. We were able to visit for a bit longer then headed home and bed. Such a fun day!

Outside our little basement apartment