We had decided to spend Saturday at the National Mall and Caleb had reserved tickets for us to go on a tour of the Capital building. We got off to a rough start since none of us had been on this tour before and the information said we needed to arrive really early for our reservation. So we basically had to jog there once we found parking... not good news for 90 degree humid weather... or pregnant people and little kids. Anyway, we made it to the security check and were then told that we had to throw away all of our water or anything that did or could contain food. Huh- that is awesome. Michelle quickly made the decision to stay outside with Will, since she was not going to throw away bottles and formula, so we left the things we had with her. The rest of us went in, with the joy of some security guards on a power trip.
We got in line for the tour just to find out that our reservation time was actually the time that we could get in line to wait for a video and tour. Lauritz soon decided to join Michelle outside and to take Maggie and meet us after with the lunch. By this point most of us were in a mood that was quickly turning south, but we waited in line and headed on the tour...
Which was a big disappointment. We got to go in 2 art and statue rooms at the capital and nothing else. The rooms were crowded with people and while we were broken into smaller groups to listen to the guide recite the facts, it was hard to really get to see or appreciate a lot. And one or more of our kids were whining for water and snacks almost the entire time. Not awesome, and my advice is that unless you are the personal friend of a Senator or Congressman, probably not worth the time and effort. Only with friends in high places will you get to see any interesting parts of the very huge building. Here are a few of our photos... you can all pretend you were on the tour.
The boys enjoyed wearing the headphones to listen to the guide.
Henry and the Rotunda.
Just a shot to show how much I was enjoying this... on our way into the statue room.
Wyatt was also super happy... Caleb was trying to distract him from his need for milk by showing him some statues.
We probably would have just left the tour, but that was also not allowed, so when we were all finally set free we got out of there quickly. Here are the boys attempting to look like they are happy in the back of the building.
A shot with Mom, to try and cheer all of us up... before we realized how far we would have to walk to get our lunch and drinks thanks to almost all sidewalks anywhere near the Capital being blocked off.
We finally made it around the Capital and had our picnic lunch, this is a shot to show you how beautiful everything is looking right now. Yep, that construction stretches the entire length of the mall, only barely skirting the monuments and blocking off even more walkways. Luckily this picture doesn't show the crowds of insane size that we would soon encounter in our attempt to hit a few National museums. Ahh, what a day it was. We all ended up totally sweaty and exhausted just from trying to make a couple more stops. Good thing the boys had a better attitude about the crazy crowds than I did. They did get to see a few interesting things at the Natural History Museum.
Maggie, Gavin and Henry found some serious amusement watching a squirrel run up and down this tree while he waited to see if they would provide him with snacks. It might have been one of their favorite parts of the day. It was a very cute squirrel.
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