Washington D.C. trip: The video!

Well, we're in quarantine. It's a crazy time, and it still feels surreal that it's happening. But here we are! And while we're stuck in the house during all of this COVID-19 weirdness, I figured I'd do my best to catch up on some blog posts! Because holy cow, I'm just a liiiittttle bit behind. 

And we have had SO many good things that I haven't posted about yet. (Trips! Baby Monroe! Etc.!) So hopefully I'll be able to catch up over the next little bit.

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Back in October, we decided to take our kids to Washington D.C. for Fall Break! It was so much fun, and you can see more posts about it here:

Gravelly Point 
Washington Monument & Smithsonian 
Abe Lincoln 
Arlington

Jord also compiled a video of our trip, and it's so fun to watch it with the kids and remember how much fun we had (back when we were allowed to leave the house and even travel! haha). But seriously, I'm so grateful for my crew and for our adventures. Click below, turn the volume up, and enjoy our Washington D.C. trip video! 

Last bits of D.C.: The Potomac & pizza!

To see all previous posts about our D.C. trip, go here:

part I -Cafe Rio & Gravelly Point, part II -Washington Monument & Smithsonian, part III -Abe Lincoln & cheeseburgers, part IV -Arlington & cupcakes

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^four little monkey boys in a tree^

After our morning at Arlington, we decided to take a drive down George Washington Memorial Parkway to let the kiddos sleep in the car for a bit. They were all exhausted, and sometimes a good car nap is all you need to feel better for the rest of the day. (Hashtag, the kid life. Hashtag, wish I was a kid. Haha)

The views of the Potomac River were INSANELY beautiful, so the second the kids woke up, we found a good place to pull over and play. 

^Heading on an adventure down by the water with daddy^

^I spy Camden!^

The boys seriously could have spent hours here.

They played in the water, looked for treasures, made up stories, and pretty much just had the time of their lives. It's so funny that as parents, we're always trying to find them something educational or engaging to do on trips like this...but then an afternoon by the river reminds us of how much joy they can find in the simplest of things.

^The three amigos^

^"Camden, smile!" Camden: does this weird face/ squat position^

^showing me one of his treasures he found^

^Such a dreamy day!^

^Camden wanted to take a picture with his shell to send to Aunt Syd, but then he looked at the photo after we took it and said, "Oh man. My shell kind of looks like a piece of poop." Haha! (He wasn't wrong)^

Jord snapped a photo of me and my baby bump, with the Potomac as a beautiful backdrop. I can't wait to bring baby girl on the rest of our family adventures!

We are getting so, so excited to meet her.

^24 weeks in this photo^

And before we left, the boys had to climb some trees. Because of course!

After the kids had played and everyone was hungry, we headed over to another highly recommended place to grab some dinner: We the Pizza!

We got a bunch of giant slices of different kinds of pizza, and headed to our favorite park--Gravelly Point--to eat and watch the planes come in. It was the best!! (The evening and the pizza!)

^This place was so good. We would totally recommend it!^

^Handsome husband with a bunch of pizza^

^"I see airplanes, momma!"^

And wouldn't you guess, after we had eaten pizza, the kids all found trees to climb. I think this trip will always be remembered with a lot of tree climbing. Haha!

But you know what? I love it. And so did they.

We had such a great road trip to Washington D.C. We saw so many cool things, ate tons of delicious food, had some meltdowns, played and laughed with the boys, and just had an all-around great time making memories. 

I'm so glad we went! It was such a unique place to experience with our family.

If you get a chance to go to D.C., do it. You won't regret it!

D.C.: Arlington + Cupcakes.

To see previous posts about this trip, go here:

part I -Cafe Rio & Gravelly Point
part II -Washington Monument & Smithsonian
part III -Abe Lincoln & cheeseburgers 

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^Arlington National Cemetery^

Before we left on our trip, we put together a list of things we wanted to make sure to do while in/ near D.C. And one of our "must-sees" on that list was Arlington National Cemetery. With all of it's history and reverence to those who had fallen for our country, we knew we needed to see it and share it with the kids. 

And I'm so glad we did!

^The sheer number of headstones is enough to take your breath away.^

One of the first things we sought out when we got there was the John F. Kennedy Eternal Flame. It was really neat to see, and the feeling there was just so reverent. After we saw it, the boys asked us about the Kennedy family and if a lot of people knew who they were. We were like....um, you could say that. Haha.

But it really was so cute to see them learn so much about American history in such a hands-on, impactful way. We had so many good moments like that with them here!

^The Eternal Flame at the Kennedy's grave site^

^Sweetest Cammers^

We then headed up to The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to watch the changing of the guards. This was one of my very favorite things we saw, and the kids were all enthralled by it, too.

If you ever go to Arlington Cemetery, you must make sure to be there for this. It was such a cool experience to have!

^Waiting for the changing of the guards to begin^

^The boys loved watching the guards march. It really was so cool^

The Memorial Amphitheater behind the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was so stunning. After the changing of the guards ceremony, we climbed up to get a better view of everything, and wow. It was just beautiful!

^I love this all-boy crew! I still can't believe we will be adding a baby GIRL to this bunch so soon.^

^Mr. Becks^

A couple of the boys and I headed back over to see what was going on at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier when we heard music, and we got there just in time to hear a soldier playing the famous Taps song on his trumpet while the wreath was changed.

I guess this isn't done every time the guards are changed (which is why we thought it was over and walked away earlier), but we were lucky enough to be nearby and head back for it.

I'll always remember listening to that song with my boys as we watched the soldiers--with the Washington Monument and the planes flying by as a backdrop. It was incredible.

^Boston was super excited to see a real soldier's uniform up close^

^Love this big boy^

The kids did so good at being respectful and reverent at the cemetery, but they were definitely ready to run and play (without us hushing them) by the time we were done. So we yelped some parks nearby, and ended up at the cutest little park in Arlington.

It was labeled as a "micro-park" because it was just a tiny little thing sandwiched between a thousand apartment buildings, but it was perfect and the kids LOVED it.

^In heaven playing in the sand^

We ate sack lunches on the park bench while we let the kids just play and have fun, and it was awesome.

(I also met a local mom there who gave me all the D.C. tips, which was totally an added perk!!)

After lunch, we loaded back up into the car and headed to Georgetown for some treats that came highly recommended by our local D.C. friends: BAKED & WIRED CUPCAKES. 

And trust me, the all caps are totally necessary for that place...because yum!!

^See what I mean?? Flavors were fresh strawberry, unicorn confetti, cookies & cream, and pistachio^

^My fave: the cookies & cream^

Such a great morning/afternoon! 

The last bits of our trip are coming up next in my final D.C. post. If you've stuck through all of these, you deserve a gold star!! Or a Baked & Wired cupcake. Because man, those were good.