Washington DC Trip

Our day started at the Vienna Metro.

We arrived at the hotel where we met Granny and Papa.Our first stop, the American Indian Museum. We all liked this canoe made of reeds.The architecture of the building is also fairly cool.

Hey, there is a rather large guy standing behind you with little guys on his head.

Taking a kayak trip. 

View from the American Indian Museum.

 Weaving a basket.

Playing a quiz game about Indian History.

Huge statue of a Buffalo Hunter.

Waterfall at the American Indian Museum.

View of the capital walking to the Natural History Museum.

S: "I did not know elephants were so big."

 Butterfly pavilion.

 S: "my favorite thing at the museum, the Hope Diamond."

 Washington Monument under construction.

So many names.

Statue of fallen soldiers.

View back to the Washington Monument from the WWII Memorial.

WWII Memorial 

Lincoln Memorial

View from the Lincoln Memorial

 Abe.

 Korean War Memorial

 Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial

 President taking off to go to a meeting?

My favorite Department.

 Back to the Metro, our tour has ended.

4th of July (and other tidbits too)

We kept it low-key for Independence Day this year.  Charles and the girls went to DC to meet up with Granny and Papa the day after, so we stuck around home for swimming and a cookout.  We invited our Sunday school class and had a few takers, plus Grandma and Grandpa.  We had a nice relaxing time, and the exciting news was that Charles finally got in the pool for the first time this summer!

My crew

Here are a few other photos from the week:

Gorgeous sunrise over the park on my morning run

Sophie's gourmet mint creation with spices.  Ultimately, she decided she doesn't like mint.

Cute $6 flip-flop find at the dollar store

Trying out Botswanan stove-top muffins for bread day next week

My delicious garden meal of zucchini boats, sauteed swiss chard, and a stove-top muffin

Charles' 40th Birthday Extravaganza

So he turns 40 today.

Yesterday we had a big party in celebration.

There was cornhole and swimming.

Family from near and far.

And, of course, a Food Lion cake.

He's awfully excited about this gift.

But he wouldn't get in the pool, no matter how much Hannah begged.

We sat in the yard and had a nice picnic/potluck dinner with family and friends.

It was nice to have everyone join us.

Some watched rather than swam.

And yes, there were even gifts to be opened.

He opened his gifts and cards from us this morning.

Sophie made sure to document the occasion.

He had to close his eyes before receiving his gift.

A gift that gave him more work to do in the garden today.

For birthday dinner he wanted to go to Wood Grill.

Where Sophie was most excited about the chocolate fountain.

And to cap off the afternoon, a bike ride to the park.

All in all, a wonderful birthday extravaganza!

Saga of a Water Stand (Short-Lived Though It Was)

Once there was a water stand called the Awesome Agua Stand.  At said stand one could get water for free, or for a pretend penny.

The first boss was a sweet, red-headed little lady.

She used her pencil to keep meticulous records of all her sales.  Over time, the jobs/workers shifted and changed with the wind.  After a nonviolent coup, the second boss promised 5¢ pay per week for all the workers.

The stand was kept clean and well-maintained.  The floors were swept and mopped, the cups were washed after each use, and the wet towels and rags were hung to dry.

One day not long into the stand's existence, an unfortunate spill occurred.  This spill had the effect of causing the authorities to revoke permit for the water stand's continued operation.

Closed forever.  RIP Awesome Agua Stand.