When we hired a summer nanny, we knew she was going to need the second week of June off for a family vacation. Since we didn't get much time off last summer, I started hatching a road trip plan for the kids and me (Jeff claimed to not be able to get off work). We left on a Saturday, drove to Washington, PA - random location but with a hotel/pool - and then completed the drive on Sunday to Rockville, MD to stay with Uncle John & Aunt Vi. Sunday was spent at their club pool and cooking out. Monday we took the train into DC for a day chock full of sightseeing; we got tickets for the double-decker bus that we could get on & off as often as we wanted, and saw just about everything there was to see! We also went to the Air & Space Museum and Arlington Cemetery. Tuesday, we took the train to the National Zoo, which was a great visit. Wednesday, the kids and I drove into Baltimore to walk along the waterfront and have lunch, and then we went out to Bel Air, MD to visit with all of the Coreas - Tony, Kate, and Nick and their families. We headed back on Thursday, stopping at a wonderful state park in OH for the night and completing our trip by returning on Friday to Zionsville. The kids actually did quite amazing on the trip; of course I was nervous being outnumbered for such a long drive. I also had thought I'd wait until the kids were older to do DC - but quickly realized there is a different set of things they see/understand at each age, and I think they really enjoyed it. I'd definitely do it all again!
Random trip pictures -
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| Backyard games with Uncle John |
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| Joseph Pierce explaining something VERY important to John Pierce |
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| As long as there's a pool, these kids are happy (this is at John & Vi's club) |
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| Photographic evidence from the beginning & end of the trip |
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| At least they carry their own weight.... |
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| View from the patio at the state park hotel |
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| There was swimming at least one time a day nearly every day of the trip |
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| State park arcade room |
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| The state park hotel had an indoor and outdoor pool |
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| Fun w/ Uncle John & Aunt Vi |
Washington, DC
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| First Metro ride for the kiddos |
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| We were trying to figure out what ceremony was going on at Arlington - we encountered this group, and also experienced a lockdown where we couldn't travel down certain paths. We later realized it was D-Day, so there must have been memorials going on |
National Zoo
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| Pandas! |
Baltimore
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| Joey lost a tooth while staying at Tony's - luckily, the tooth fairy found us! |
