National Treasure: SCMS Edition

That's right. We made in and out of the National Archives today, and none of our kids tried to steal the Declaration of Independence.

Visiting the National Archives - and seeing first hand the Charters of Freedom - actually came after lunch today. We started our day at Mount Vernon, the home of George and Martha Washington. After touring the mansion and grounds (including the Washington Tomb), we spent a good amount of time in the new education center. If you have never been to Mount Vernon, or if has been several years since you visited, you have got to get there to tour the museum and education center that they have recently added. If only I had a classroom like that!

We then headed back into the District for lunch and shopping time at Union Station. For most of the kids it was their first time in a real train station. What an architectural masterpiece.

Next was the National Archives. One thing that has struck those of us that have doing this for the last few years is how fortunate we have been with getting in and out of venues so quickly. Last year we spent at least an hour and a half in line at the Archives. Today, we walked right in.

After the Archives, we headed to NW DC and the National Cathedral. This is always one of the highlights of the trip. The kids are usually surprised at how interesting visiting a church can be. We ended our visit to the Cathedral at the tomb of Helen Keller. The pictures that I took cannot accurately depict how amazing this place is. You really do need to get here to see for yourself. I always end the trip - and I will this year - by telling the kids that I hope this is just their first trip to DC. This is the kind of place that really requires several visits.

Having driven by and around the Washington Monument for two days, we finally let the kids out of the bus to see it up close. They spent about 30 minutes of free time to just chill-out. I think we all needed a little time to unwind.

We finished up in the District this afternoon with a visit to the Vietnam Veterans, Lincoln, and Korean War Memorials. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial never fails to have an impact on the kids. Talking in the classroom about the over 58,000 names on that wall can never match seeing them etched in black marble.

We ended the night with dinner at the Pentagon City Mall. After talking about the National Mall for two days, I always enjoy the questions on the way to Pentagon City. Is this, like, a real mall?

Well, I'm going to leave it there for tonight. We have a 5:30am wake-up call scheduled for tomorrow. It will be a long day as we travel to Pennsylvania to visit Gettysburg and Amish country. Do I have the best job in the world or what?