Air and Space Museum

The Air and Space Museum had lots of airplanes and objects from space travel.  We walked through exhibits and learned about the planets, the moon, and other objects from space.

This is a lunar module.

There are old airplanes everywhere!

Rockets three stories tall.

We walked through small passages from air craft carriers, and then we looked at a model which could support many airplanes.  It looked like an airport on the sea.

Museum of Natural History

There were a lot of interesting things to see in this museum.  We saw a butterfly garden, a Turtle exhibit, and a photo gallery of landscapes from Iceland.

Here are some other pictures from our visit.

This is the African elephant in the lobby.

 Torosaurus latas looked big and scary.

The Tyrannosaurus looked scary too!

Washington DC Monuments

When we were in Washington DC, mom made Nick do a lot of walking.  Mom said, "this is a special city filled with history, so we are going to visit as many monuments as we can on our trip."

This is the World War II Veteran's Memorial.  We went at night when the fountain and pillars are carefully lit.

This is the White House, where the President and his family live.

We did not get to visit the Capitol Building, but we had a view from the mall.

We spent time in the Sculpture Garden.  Nick liked the fountain best.

This is Arlington National Cemetery.

The Washington Monument, surrounded by American flags.

Nick at the Lincoln Memorial.

Dad and Nick in front of the words from the Gettysburg Address, also at the Lincoln Memorial.

Sitting outside Ford's Theater.

We walked outside the Smithsonian Institution, which had beautiful gardens.

While not a monument, Nick does love trains, so we took a ride on the DC Metro after a long day of sight-seeing.

The JW Marriott

After we left the Gaylord Convention Center we stayed in the JW Marriott Hotel in Washington DC.

We had a wonderful view of the city!

There was a wide sitting bench, and Nick would sit there looking out at the city.  Here is Nick in the morning.

We could also see beautiful sunsets.

 The city lights at night were very captivating.

On our last day, mom and Nick sat there taking in the view one last time.

Capital Wheel

While we were in National Harbor at the Gaylord Convention Center, we could see on the water a Ferris wheel called the Capital Wheel.

On Wednesday night, mom's friend Jen came to see us and we went to dinner overlooking the water.  Then the thee of us went up on the Capital Wheel.  We could see Washington DC, all the boats in the water, the happenings in town, and the convention center.  Nick was all smiles on this ride because he likes high places.

Gaylord Convention Center

Last week, mom went to a conference in Maryland, and we decided that the family would go down for a vacation.

We had a wonderful hotel room overlooking the atrium.

Down in the atrium, there was a flowing creek with rocks, plants, and fish.

The plants and trees were so tall it was like being outside.

Nick liked the fountain best, he sat there for a long time.

When it was time to leave, Nick spent time on our balcony looking down on the wonderful view and the river outside the wall of windows.

FaceTime with mom

Today mom told Nick, "I have to go to work in Philadelphia, I will be back on Tuesday night."

Dad and Nick drove mom to the train in the afternoon.  Nick seemed sad when he gave mom a kiss good-bye.


After dinner, mom's cell phone rang.  It was a FaceTime call from home.  Dad said, "Nick is asking for his mom."

We had a nice talk and Nick was smiling and happy!