My Much Anticipated Trip to D.C.

A couple of years ago, Ryan and I had plans to take some day trips to local cities. Playing off of this idea, for Christmas he told me we'd go to Washington D.C. one day to see the monuments and Smithsonian. After much waiting, we finally did it this past Saturday.

We woke up early to get on the road and were there by 10:00 (a little later than we had planned, but not a bad start).

We got a great parking spot right next to the Washington Monument which was perfect since we needed to reserve a time to go to the top. After grabbing our tickets for later that afternoon, we started visiting some of the attractions.

We started by walking along the Reflecting Pool towards the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam Memorial. It was a little chilly, but nice because it was not as busy as it is during the peak months. After spending time at these memorials we then headed back towards the other side of the Washington Monument.

We went to the Smithsonian Museum of American History next. They have a traveling exhibit on display right now dedicated to Lincoln. They had some facts about Lincoln, his top hat, suit and much more. Ryan is a huge fan of Lincoln, so it was something he was thrilled to see! In addition we saw the "Star Spangled Banner" Exhibit and more. It was a cool place to visit for sure.

By the time we were done there it was time for our visit to the top of the Washington Monument. We went all the way up 500 feet to the top to look out. I had been to Washington D.C. before, but had never been in the Washington Monument. It was a pretty nice view and cool to look out at the lay out of the capital.

By this point I was getting really tired. I think this was the first time I felt like being pregnant was weighing me down. I tried to be a trooper, so we hit up one more of the Smithsonian's before leaving: The Air and Space Museum.

It was really neat. They have everything from the Wright Brother Plane to pieces from space telescopes and remakes of different space shuttles. Very neat to look at and so much information to take in, in one day.

By the time we were done there, it was close to 5:00 and the museums were getting ready to close. There was still so much to do, but it was impossible to finish it all in one day - pregnant or not.

Hopefully in the future we'll get back down to D.C. and we can see more of the highlights. Perhaps a tour of the White House, Ford's Theater, the Capital Building and more.