Hitting The Mall

Can you believe it . . . my sister and I got eight boys to walk the Mall all day with us! It was a perfect day!

One of the things I love about Washington DC is that it is a free celebration of our nation's history. We take pride in honoring those who have played a part in securing our freedom. Everyone is welcome to celebrate with us. Chad and I were excited to share this with our boys. I know the younger ones won't remember why the monuments and memorials are important, but it did my heart good to see the older boys reading the signs, taking pictures of the monuments, and asking questions.

He's trying. Maybe he will remember!

The Mall was a bit crazy because of the Cherry Blossom Festival. It was such a beautiful day that everyone was getting out to enjoy it. The first place we started was The Jefferson Memorial.

I love the quote on the wall of the Memorial (see below). Can you feel the power and passion behind it. It is a simple truth that we as a nation were brave enough to stand up for. Maybe I have seen National Treasure too many times, but I agree - nobody talks like that anymore.

We fought our way through the crowds to see the statue of Thomas Jefferson. It was cool, but I must say it was hard to appreciate it with so many people crowded around it. It meant more to me when we visited Thomas Jefferson's home, Monticello, the next day.

Standing outside the Memorial we were able to appreciate it a little more. It is beautiful. I love the architecture. Thomas Jefferson was a very talented architect and I think he would have liked the Memorial built to honor him.