Washington DC: Part 1

 We've been home from DC for almost two weeks now and almost every day, I think about blogging the first portion of our vacation but each time I do, homework or motherhood comes first.

So I'm finally here to at least jot down the first day or two of our amazing vacation and in the future, I'll get more of it up here.

It all started last Christmas when my parents surprised us with a trip to Washington DC. They told us we would be going for the 4th of July and to plan ahead so our whole family could be together.

And it worked! Every single one of us crazy Guthries was able to make it to DC to spend a week together. I should also mention that my second oldest sister lives in Alexandria, VA, which is actually where our hotel was and she is one of the main reasons we got to enjoy this incredible vacation.

Our first flight took off at 7am, which meant we were at the airport at 5am. My kids were pretty tired but did amazing throughout the flights. I, on the other hand, am not a fan of the "take off" and gripped the arms of my seat each time.

 We had a layover in Texas and the grandkids had fun playing games together and laying around the airport waiting for our next flight to DC.

We arrived in DC around dinnertime that Monday and were thrown right into the craziness of the city life as we maneuvered suitcases and strollers onto the Metro to get to our hotel.

Tuesday rolled around and it was time to start off our adventures. We chose to tag along with the Taylors and my parents to the Postal Museum and I'm so glad we did.

 The kids were given a scavenger hunt to keep them busy and they were really into it.

 Ninja asked for a picture with the dead dog---who was apparently a huge part of the postal system as it began and to remember him, they literally stuffed him after he died so they could keep his remains in the museum (Weird...cool...mostly weird).

 The kids got to pretend to drive a semi-truck and play with all the gadgets.

 And they learned about what mailboxes from all around the world look like.

 Here is my boy with the post office "mascot". His name is ZIP.

 Ninja loved all of the planes that were hung from the ceiling.

 And this truck was familiar because it looks just like our postal trucks!

After the museum, we walked across the street and ate lunch before heading off to our Capitol tour.

 We found some really cool sights on our walk to the Capitol building.

 My parents had set up a tour with Jeff Flake's interns and it was fun to meet people who work for our senator and were both from our area.

 Both kids wanted a picture of themselves with that golden eagle above.

 And this is Princess standing in the very center of Washington DC, where the Capitol was built.

One thing I loved about this trip was being with family and easily being able to hand my camera to a family member and asking for a picture of my children and I. That isn't something I can always do and it was nice to see myself in a few of my pictures.

I'll start a new post soon with some more pictures from our trip. It really was an amazing adventure and I am so grateful to my parents for allowing us such a cool opportunity.