Washington, DC

How is RV life?

Well, day one...

We ran the air for the first time and it smells like fish... enough said. 

The trip almost ended when a HUGE roach appeared above my head. I took out my kids, one of them may or may not have suffered harm, only to have the roach fly and dive bomb INTO my hair. I for sure suffered bodily injury. Shawn... rolling. 

We have learned momma's hot shower needs to be prefaced with a 1 hour lead time so dad can heat it up. Learning curve.

Who wrapped pantyhose around their quarters in college for free laundry? So wrong, but seriously wondering if this still works. Paying for laundry... well,  just doing my laundry in a public laundromat is seriously going to do me in.

When we drive we are now keenly aware of the failings of each state's DOT as 24,000 pounds of plastic, metal, and fancy faux wood bangs down the highway.

Thankfully, we have a good sense of humor and are laughing... for now. Memories from our first stop are making it all relative.  Bike rides, summer ice cream in the evenings, walking the dog, the pool, the joy of being 10 yards from a doe and her fawn, and cotton tail bunnies. 

R deciding she wants to be a poet and going to her "room" to compose. We are not to disturb her creative genius. She passes her poetry through her window for us all to enjoy... and it is actually really impressive stuff!

M is a serious trooper. She never complained walking over 6 hours in the heat for two days. She loves a map, loves photography, always has a plan, and seriously listened in school. This kid is smart. I am going to have to kick this curriculum up a notch!

Touring DC... I had hoped to whip these two into whine free shape by this stop as I knew it would be a doosey. However, as DC became our first stop versus our fourth... Crash course.

What I learned:

- We walk incredibly slow and talk A LOT

- Under plan

- Bring MANY snacks and stick a sucker in their mouth when their legs get tired, it buys an extra hour
- This works for husbands too

- No one is going to use my clipboards with a KWL chart on them while touring. M looked at me and said, "Seriously, Mom?" 

- The National Park Junior Ranger badges will motivate and teach my kids more this year than their mother.
- Touring DC is at least 5 days even with littles. They loved it.
- I love these kids. They listened, observed, questioned, learned, and in turn taught us so much over our first three days.

Exploring to earn our NPS Junior Ranger Badges! 

The Jefferson Memorial - M's Fave! 

Going to the top of the Washington Memorial - Daddy's Fave! 

The MLK Memorial - Mommy's Fave! 

The Lincoln Memorial - R's Fave!

Amen! The FDR Memorial is breathtaking! 

Beat down on the Metro home! I am mustering a weak smile! 

The big rolling turd (we've GOT to come up with a better name) is off to our next stop! Stay tuned!