What a week of summer - Tuesday DC and Hershey

The size of our family and the daycare arrangement we have with my sister, make it difficult to go on day trips during the summer weeks. 8 kids is just too many to fit in the van; plus I might lose my mind. So when the Shumaker's went on vacation last week and I was down 3 charges, we planned some outings. On Tuesday 4 of the girls and I connected with Mary and 4 of her kids and drove down to the Metro station where we hopped on the train to DC. The train is always so thrilling for the kids. Rachael wanted to stand up most of the way, just for the experience. Hanna was strapped into the stroller and Bridget attached herself to my side. Emma settled in enjoying cousins and lending a helping hand as needed. Megan was with her girl scout troop at Hershey Park. Megs was disappointed to miss our DC trip but was so excited about her own adventure that there was no real sadness.

Once in DC we headed to the National Gallery of Art. Mary had seen an article on a painting by Titian that was being exhibited and that is what prompted the visit. The NGA also had exhibits by Andrew Wyeth and another of Cassat and Degas. The Gallery has so many pieces that we knew we wouldn't be able to see them all so we tried to focus on the ones that drew us there in the first place. The kids were all fantastic and were wowed by the building as well as the works of art. It was fun to read the tags to the kids. In the Wyeth exhibit Bridget was astounded that she was looking at paintings and not photographs. By then Hanna, Teresa and the crowd were getting hungry so we quickly did the other exhibits and then headed out to the Mall.

Emma and Rachael took some pictures as we laid out the picnic blankets in the shade. Hanna tore into her sandwich and then after a few bites tore off running across the lawn. She was happy to be out of the stroller and Teresa and Katherine had fun chasing her. It was really hot on the mall as we made our way across to the Air and Space Museum. We had less than and hour, so we focused on the early flight section of the upper floor. The kids read the info themselves and checked out all of the planes. They didn't need any help finding interesting things in this museum. Hanna got very fussy and cried for a few minutes until she fell asleep. She slept all the way out of the museum, back to the metro and on the train. She woke up when the train jerked about 1/4 of the way home. The train was packed on the ride home so most of the kids were standing at least part of the way. I was proud of them for not complaining and instead they enjoyed the trip.

Megan meanwhile was riding big roller coasters and splashing around with friends at the Hershey Water Park. The next morning at breakfast, after a good night sleep, Megan asked Bridget "Tell me what you did yesterday". We all shared our stories.