Downtown D.C.

Today we rode the train and visited the National Museum of American History. This museum was closed for renovation for a few years and just re-opened two months ago. It is just as I remember -- lots of really cool stuff inside!!

Oscar the Grouch

Can you see Allen on the right side of that display? That was his interpretation of "stand by Oscar."

Kermit the Frog

Dorothy's red slippers.

(Judy Garland had little feet)

Apolo Anton Ohno's skates.

(I saw him skate in the Delta Center at the Olympic speed skating trials.)

Allen and Abby really enjoyed looking at this HUGE dollhouse. There were plenty of rooms and little things inside to keep them entertained. "I Spy" is their favorite game right now.

Invention/Science Area... You could make a pinball-like table using magnetic kitchen utensils and see which direction the ball would go once you dropped it at the top. Allen did this over and over and I changed the utensils around. Allen is building using magnetic balls and tubes. We are in the Sparks Lab -- a haven for kids. Abby loved the puzzles, balls and blocks in the "Under 5 Zone"

We ate our sack lunches in the Stars and Stripes cafeteria. Afterwards we saw exhibits on musical instruments, storybook illustrations, the First Lady, our U.S. Presidents, and a special exhibit about Abraham Lincoln. But what excited the kids the most was the escalators! We left the stroller a few times and just rode the escalator. What a kick for them!

We left the museum and headed north to Ross's office. This was taken at 14th and Pennsylvania while I was waiting to cross the street. It was the parade route for the Inauguration Day and I saw a banner still welcoming the President on this building:

The kids were so excited to see Ross's office, especially Allen, and we brought smiles to many in the firm. Ross, knowing we were coming, saved some desserts and food from their weekly lunch. He pampered us with turkey/mashed potatoes, drinks, cookies, and fruit.

On the way back to the train we walked by the White House.

The big grandstand from the parade was being taken down right before our eyes... the kids enjoyed watching the workers.

I told Allen we were going to see a big white house. When we got there he was more interested in the fountain out in front. I looked him in the eye and said, "Allen, this is where President Obama lives now. In July we walked by his house in Chicago and now we are walking by his house again in February. You are one lucky kid!"

The White House.

Because of the grandstand construction in front, the view isn't the best right now. Taken July 2008: Obama's house in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood

Here's Allen (hiding his face) and Abby in our massive stroller. I got a work out today! Who needs a gym pass when you can push that heavy thing, fully loaded, and walk a few miles uphill? But I haven't used that stroller in a month or so. (In Chicago I used it multiple times a day.) I'll be sore tomorrow! :)

Obama-mania

I hear a lot about Obama living here in Chicago. Did you know Obama lives in Hyde Park? His mansion is located 4 blocks from here and when I walk by I like to wave at the security guard sitting in the car out in front. Before he became a senator, Obama was on faculty at the U of Chicago law school and his office sits empty now. His wife is on the board for the U of Chicago hospital (where Abby was born), and he's been seen by many people in our ward, working out at a gym inside a luxury lakefront apt. building. A friend who lives there and saw him said, "You'll see him when it's super early in the morning. He wears black sweats and a hat. He doesn't look like he works out very much and a security guy follows him around." So Oprah might be a big fan, as well as most of Chicago, but I'm not. He's a smart guy but he's only been a senator for 4 years, how is he going to run our country? Do I think he's going to win? Probably. Below is a clip of a senator supporting Obama who doesn't know much about him... it's kind of funny. He's kind of a rock star in Illinois (and increasingly across the country). The professors at the law school say he's really smart (and he was Editor in Chief at Harvard Law School, which is a pretty big deal), but people may be a little too caught up in Obama-Mania. Here's an article from the Washington Post where the author wonders what will happen when Obama actually has to get down to work (click on the blue text for the article):

The Obama Delusion