Botanic Garden

The US Botanic Garden is located right next to the Capitol. It is not a huge exhibit, but they have some great exhibits. They have medicinal plants, desert and jungle plants, a children's garden and lots orchids.

B and G enjoyed the jungle area the best!

This banana picture is dedicated to Uncle Matt V and Aunt Susan! The kids recognized the plant immediately from their excursions to Aunt Susan's banana grove!

Love,

4Vs

Sunday at the Capitol

Sunday morning we drove MSV to Regan National for his trip to Alabama. Since we were already in the car and close to downtown, kids and I headed into the city to visit the National Botanical Gardens. We lucked out and found a parking space near the reflecting pool for the Capitol- so we stopped for some pictures.

It is exciting for the kids and I to see these great buildings in person- I wonder if we will grow more jaded about them as our DC tour goes by.. I hope not!

Love,

4Vs

Capitol at Night

As we enjoyed our 70s concert, the evening grew late. At the end of the concert, we took a few minutes to appreciate the Capitol at night! Beautiful!

Here is our view for most of the concert- when you come to DC for a visit, we will have to take you out in the evening!

Love,

4Vs

AF Rock Band at the Capitol

Last week, kids and I went downtown on Tuesday night (MSV out of town) to hear the AF Rock Band play "Songs from the Seventies". Stop rolling your eyes- to know me is to know that I would go to something like this- AND we had a great time!

Concert was on the steps of the Capitol building. The band actually set up at the bottom of the stairs and the audience picked spots along the stairs to watch and enjoy. We had such a great view of the Capitol and spent the whole concert looking down the Mall at the Washington Memorial and in the distance the Lincoln Memorial.

Four of the 5Ms also went with us- kids enjoyed dancing and singing along to Peace Train, Janice Joplin tunes, Kiss, Stevie Wonder, Doobie Brothers, Diana Ross and lots of others... In fact, they may have been worried by how much fun Kristen and I had!

A good time was had by all!

Mary B

Family Room

Here is the Family Room. This room opens off of the kitchen and has a sliding glass door to the deck. If you can picture it, the Dining Room/Office, Kitchen and Family room are in a straight line across the back of the house. These are the three rooms where we spend most of our time.

We are still working out the details of this room. Again, Elizabeth was a great help in furniture layout! Thanks E! The room overall is comfortable and we are enjoying it.

Love,

4Vs

Dining Room turned Office

Here is our Dining Room turned Office. Without a dining room table but with a need for study, office/homework space, this room had to adapt to the Vaughns! The room opens to the Formal Living (aka Japan room) and the kitchen. It will be a nice place for the kids to work and MB can monitor from the kitchen.

Here are the study chairs! Some of the Vaughns are more excited about this area than the others!

Love,

4Vs

Brock's Jump

He is working on making the biggest splash possible!

Love,

4Vs

Ft Belvoir Pool

In addition to the polar bear slide, the Ft. Belvior pool has a great view of the Potomac River. The O-Club dining area looks out on the river as well. You can see all sorts of motor boats and sail boats going by. Very pretty!

Pool also has the floating lily pad things that the kids climb and float on. B and G worked as a team to get on and hold on.

Love,

4Vs

Polar Bear Slide

After church on Sunday (we are shopping the Methodist churches of Springfield), we took the kids to the pool on Ft. Belvior. Kids and I had seen it earlier in the week and they were dying to go and play. Gracie really liked the polar bear slide. I don't think I have ever seen one like it before.

Wheee!

Love,

4Vs

Neighborhood Pool

Here is view of our neighborhood pool. It is nice and we got a pool membership included with our lease- so we can swim whevever the kids are ready!

It must be a North Virginia thing- all the neighborhoods have their own little swimming pool. So there is usually a pool and maybe some tennis courts tucked into each little subdivision.

Come and join us at the pool!

Love,

4Vs

Art Museum & Congress

Last Wednesday, we went downtown to have lunch with Mike and see a few sights. We got to see Mike's office and have lunch at the Pentagon... Sorry- no pictures. We did walk for what seemed like miles in the Pentagon!

We said bye to Mike and kids and I headed over to the National Gallery of Art. There was an exhibit we wanted to see in the basement involving moving sidewalks and thousands of LED lights. It was an interesting exhibit, but not as cool as we were expecting... Oh well....

They also have a traveling exhibit from Spain. The collection includes lots of armor both for knights and their horses. (see here

On our way back home from the Gallery of Art, we crossed the Mall and had this great picture of the capitol! Please note- kids are dragging from miles and miles of DC walking at this point!

Love,

4Vs

Korean War Memorial

On the way back from the Lincoln Memorial, we walked thru the Korean War Memorial. This was the first time Mary Beth and the kids had seen it. The darkness made it a little spooky for the kids. It is a powerful and beautiful memorial.

Love,

4Vs

Lincoln Memorial

After the concert at the Air Force memorial, we went down to the National Mall to see a the sights. It was a really nice night for walking. We visited the Lincoln Memorial. The kids absolutely loved it! Grace was surprised we could get so close to the statue- she was happy to climb all the stairs. Brock liked the long reflecting pool.

Here is the Washington Monument as seen from the top of the Lincoln stairs.

Here is the main man himself! Amazing!

Love,

4Vs