Kraync + KLAN = Mission

On our trolley tour we were able to just drive by many things. We didn't have time to visit all of them. We drove by the Lincoln Memorial and most of the Smithsonian Museums. We drove by the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial the first day but were able to visit them the next day. The pictures below of the Washington Monument were taken from the Jefferson Memorial.


Below the Jefferson Memorial was by far my favorite memorial. Beautiful, peaceful, and inspiring.

Inside the dome of the Jefferson Memorial stands a colossal statue of Mr. Jefferson himself. On the circular walls surrounding him, carved in stone, are some very touching statements made by him, including part of the Declaration of Independence.
Speaking of the Declaration of Independence. One of the things I was most excited to do in DC was see the actual Declaration. It is on display in the National Archives Building. My children were a little put out that we were going to actually wait in the line that was nearly a 1/2 mile long. I almost didn't have the heart for it either, but my dear husband knew how bad I wanted to see it and encouraged us to wait. I'm so glad we did! It was amazing. It brought tears to my eyes, and still does every time I think of it. I spent all last year learning and teaching about the Declaration of Independence, and the Founding Fathers. I even memorized the entire Declaration, except for the injuries of the King. However, in a year or two when I teach the class again, I will memorize these as well. When you enter the Archives you are not allowed to take pictures with a flash because the document is so sensitive. It has faded almost to the point where you cannot read it. The picture below is as good as we could get without a flash.

Can you see the hand print on the bottom left hand corner? It is very light, but it is surely a hand print. I would love to find out the story behind it. It was so fun to see the real thing and see the hand print on it!

We had the special opportunity to walk right up to to the front door of the White House, because we happened to visit during the fall open house. It was very fun. Jacee particularly liked being so close to the White House. In fact when asked she tells everyone that was her favorite part. We even got to see the Presidents dogs come out for a short run around the lawn. In fact as my mom and Kenzi were walking across the lawn to try and get a picture of it they got thoroughly hollered at by the security lady. I was trying to tell them because I had seen another person get hollered at but they didn't hear me and kept walking. Boy did they hurry sheepishly off of the lawn. Mom did get pictures of the cute little things. I will have to try and post them later when I get the pictures she took during our vacation.

We had the awesome opportunity to get tickets and ride the elevator up 500 feet of the 555 feet of the Washington Monument. These pictures above and below are views from up there. Above looking at the World War II Memorial and on past that at the end is the Lincoln Memorial. Below at the end of the green you can see the Capitol Building. Out the north window you can see the White House and the south view is of the Jefferson Memorial.