Holy cow it is taking me a long time to get these up. I may actually make a New Year’s resolution to post faster in 2015. … Probably not, but it’s a thought.

Day two of our trip centered around meeting up with Karen, Brenden and the kids. We hadn’t seen them in several years so I was particularly excited about this. Bob and I always talk about wanting to get back to DC and see everyone but we just don’t get there. But we finally did.

We started at Congress and took a look at the massive tree and the decorations there. Then we wandered a bit before heading down to the American History Museum to meet up with everyone. I was excited to be in DC, excited to see everyone and just excited to be away for a few days. Making it more exciting – the band was playing!

That is the Air Force band playing Christmas songs (and other things) in the American History Museum. I love DC.
We did wander the museum with everyone for a while. We were seeing how long the kids would last since they already had the drive into the city. They did really well and for longer than I expected. We mostly stuck to the bottom floor of the museum with all of the trains, cars etc. the kids had things to climb on, things to touch and explore. When it looked like everyone was starting to fade, we made a quick trip to the chocolate demonstration, which peaked their interest for a little bit longer.

Best part – we got to taste really fresh, really crafted hot chocolate. I think the adults like it more than the kids, but it was tasty.

After the museum we did lunch at one of my favorite spots – The Dubliner. Kid friendly, but with great food (and beer for the boys). It was so much fun just hanging out with everyone and catching up. Definitely something we have to do again before another half decade passes us by.

In the evening, despite the rain, we did the other thing I was determined to do while in DC – the trees. Every year the Ellipse has the official tree, a tree for each state and territory, the trains, Yule log and menorah. It is one of my favorite displays. This year it was raining, chilly and crowded, but we persisted. The National tree was actually very pretty this year.

The train set did not disappoint.

But … And I HATE to say this … The state trees were boring, and the same and not anything like they should be.

Yes, technically the light patterns are different for each tree, but they all looked the same. They all felt the same and it too away from the idea behind the individual trees. Add to this, no Yule log and we couldn’t find the menorah and it was the only disappointing thing about the trip. I was also a little stunned at the extent that they closed the area around the White House. I remember walking Jessie right by the fence and now … Can’t even get close. But it is what it is and we still had fun.

The other really should do that we did fit in was the old Brickskeller. It is now the Bier Baron but they kept the look and feel of the old place. Bob had never been, so I was really glad we made the trip. He even found the coolest beer …

Needless to say I texted that picture to a few people. But it was a really good time, and very relaxing. A great way to end the trip.