Flag Day~

  Well, being Flag Day, this is a good day to post some of the photos from our DC area site seeing while we were in town for my nephew's graduation last month.

Day 1

The rain we had experienced on graduation day had moved through, and our day was sunny, cool and very breezy.  Our hotel was not far from Ft. McHenry, so we began our day there!

And of course, this being a National Park, it goes without saying that the kids earned their Jr. Ranger badges!

 AnnaClaire and Grace had studied about the writing of the Star Spangled Banner in history this year, so it was very exciting to see the flag (replica of course) flying over Ft. McHenry, and having this part of the history they had learned  come alive.

 Of course the cannons were very exciting for everyone to see!

  And beautiful Kate!  Who takes after her biggest sister (hi, Emily) and isn't the least bit interested in "history!"

After several hours at Ft. McHenry, it was time to find a spot for lunch.  We ALWAYS opt for "local" when given the chance, and we happened upon Big Matty's Diner in the historic part of Baltimore not far from Ft. McHenry.

  We spoke with the owner, and the diner had been there for 50 years, though he'd owned it for just a few months.

   The inside was quite retro and included a cute soda bar and the food did not disappoint!

After lunch we decided to visit Arlington National Cemetery.  Being the Memorial Day Weekend, we thought this would be the perfect opportunity for our kids to have a first visit. We and EVERYONE else in the DC area had the same idea, evidently.  It took us forever to get in and parked.  But it was SO worth the effort.

Bill and I had last visited Arlington on our 8th grade class trip.  Notice I didn't say trips~ and that's because we were in the same 8th grade class in middle school in Houston.

Perhaps it was because we were just at a military graduation and most definitely because we are no longer middle schoolers, but this time our visit was so very meaningful and profound.

   

It was breathtaking to see all of the veterans' graves decorated with the flags for Memorial Day.  I'd seen photos of course, but it's hard to describe actually seeing it in person.  The magnitude of Arlington, and the sheer

number of graves really hit me on this trip. 

Although we arrived later in the day, we were able to visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (in the background) and we happened to get there right at the changing of the guard. Grace, in particular, enjoyed that.

  We also visited Kennedy's grave and saw the Eternal Flame.  Pictured at the top of the hill is the Lee House, which sadly we did not have time to tour.

After our time at Arlington, we drove to our hotel in Mt. Vernon.  And now you know where our next day of touring was, and what you'll see in my next post!

I hope you all are not weary of all of our history road trip photos.  I do hope it serves as an encouragement to you to pack up your family and go and SEE the historic sites in our land.  It will make history come alive for your children and for YOU! I can almost guarantee it will give you new appreciation our great country and all we have been given. And it really is our job to pass this down to our children.