Day 9
Day 9, the 9th of July to be exact, just happened to be my 25th birthday. It was a little tough for me to away from Justin but on the bright side, I had not been with my family on my birthday since I turned 17! My parent's spoiled me and so did my hubby. I woke up to balloons, had the most amazing cake from an authentic German Bakery, got tons of presents, went to dinner, and last but not least went to see Mary Poppins at the the Kennedy Center. It was an amazing day. I also happened to be 25 weeks pregnant on my 25th birthday.
Day 10
Had a fun girls day with my mom and sister. We went to Babies R Us, and spent a nice long day at the mall. My little sister took me to Build a Bear since I had never been there, and we made the cutest little bunny for the baby.
Day 11
We went to the Missionary farewell of a few of my little brother's friends, and then we came home a took Julie to the airport. It sure was quiet when we got back to the house and it was just me and mom and dad.
Day 12
Day 12 was the start of our vacation within my vacation. My mom, myself and a few of her friends decided to take a girls trip to see some sites in Pennsylvania. We drove to PA and checked into our hotel and got a late night snack at good ol Mickey D's. We wanted to get to PA so that the next morning we could wake up early and start the fun!
At the same time we were on our road trip, Justin was backpacking with his brother Shawn at the Wind river range in Wyoming. He looks forward to this trip all year, it's like his Christmas!
Day 13
This was an amazing day! We started the day off by fulfilling a dream of mine! We went to see Fallingwater, a home designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. I have always been fascinated with him and have seen a few of his other homes, but this is the big one! It was amazing and totally lived up to my expectations. The house is built right into the side of a hill, right on top of a waterfall.
After Fallingwater we went to the memorial site of United Flight 93 that crashed on 9/11. It was very humbling and those victims on the plane were so brave in making the decision to fight back against the terrorists. They are just starting to build a permanent memorial so for now they have a make shift one. It was still interesting to read about the events of the day, learn of the victims, and see the field where the plane crashed.
After we left the flight 93 memorial, we drove to Johnstown PA. I was unaware of the events that took place here until my mom read a book and saw a documentary on the great Johnstown Flood. In 1889, Johnstown was devastated by a flood that killed over 2200 people. The flood was caused by a faulty dam that was owned by some wealthy men up on the hill who ignored warnings of the dams weakness. Johnstown is a valley and the flood waters and debris filled the entire valley. It became the site of the first disaster relief project by the American Red Cross. There is so much more to the story, it is truly fascinating. I would look into it if I were you, I learned so much on our trip.
In this picture you can still see where the dam used to be. The fenced lookout point is at one end, and you can see how the land is still curved from a dam that broke in 1889!
After Johnstown we headed back to DC. It was a long day, but it was an amazing day and I am so glad that my mom, Denise, and Elaine let me tag along.
Day 14
We spent the day unwinding from our trip, unpacking, and getting excited for Justin to arrive! I had not seen him in 2 weeks, which is the longest we had been apart in 5 years! It was so fun to have him arrive!! Molly may have been more excited then I was. She followed Justin around the entire time he was there, and she would just sit and stare at him. It was so funny.
Day 15
My parents both went to work in the morning, so Justin and I headed out on the metro and went to the Smithsonian museum of American History for a few hours.
Then we stopped by the old Post Office building which has a tower you can go up for some cool views of the city. I love how DC doesn't have huge skyscrapers so can see the whole city from up high.
Then later that night we went with my parents to the Pentagon Memorial for the victims of 9/11. It was really neat at night, and such a beautiful tribute to those lives that were lost.
Then we went and got some ice cream and sat outside the airport and watched the planes fly in over us. They get pretty close, it was cool to have them fly right over our heads.
Day 16
In the afternoon my dad took us on a tour of the Pentagon. It was Justin's first time going in. We even went in the press conference room and Justin gave us a little debriefing on the war.
Later we all went to dinner at a nice italian place and then decided to head into Georgetown and maybe get a Georgetown cupcake but the line was SO long. So we went and walked around the National Cathedral, and then went and got some amazing gelato. It was our last full day in DC, and I was not ready for our trip to be over yet.
Day 17
We spent the morning finishing our packing and getting ready to say goodbye. My parents were incredibly generous in giving us a car, yeah thats right, a car! We loaded up our new Santa Fe and headed out. I had a really hard time leaving. My dad left a short time later for Afghanistan and so it was hard to say bye to him, and I think the realization that this was my last trip home as a kid really hit me. Next time I see my parents I am going to have a baby and it will be so different. I was a little emotional after leaving, but on our way out of town we stopped by Shawn(Justin's older brother) and Krystal's house. It was so good to see them and our little niece Victoria. She had gotten so big and was talking up a storm! She had all these cute little bracelets and jewels that she was showing us. Krystal was also pregnant at the time, and we also were wearing the same shirt. They now have another little girl named Nora who arrived on Aug 26th.
That night we made it to Kirtland, Ohio where we were able to quickly see some of the Church sites. We showed up a little after hours but the President of the Kirtland mission offered to give us a private tour of the Newell K Whitney store. It was so special being there, and so many amazing and important events in church history took place there. I am so glad that we made the stop to see it.
After Kirtland we were put up for the night by our friends Scott and Kara Mortenson. They are also originally from Logan and lived out here with us in Minnesota until they moved to Cleveland about a year ago. It was so good to see them again! They have a beautiful home and it was great to have such a nice place to stay the night.
Day 18
The last day of our trip. The entire day was spent in the car. About 12-13 hours to be exact. We listened to many podcasts, filled up at many gas stations, and went through a few states we had never been too. The highlight of the trip was getting my hands on some fresh Krispy Kreme donuts. We don't have any in Minnesota. The low point was the terrible traffic outside of Chicago. We got to sit and look at the skyline, knowing that the best pizza ever was nestled among those skyscrapers while we snacked on granola bars (and Krispy Kremes!)
Eventually we made it home. 18 days was a long time to be away, but part of me was still not ready to go back to my normal routine. It was nice to sleep in our comfy bed again though!
And I would like to mention that spending two weeks with your mother when you are pregnant with your first child can be a little dangerous.
Example A: Closet before trip
Example B: Closet after trip
I see one spoiled girl in the making!
(finally)
