Revised Spring Break 2016

We normally go skiing at Snowshoe (West Virginia) every year for spring break. We were excited about this year because it would be my DH's first chance to ski since his knee surgery, and also because it was going to be Parker's first year joining us. Ski School starts for 4 year olds, so the past few years he has stayed at home with Nana and Papa. This was going to be his first year hitting the slopes. Alas, Mother Nature didn't see fit to cooperate this year. A few days before we were leaving, we realized the temperatures would be in the 50s and 60s on the mountain - not ideal skiing conditions. So we cancelled the trip and made some alternate, last-minute plans. 

First up - Great Wolf Lodge! Located between Richmond and Williamsburg, it is less than an hour drive from our house. We've had a lot of friends enjoy it but we had never been before. We found a deal online and headed there Sunday afternoon. For those of you who don't know what it's about, it's basically a very large indoor water park. It also has bowling, an arcade, kid scavenger hunts, and lots of other games and activities. They had a blast! Our kids are fish so they love anytime they can get in the water. They swam, went on water slides, hit up the wave pool and the lazy river. The buffet restaurant on-site has lots of kid-friendly foods, so everyone was happy. They enjoyed the arcade games and magic scavenger hunts - we spent Sunday afternoon/evening, and Monday morning swimming and playing, and then headed home after lunch on Monday. 







A little coloring fun!



Exhausted on the drive home!

Next stop - Washington, D.C.! We had one night at home and then got up Tuesday morning and headed to the train station. This is the thing that Parker was most excited about!


They spent the first hour of the trip watching out the window and enjoying the scenery!


 After checking into the hotel, we headed over to the National Air & Space Museum. 


The bugs under this tree along the Mall were much more interesting than the Capital and Washington Monument.

They loved seeing all the airplanes, the international space station, the Huble space telescope, and all the other space-related equipment. Parker also decided that he wants to fly a jet off an aircraft carrier when he grows up!




We watched an IMAX 3D film on space shuttles (another big hit with Parker) before returning back to the hotel for a quick nap. Then out to dinner at the Capital Chophouse!


 Bedtime books in the hotel

The next morning we headed over to the National Zoo. It was a beautiful day - sunny and 70s - and the zoo wasn't crowded at all. We rented a double stroller, which was a great idea because it is a huge zoo and there are lots of hills. We had two very tired kids by the end. But they were very excited to see the baby panda - Parker also loved the elephants, and Ainsley spent at least 45 minutes in the reptile house talking to all the snakes, lizards, turtles, and crocodiles. 



 And the other big hit - the carousel!


Papa's nemesis - the beaver!











Back to the hotel again for naps, and then we took the metro out to Arlington to have dinner with my college roommate and her family. Their two boys are close in age to ours, and they had a great time playing while we visited with Mer and Jeff. 

Parker loved riding the metro and always insisted on sitting by the window so he could watch in the tunnels. Ainsley had her own idea of entertainment. 


 Thursday morning we didn't have a ton of time before our train home, so we decided to just let the kids swim at the hotel pool.

What a great trip! We obviously still have lots of museums to visit, but it was so easy to take the train up so I see lots of weekend visits in our future. The weather was too warm to ski, but it was perfect for sight-seeing. We had a few days at home to play outside and do some house chores, and now we're all well-rested to go back to work on Monday. Happy Spring Break! 

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