December 31

We'd planned to go to DC today, and that's just what we did. We departed grandma's house at about 10, and were parked and ready to explore by 11. I took many (many) photos so this is just a representative collage:

It was chilly but not really cold, and the sun played peek-a-boo through the clouds all day long, creating beautiful shades and shapes that were best experienced in person (but still, fortunately, translated reasonably well through the lens of my phone camera). We walked a good 10 miles as we traversed the National Mall, stopping by the Jefferson Memorial, the Vietnam and Korean War Memorials, the FDR Memorial, the MLK Jr. Memorial, The World War II Memorial, The National Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial. (Phew.) Adam bought the kids National Park passports at the first gift shop of the day, and they (well, Isaac and Brady anyway) were enthused about the idea of visiting as many places as possible to earn as many stamps as possible. (Total stroke of genius, I have to say.)

After a late lunch break at McDonalds and a stop by my Mother Ship (couldn't let me stars expire, after all!), we walked over to the Capitol building, where we posed for a pic front of the huge Christmas tree and a conversation between me and a pair of Capitol Police Officers netted the boys some Capitol Police stickers. (To explain: Brady was wearing his Ravens beanie, and when one of the officers commented on it, I noted that his fandom was particularly impressive since he's from California. That prompted said-officer to offer up said stickers along with a big thank you for supporting DC-area sports teams. Sometimes it's good to be a chatty cathy.) The Capitol itself had, regrettably, closed early since it's New Years Eve, so we continued back toward the Smithsonian.

There are many, many museums to choose from, but we opted to check out the National Gallery of Art. I'd been Facebooking check-ins periodically throughout the day, but was surprised when my old friend Elizabeth --from the junior high days-- messaged me to say she was nearby. So she met up with us in the museum and I was happy to have a quick and unexpected face-to-face with her before we called it a day.

Then it was Chipotle for dinner and at the moment, it's New Years Rockin' Eve on TV (though we'll see how much more of it I can take).

It was a great day. The kids all had fun, Adam and I had fun, and it was good for me to remember traversing some of those same paths during my own childhood. So tonight, I'm thankful for a good day. And although 2019 hasn't been my favorite year of all, I'm thankful for the moments during the past 365 days that made me smile, and I'm also thankful for the ones --even the ones that were hard-- that helped me to grow because I always, always want to be a better person.

Blessings to you and your family as we enter 2020. May it be a year that brings you much joy and many opportunities to grow closer to God and to those you love.