Cowboys and Girls in DC

Memories more important than the 'main attractions':

While Luke was listening to the ipod with headphones on the airplane, I asked him a question. When he responded, "What?" Heads turned. I can not dispute the fact Luke well and truly has the loudest voice of anyone I know.

Luke coming and telling me that he collected seven pennies out of the pool by the Korean Memorial. When I questioned that maybe he shouldn't be taking pennies out that people put in, he replied, "The sign says don't put money in." He obviously thought he was helping the rulemakers out. Furthermore, he said, "I'm going to keep them and give to Dad to put in the bank." I told him we don't really just deposit pennies, to which he responded, "Every little bit of money is going towards my saddle." He obviously appreciates the value of a penny. All credit goes to Mike.

Megan was proud of her navigation prowess using the free map she received at the Lincoln Memorial. The rest of us in the car were being driven crazy by her constant, "Now where are we? Are we on 'Constitution and 3rd?' Her punishment for driving all of us bonkers? She soon retired from her navigating due to the onset of car-sickness.

Luke finding more satisfaction in the squirrels running wild and the unique tree trunk structures than the nearby White House. My sister-in-law, Kristin, who is traveling with us got it right when she said, "You can take the boy out of the country, but not the country out of the boy!" Furthermore, his cowboy hat in pictures of memorials and other stirring American monuments, as my mother suggested, would make a fitting book, 'A Cowboy Goes to DC'. I think Luke and I could quite well write and illustrate the book.

Grandpa Steve emotionally explaining to the children how he 'could have' been one of the casualties of the Vietnam War, and thus none of us would have been standing there today.

Luke's absolute captivating interest as my father-in-law explained the controlled airspace above DC. His shock and questions about an unauthroized plane perhaps having to be shot down seemed neverending. "Well what if just a tiny bit of a wing gets in?" I finally realized, perhaps it is due to his slight concern that our pilot may accidentally veer into the airspace and cause our demise. I used the moment as a good teaching tool to obey commandments with EXACTNESS. (Check me out, I could be the next President Uchtdorf!!)

Megan has retired to bed early, due to lasting car-sickness effects. Luke has moved his mattress into the limited bedroom space room with Megan and me. (I've always said he's kind of a mama's boy) and I have to now go to sleep as somehow I have been talked into waking up at 5:45am to get tickets for the Washington Monument. I am trying not to have an anxiety attack that it is really 3:45am Utah time.

This is a beautiful part of the country.
What a blessed land we live in.