An Impromptu Date to DC

We've never gone down to DC to see the cherry blossoms because, during the week, David has always been working or the kids have school and, on the weekends, DC is packed with people which I do not enjoy. But the forecast was calling for sunny and mid-70's, the kids are old enough to be home alone after school, and David was still unemployed so we decided to make a day of it! Hit a little bit of traffic on the way down due to this!

Once we got past that craziness, it was smooth sailing. On the train as we head into DC for our fun adventure!

We got off at a metro stop that was new to me and walked right up into The United States Navy Memorial. I hadn't visited this site before and it was awesome!

This famous statue, The Lone Sailor, is a tribute to all personnel of the sea services. He overlooks the Granite Sea, a map depicting the world's oceans.

Surrounding the Granite Sea are two fountain pools which honor the personnel of the American Navy as well as other navies of the world. The southern hemisphere of the Granite Sea is surrounded by 26 bronze high reliefs commemorating different events, personnel, and communities of the various sea services.

The pigeons were definitely enjoying the pools!

As we headed over the mall, we passed some very interesting statues. And by the way, I was absolutely freezing and maybe started to complain a little bit. Mid-70's my eye! The sunny weather was nowhere to be seen!

The Washington Monument. They're still working on it from when Spiderman destroyed the top part so we didn't get to go up for a closer look.

A distant view of the White House.

And here's what we came to see - the cherry blossoms!!! They were absolutely stunning!

A quick picture at the World War II Memorial.

All along the Reflecting Pool were images of survivors of the Holocaust with their stories. We read many of them along the way and were touched by their accounts of all they suffered and endured during that terrible time in history.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

I always seem to make squirrel friends when I go to DC.

Hallelujah! By the time we hit the Lincoln Memorial, the sun had decided to make an appearance and it was definitely warming up. We enjoyed a picnic lunch and soaked in that sun!

I loved looking at all the details on the outside of the memorial that I've overlooked in the past.

Love President Lincoln! He's one of my favorites!

That view!

Over to the Korean War Memorial...

and then over to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, another monument I had not yet seen.

It was turning out to be a gorgeous day, just like the forecast had promised, and as we walked to the Jefferson Memorial, we were surrounded by the beautiful cherry blossoms.

I hadn't been to the Jefferson Memorial before and was so excited to check it off my list!

Surprise, surprise! As we walked up the steps, I heard someone shout, "Hey, Pierces!" There was Nicole Hughes, a wonderful friend who had been in our ward for several years before they moved to California. They had moved back to the east coast a year or two ago but were in Virginia so it had been awhile since we'd seen them. She was there with her cute little guy Levi and it was so good to do a quick catch up and of course grab a selfie.

President Jefferson.

One last selfie!

What a wonderful date! At times it can be really hard not to focus on the negative, especially as we go through trials in life, but this special day in DC with David was a blessing and will always be one of my favorite memories during his months of unemployment.