Tracks Made in DC......

I know it has been WAY too long since my last post so get ready to get a lot of updates at once:)

 Chris and I got away on a little vacay......our first in many years in fact. Living far away from home, family and friends means that most of the time our "vacation" time is spent visiting our fave people. This trip was much the same, as we were visiting friends, however, it was a very refreshing 4 days away from home because we got to experience so many great things. Our travels took us to Washington DC. DC has been a place I have wanted to visit for the spectacular views and monuments for a long time. Especially since living in Florida and hearing about everyone rave about it! So what better excuse than to visit two of Chris's greatest friends! This trip was spectacular and certainly made me appreciate all the sacrifices that American's have made that have given us so many wonderful opportunities. Although I will always be a true Canadian at heart, the past few years have certainly made me appreciate our neighbour's to the south!

One of the first things we did in DC was go to the Holocaust Museum. I've always been a big reader/watcher of holocaust history so everyone's warnings to me about how disturbing this museum was fell on deaf ears. Boy was I wrong about how affected I would be by this museum. Not only is it a great experience it is also much more disturbing than I ever would imagine. About an hour and half into the tour there was a room full of shoes from people who had perished in the concentration camps. The smell was enough to turn my stomach and I started getting woozy......this is not something that happens to me so I didn't know what to make of it. The next stretch of the tour was the portion that discussed all of the children that were killed in the camps. This is where I finally called it quits and begged for some fresh air. I think this quote on the wall outside of the museum does an adequate job of summarizing the devestation that was felt by this war.

Holocaust Museum Plaque

 Now onto the "brighter" side of things......This trip was exceptionally special for Chris. Unfortunately, he lives much further away from home than I do and with his parents living in Texas temporarily he doesn't get to see his friends very much. Being able to go to DC to visit Paul and Mike was such a special treat for him and we really did have the greatest time with them both.

Chris and Paul

Washington Monument.......much bigger than I anticipated!

WW II Monument

Mr. Kaiser and I at the WW II Monument

Soldiers outside the Lincoln Monument

Abe!!!

The roof of the Lincoln monument was one of my faves.......go figure!!

Korean War Memorial.........I took this picture not only for the monument but also because I've missed the changing colour of the leaves over the past few years!

Lincoln Monument

 Of course, since we were in DC we had to go and see Mike play for the Caps that night. One of our favorite teams!!!! We have seen Mike play multiple times in Tampa but this was a special treat because we got to be back in a true "hockey town" and be amongst the roaring crowd! Mike is definitely a fan favorite there too so it made the experience that much more fun.......especially since he won player of the game:) Woo Hoo GO MIKE!!!

This is Chris's dream child......this baby literally cheered the WHOLE game! So adorable!!!

who's this guy????

Out for dinner after the game

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Body guards at Obama's house

All in all this was such a great trip. It was refreshing and amazing to see so many great new things. Trips like this just make me so excited for Chris and I to start our lives together, keep travelling, and getting to know one another's friends whom we adore so much!