Day 783 | A Final Museum

If you're keeping track, we are one (1!) activity away from finishing our bucket list. Today we ventured down to the Mall for a trip to a museum. It wasn't the museum previously mentioned on our lists, you might notice. Chase decided to call an audible and select the National Museum of the American Indian instead, for two reasons. One, he could feed the ducks at the Capitol reflecting pool. Two, he wanted to play with the igloo. 

The American History Museum is always a crazy mess so I completely grabbed hold of this shift in plans and we went with it. There was a moment of panic when we found out the igloo wasn't going to open until later in the day, but luckily we befriended a sweet employee who made an exception for the cute kid who wanted this to be his last museum trip before he moves. Yeah, I laid it on a *little* thick, but super-sensitive Chase wasn't going to handle this turn of events well. In the end, good fortune won out and we were allowed ten minutes to build it up. Whew.

DC Bucket List, Deadline: July 13

• Visit Turkey Thicket playground
• Ride the Wheaton Miniature Train
• Watch the ball drop at the Discovery Building
• Eat at our sushi restaurant
• Wade in Yards Park
• Ride the Metro
• Pick berries at Butler's Orchard
• Fort Steven's Park 
• Eat at H&Pizza
• Visit the top of the Washington Monument
• Watch the airplanes at Gravelly Point
• Jump at trampoline park
• Play at the National Building Museum
• Have a snack by the train tracks
• Feed the ducks at the Capitol
• Build an igloo at the National Museum of the American Indian

Day 782 | Wheaton Miniature Train

The heat couldn't keep us down today. To Wheaton we went for one last ride on the infamous (to us, anyway) miniature train and carousel. We've been here a handful of times over the past two years and it never disappoints. It just might be one of my favorite outdoor activities in the area. I think the boys would agree.

And, to keep with the focus on nostalgia, here are some past miniature train posts:

Day 50
Day 150
Day 746


DC Bucket List, Deadline: July 13

• A final stop at the American History Museum
• Visit Turkey Thicket playground
• Ride the Wheaton Miniature Train
• Watch the ball drop at the Discovery Building
• Eat at our sushi restaurant
• Wade in Yards Park
• Ride the Metro
• Pick berries at Butler's Orchard
• Fort Steven's Park 
• Eat at H&Pizza
• Visit the top of the Washington Monument
• Watch the airplanes at Gravelly Point
• Jump at trampoline park
• Play at the National Building Museum
• Have a snack by the train tracks

Day 781 | Snack on the Track

It was a rough morning. Lots of factors collided to challenge my ability to keep it together. By around 10:30am (yep, this all happened before then), I had pulled myself together enough to take the boys on an outing across the street to have a snack and watch the trains. It was as enjoyable (if not more) than I remember it being. Are you getting tired of me mentioning how much I'm going to miss this place, yet?

For the sake of nostalgia:
Snack on the track: Spring 2015
Snack on the track: Fall 2014

And for those keeping track:

DC Bucket List, Deadline: July 13

• A final stop at the American History Museum
• Visit Turkey Thicket playground
• Ride the Wheaton Miniature Train
• Watch the ball drop at the Discovery Building
• Eat at our sushi restaurant
• Wade in Yards Park
• Ride the Metro
• Pick berries at Butler's Orchard
• Fort Steven's Park 
• Eat at H&Pizza
• Visit the top of the Washington Monument
• Watch the airplanes at Gravelly Point
• Jump at trampoline park
• Play at the National Building Museum
• Have a snack by the train tracks

Day 780 | Happy 4th!

We celebrated America's birthday by attending the Takoma Park parade this morning: our annual tradition. The weather was gloriously overcast and shockingly cool. Just perfect. The boys loved every second of it.

I've never really been a fan of parades, but, surprise, surprise, kids have managed to change that!

Day 779 | Pizza

The sounds of exploding fireworks fills the air as I type. I'm reflecting back to Chase's first 4th and how nervous I was about him being woken up by all the loud pops. I've come so far in this journey of parenthood...but it's funny how new little anxieties still manage to creep in (but not about fireworks anymore) even though I'm experiened enough to know I shouldn't let such things get to me. It's a never ending journey, I guess.

With that said, the main subject of tonight's post: pizza. Another check on the bucket list! We ate our final &pizza meal. It's been awhile since we've enjoyed it's deliciousness (it's harder to visit since we moved off the Hill). I have to say, it didn't disappoint. We'll miss you, yummy pizza!

Day 778 | Errands

We didn't pack a single box today. Don't worry, though, we crossed off a lot of other important things: a trip to the dump (Chris was really impressed with their efficiency), a trip to drop off donations, some much needed tidying around the house, some much needed rest for my back (yeah, it's acting up again), plus two pretty fantastic belly super hero tattoos.

So, all in all, a pretty productive day after all. Here's hoping we can get to a couple of boxes tomorrow.

Day 777 | Metro + Building Zone

We buckled down to cross two more bucket list items off the list: a metro train ride and the National Building Museum.

It was a highly successful outing full of lots of playtime and giggles along the way.


DC Bucket List, Deadline: July 13

• A final stop at the American History Museum
• Visit Turkey Thicket playground
• Ride the Wheaton Miniature Train
• Watch the ball drop at the Discovery Building
• Eat at our sushi restaurant
• Wade in Yards Park
• Ride the Metro
• Pick berries at Butler's Orchard
• Fort Steven's Park 
• Eat at H&Pizza
• Visit the top of the Washington Monument
• Watch the airplanes at Gravelly Point
• Jump at trampoline park
• Play at the National Building Museum
• Have a snack by the train tracks