Emily in the pink hat and Madeleine in the purple hat with the Washington Monument in the background. I did not have them pose, this is a common stance we are achieving these days - usually while plotting against our parents.Editor's note: We are going through a phase where we kind of want to wear the same thing...not necessarily to match, just because God forbid she gets what I want. Also, this makes it fun because Mom has some real hang-ups about us being twins (our names don't rhyme, they don't call us "the twins", etc. etc.) something about each of us having our own sense of self. So, an added bonus is, when we pick out matching coats (we know she won't fight us because she hates temper tantrums), clothing, etc.....we know she is cringing because she looks like "The Crazy Twin Lady" who dresses her children identically.
The weekend before Thanksgiving Till had a conference in Washington DC. Not at all content to let him go in peace and quiet, I decided the girls and I should go too - so we could see the zoo. Till and I foolishly thought the girls would nap on the way, so Saturday morning we played around here, ate lunch and then hit the road. As we left Williamsburg and headed up I-64, Till and I were instructed to tell the girls "as soon as we get to where we never been before." There was no nap. There was a lot of singing (primarily the ABCs), asking when we would be there, some flat-out screaming and thankfully one stop where Madeleine and Emily could stretch their legs and also learned how to put gas in a car.
Since the college was picking up the tab for Till's room (which he graciously shared with us), we decided to stay at the conference hotel which was the Grand Hyatt Washington. It has an atrium, fountains, etc. etc. As soon as we entered the lobby (with enough luggage to move across the country) Emily and Madeleine proclaimed we were in an "American castle"...I'm not sure where this came from, but who am I to disagree. Let's just say the first time they see a Holiday Inn, there will be significant disappointment.
Saturday afternoon we unpacked (a wee bit stressful with our helpers), unplugged the hotel room phones as they were beyond exciting about those - especially "the buttons with pictures", and explored the hotel. We took our first Metro ride to the Smithsonian where we visited the American History Museum. The Star Spangled Banner has undergone extensive preservation work and just recently was put back on display...the lines were huge. We went down a floor and found a hands-on display about invention and Madeleine and Emily could touch things to their hearts' content. Till and I were informed this was the "family room of the museum".
Following the Smithsonian, we had dinner at the Union Station food court (I know you are jealous) and then went swimming in the hotel pool. We also practiced getting on and off escalators! In all of my planning for this (including going to Busch Gardens in the late fall without the stroller to see how far the girls could walk before it wasn't worth the whining) - I didn't think about escalators and their prominent role in the subway system. I really did not want to mess with the stroller in the Metro, so we found a little-used escalator in the hotel and did a lot of practice with "one, two, three, big step" - the girls did a great job and are now pros (and highly distraught there are not buildings with escalators in Williamsburg).
Madeleine, President-Elect Obama, Emily in the hotel lobby.
Madeleine (right) giving Emily a hug - Em is thrilled - while waiting for the Metro.
Sunday morning Till went to his conference and the girls and I went to the zoo. We met our friends Meredith, Ethan and Jude who moved from Williamsburg to the DC area about a year and a half ago. The zoo's website stated that it opens at some ungodly hour and mentioned you can rent strollers. We met Meredith et.al. at 9. I did not want to deal with our stroller (the size of a Honda Civic) in the Metro, so we just hoofed it and planned on renting a zoo stroller when we got there. The Metro stop is about a third of a mile, uphill, from the zoo entrance (I knew this in advance and kept it to myself). When we got there, we learned the buildings are not open until 10. So, no stroller was rented and it took peanut butter M&Ms, from the 7-11 across the street from the zoo, to bribe four little feet all the way back to the Metro station.
However, we had fun with our friends and got to see pandas, lions, tigers, elephants, a rhinoceros, orangutans, gorillas, a zebra, fish, etc. etc. while there.
Riding the Metro (empty because it is Sunday morning).
Ethan, Jude, Emily and Madeleine with Lucy - the 33 year old orangutan.
Panda bear Madeleine.
Panda bear Emily.
Two bears.After our zoo excursion we went back to our castle room and, thanks to blackout blinds, took a long nap. That night we walked (two of us in the stroller) to dinner and then went on a walk to the White House and Washington Monument so we could see them with their lights on. Something about one of those "Washington At Night" bus tours suggested it would be a waste of money on this particular visit...
Monday morning we went back to the American History Museum and waited for the doors to open (I'm totally okay with being a geek and an early one at that). We were the 3rd-6th people to see the Star Spangled Banner that day. The display area has very low light to protect the flag and two of us were a bit nervous about the dark. However, we were intrigued by the size of the flag, etc. As we left the display Emily and Madeleine decided they would like to go through again, but the line was already to the 30 minute mark, so we decided maybe next time.
We then headed to the Air and Space Museum where Madeleine and Emily had fun looking at airplanes and rockets. We also had lunch and they got to try astronaut ice cream. Then it was our final ride on the Metro and back into the car. The next trip we take that is longer than 20 miles, someone is riding in a dog crate on the roof...I don't care if it is me or them, but someone is up there.
Emily at the Air and Space Museum.
Madeleine at the Air and Space Museum.
Emily (left) and Madeleine with their first pumpkin pie.Thanksgiving was a very low-key affair at our house. The holiday isn't significant for Till and the girls don't really eat meat....so it was boneless skinless chicken breast and Stove Top at our house. As I told my dad - I will go to the effort to make that pain-in-the-fanny meal at the point we can get through it without me having to say "Please don't put that sticker on your spoon!" However, the girls and I did make a pumpkin pie which received less than enthusiastic reviews from the preschool set.
My family mocks me for this, and I don't care. NORAD tracks Santa on Christmas Eve (it is actually a hoot to listen to the reports from the bases around the world - and thanks to time zones you can do it all day long!). Sadly, the site doesn't really give much insight to Santa's activities in the "off" season. However, it will be up and running again on December 1st!! Click here.
