saturday outing part 1: national mall + museums

We started our day downtown. Abi joined us for the day which made Amelia very happy. The kids loved playing on the grass on the Mall as we walked to the National Gallery of Art. The Andrew Wyeth exhibit was fantastic. His paintings of windows were beautiful. We got a quick look at the Degas/Cassatt exhibit. But then I remembered that people in D.C. hate children. How dare we bring five! children into an art museum. Despite their good behavior, we still got lots of dirty looks. Apparently art museums are like funeral homes?

 Too bright!

 This new, lush grass on the mall was just asking for cartwheels.

The I. M. Pei pyramids at the National Gallery are always fun.

 Highlight for the kids. The moving walkway between the East and West buildings.

 These old phone booths next to the restrooms were also a big hit.

 We walked past the National Museum of the American Indian.

Burgers and shakes at Good Stuff for lunch. Yum!

a capitol tree + shakes

After visiting the Botanic Garden we walked across the street to see the Capitol Christmas tree. Then made a stop at Good Stuff for delicious burgers and shakes. We already knew how awesome the toasted marshmallow shake was but we tried their seasonal chocolate peppermint shake also and it was perfect. Just the right amount of peppermint. I think I need another one before peppermint season ends. 

Oliver thoroughly enjoyed the assortment of beverages.