MIL & Me

So I know that you all were shocked that MIL was going to DC with us. I was a little worried that she would drive me nuts! However, before we left I told myself that I was going to wipe the slate clean and try to revive our relationship.

Here is what I learned...

1. When MIL has the chance to spend time with Manga Dork...she wants me GONE!

2. She has no desire to do anything with me...just the 2 of us.

3. When I want to go do something under the perfect circumstances...she will turn me down. If given the chance to do the same thing under imperfect circumstances with Dr. Hubby...she will go without hesitation.

4. She can not go a day without talking to my SIL. Their phone conversations are alot more comfortable than ours.

I gave it a fair chance...I was so glad when we came home and she went to her house. I was sad...I had high expectations.

I invited her to go this weekend with my mom and I to the Scrapbook Expo...she told someone the other day that she felt good that my mom wanted her to go...my mom didn't even know I asked her. It was like she didn't want to acknowledge that I had invited her.

She has turned me down 3 times since the trip to go do things. When do I just throw up my hands and give up?!

Celebrities Take Out Restraining Orders On Scrappy

We had a blast at Madame Tussaud's in DC...

Manga Dork bumped with Beyonce...that's ok as long as they are not doing her dance routine for "Single Ladies"...tacky!

I got a little "touchy-feely" with Johnny Depp...I am not blushing...I got sunburned the day before!

Oh George...how many lips have been on that face!

Tiger Woods checks out Manga Dork's putting skillz.

Brad and Angelina were disappointed when they found out I was already adopted!

Oh yes ladies...those arms are HUGE!

Move over Obama...there's a new prez in town...unfortunately she is a homophobic pro-life pro-gun christian WOMAN!

Manga Dork holds her first press conference...probably to declare every day Manga Dork Day! What a teenager!

Now what is she telling Nixon!?

When Dr. Hubby asked Manga Dork how she liked Madame Tussaud's she replied..."Mama got to second base with George Bush! LOL!

TGIF!

Who would you like to "interact" with at Madame Tussaud's?

I Was Down...But Today I Went OUT!

After walking my feet off on Thursday we spent Friday lounging around the resort. At the end of the day I ventured out to the dock on the Potomac River to try to capture the sunset. Well, I missed it...

Today (Saturday) we were brave enough to venture out for one more day in DC. We started out at the Space and Air Museum....or is it Air and Space...too tired to get up and look...sorry...LOL! This is the Spirit of St. Louis that Lindbergh flew around the world.

This is the airplace (with new fabric in '48) that the Wright Bros. flew in 1903 for their first flight.

We found the McDonalds! It was hiding in the Air and Space Museum. They even have the McDonalds pizza...and these cool flavored cones...I was SO jealous and ready to move to DC until I learned the saddest thing...they do not have SWEET TEA! These poor deprived souls.

Thank you Pam for suggesting the Holocaust Memorial Museum. This was such a touching place to visit. It was hard to see the pictures of the people and then learn that they were killed hours or days later! The thousands of shoes exhibit touched me the most. This is a "Must-See."

The warm weather brought out the street performers. I love it! We heard a trumpet player, a saxophone player, and this guy with his sons. They were SO cool!

The next museum we visited was the Natural History Museum. I was mainly interested in seeing the dinosaurs and...

the Hope Diamond. It is So cool! They had several pieces of jewelry with interesting pasts. They had earrings that belonged to Marie Antoinette and a necklace and crown given to someone by Napoleon.

Dr. Hubby joined us for the National Museum of American History. I was thrilled that they had a Lincoln exhibit...I saw his top hat, suit, pocket watch, and several other items.

The pop culture junkie in me loved seeing Dorothy's red slippers and the C3PO costume used in Return of the Jedi!

As were walking back to the shuttle bus the sun was setting beyond the Washington Monument. With the warm weather, you could see couples cuddling on the benches, friends taking a stroll, and parents playing sports with their kids on the National Mall.

While waiting for the party bus, MIL and Dr. Hubby walked up the steps to the Capitol. Manga Dork and I were too tired. I wish I had went...they got to witness a guy proposing to his girlfriend on the steps! How romantic!

We go home tomorrow...check out at 1pm.

We started our day on the PARTY BUS!


THe driver dropped us off at the Capitol Building and Dr. Hubby wanted to see the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial...at the opposite end of the National Mall! This is the Sculpture Garden entrance and the brick building is the Smithsonian Castle.

The Washington Monument is very tall and very white...not even close to as exciting as the Statue of Liberty was when we visited NYC though. Due to Dr. Hubby's schedule we did not attempt to go inside due to Dr. Hubby's limited time.

The World War II Memorial sits between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.

Each one of the pillars represent a state...my paternal grandfather was a soldier in WWII. I look forward to showing him the photos.

This is a photo I took standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in the spot where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his "I Have a Dream" speech. I was surprised to see the reflecting pool was drained! It's not very deep at all!

Our family photo with the Lincoln Memorial...Dr. Hubby had to leave and go back to learning at the ACOFP conference. BooHoo...

The Vietnam War Memorial was a very emotional place. All those names! A vet was there answering questions. We saw him greet 2 other vietnam vets...they weren't the only ones with tears in their eyes. My dad is a Vietnam Veteran.

The National Christmas Tree

I was excited to see the White House...however I was not overly impressed. I really thought it was alot BIGGER!

The National Treasury

We toured the Petersen House where they took President Lincoln after he was shot.

This is the bedroom where Lincoln died 9 hours after he was shot. The bed was in the corner to the right...it was not the same bed...the real bed is in a museum in another state.

After the fun we had in NYC's Chinatown I was excited to see DC's version. They are not alike at all....nothing but chinese restaurants and maybe 3 shops. Shoot! I wanted a Faux Louis Vuitton wallet to go with my purse.

MIL wanted to get the grandkids tshirts. The McCain shirts were on sale...this cracked me up!

After our shopping trip in ChinaTown we went back and toured Ford's Theatre. This is the balcony where Lincoln was shot.

I had read an article saying Obama's prescence could be felt all over DC...I now know why! His face and/or name is on everything from earrings to candy bars!

We caught the bus at 5PM and headed back to the Gaylord National.

Manga Dork almost flipped off the bed last night when Anoop was lucky #13 in American Idols Top 13!

This Post is Dedicated

to the memory of

Scrappy's Feet

1974 - 2009

My Feet Are Killing Me!

This morning we missed the free shuttle so MIL got to experience her first ride in a cab.

Our driver dropped us off in front of the Capitol Building. It is SO big and pretty.

Then we crossed the street and saw the Grant Memorial.

I wanted to go to the Library of Congress to view the Bible they used at Lincoln and President Obama's inaugurations. We also saw the contents of Lincoln's pockets on the night he was shot. No photos were allowed.

The outside of the Library is gorgeous and the inside is breathtaking!

There was a Gershwin exhibit...this was the brothers' piano. I also saw the pen Ira used to write his music.

Another exhibit at the Library featured Bob Hope. This is a cast of his nose. I also saw the honorary Oscar he received in 1960. He received 3 in his lifetime.

The Supreme Court Building is very pretty too. It is SO white!

We had lunch at the National Gallery of Art and then explored their exhibits. This is MIL and Manga Dork in the biggest elevator I have ever ridden in!

You see these around alot. When someone is permitted to go through it falls down level with the street so they can drive across...how cool!

We waited for the free shuttle to take us back to the hotel. When we boarded the bus I was shocked to see it was a PARTY BUS complete with disco lights, mirrored ceilings, and stripper pole in the middle! Funny!

My feet are killing me thanks to my cheap tennis shoes I picked up last minute at Walmart...not too smart! Tomorrow Dr. Hubby is going to join us touring in the morning and then in the afternoon we are going to go play at Madame Toussand's wax museum. I can't wait!

PS...Manga Dork almost fell off the bed when they put Anoop in the Wild Card Show!

Our Lazy Day in DC

This is the view of the atrium from our balcony. The whole front of the hotel and some of the roof over the atrium is all glass.

It was 26 degrees here today with a windchill of 13 degrees SO we stayed inside. We went down to the gardens in the afternoon. Manga Dork put on her outfit she wore to the dance since I did not get to take photos on dance day.

I went crazy taking photos, but she just eats it up! This is my favorite! Love that flowery headpiece! I did good.

At night in the gardens they put on a fountain show with water synchronized to music...it is gorgeous!

Tomorrow we venture outside...

BTW...my American Idol picks...Ju Not Joyner...Lil Rounds...Kristen McNamara! It wasn't a fantastic show , but it was better than last week!