Steve and Halie: 03/01/2010

I'm finally finding some time to post about our little trip! A couple of weeks ago Steve and I headed out to D.C. to be at the special ceremony for his grandmother, Oma, who was receiving a Congressional Gold Medal for her service as a WASP during WW2. It is the highest honor a civilian can receive from the government and what an honor it was to be there to support Oma! It was also great because it served as a big family reunion as well and I got to meet quite a few of Steve's extended family from Georgia that I had never met. Sweet family! Steve and I decided to go out to D.C. a couple of days early and stay a day late to do some touristy things. Cambry stayed here with my parents (G & Pops) and had a great time with them! We are so thankful they were able to take some time off work to love and care for her! What a blessing. We had a FABULOUS time but we missed Cambry greatly! It was a long time away from our baby girl! Below are some of the highlights of our trip in pictures:

On Tuesday, we started off with a trip to the Capitol Building & an audio tour of the inside. I found it very interesting!

We grabbed a quick lunch on the way to Mt. Vernon, George Washington's estate. This was probably my most favorite sightseeing part of the trip! I just love historical homes and learning about what went on in back in the day in those homes.

Wednesday was the big ceremony day for Oma! We headed back out to the Capitol Building for the ceremony and then enjoyed a big family lunch at famous Old Ebbit restaurant.

Here we are waiting in the HUGE line to get through security. Apparently the ceremony was the largest they have ever accommodated in the Capitol Building, so they were a little, umm, slow & unorganized with all the people. :) We made it through, though!

Oma's sweet airforce escort, Cheif Meckles, made these precious signs for all 22 of us family members at the ceremony. We were to use them to locate each other once we all got there. It was a VERY creative and great idea. It is a picture of when Cambry & Oma met for the first time. It was a surprise to me when we got there and brought tears to my eyes, as I was missing her so much!

Steve's Dad & cousin Sarah both were interviewed for the Houston & Dallas news!

Oma & her gold medal, along with her escort Chief Meckles & all the family. We are so proud of you, Oma!!

Thursday was our big sightseeing day. It was our last full day in D.C., so we crammed as much as we could into it. We were exhausted by the end of the day, but it was worth it! We decided to take a bus tour b/c it stopped at all the major sights we wanted to see. It worked out great! The first stop was Arlington National Cemetery.

They also had a special exhibit to honor the WASPS at the cemetery and had a life size picture of Oma on the wall! WOW!

Lincoln Memorial & Washington Monument

The White House
When we got to the white house, they had the typical visitors walkway blocked off where we couldn't get in front of the gate to take pictures. Apparently it was because the president was arriving & we had to wait for him to get inside and all the secret service to be cleared out before they would open it up. High security. I guess it a good thing. :)

The Supreme Court Building

We also visited the Holocaust museum & got passes in the Capitol Building to listen to the House & the Senate in session. Very interesting.

To top it off, we celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary, there as well! We had a wonderful dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak house on the 11th floor of a building overlooking the Reagan Airport. Magnificent view, delicious food, & perfect company!