First thing today we headed to Arlington National Cemetery. We saw the final resting place for John F. Kennedy and some of his family. They are refurbishing the eternal flame, so there is a temporary flame and an explanation of what they are doing. I'm sad for the kids to not have been able to experience the serenity of this gravesite. You can see the pictures below.
We then toured General Lee's house. You should read about how Arlington Cemetery came to be. Revenge! We toured the house and they are trying to restore Mrs. Lee's gardens to what they once were. There's a quote that I took a picture of that I hope my grandchildren would say about me one day. I've tried to instill the love of gardening to my own children, and I think they all may have green thumbs! Picture below are from the Lee house.
Next was the wreath laying ceremony. Hannah, Karen, Jon, and Nick did a wonderful job! We were all very proud of them. You can view the videos of our wreath coming out, the actual ceremony from the front view, our wreath, and the ceremony from the back view. The videos are on youtube but you have to have the link in order to view them. Just click on your choice to view. We also took a picture of the Challenger Memorial for the kids that went to the Challenger Space Center when they were in 5th and 6th grade.
I don't think anyone got a video of the Changing of the Guard when we were there. Here's a link to one I found on youtube. It's pretty cool because it looks as though some Veterans are there as well.
I think I mentioned this on the first day, but 11 of the 25 students that went on this trip were in my 5th grade class. We (or I did anyway) :-) wanted a picture of us on this trip.
Next was our adventure at Mount Vernon. This is one of my favorite places on the tour. We toured the house, the grounds, and it's my favorite place for souvenirs! They were having a festival on this day and we were worried that it might be too crowded. It wasn't too bad. Some of the kids roasted apples. They cooked them over an open fire on a wooden stick for 15 seconds. Then they dipped them in a mixture of honey, maple syrup, and water. Sounds yummy! The guide told me it was better than marshmallows. I forgot to ask the kids how they tasted!
Our last item on our itinerary was the the play, Shear Madness at the Kennedy Center. It is hilarious! There are a couple of scenes where it's just as much fun to watch the expressions on the kids' faces as it to watch the play!
The kids were great and I truly enjoyed getting to spend these last 4 days with them. The bus ride was a little rough (not due to the kids, just the fact of sleeping on a bus!), but it's all part of the fun of togetherness! I hope this is and will be a memory that they will always remember. I'm glad I got to be a part of it!
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