Chesapeake Bay Day 8

Got up and had breakfast at hotel. Packed up. Jordan said good-bye to ponies on the hotel property (hotel gave us horse treats at check-in that she's been feeding them). Drove north.

Drove to Philadelphia, PA. Saw outside of Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. Heavy traffic leaving Philly. Stopped at McD's for lunch around 3:45 (kids hungry!).

Went to Hershey's Chocolate World (Hershey, PA) and took Hershey's Great American Chocolate Tour. Pretty good for a freebie. Got a free sample of Reese's Clusters. Yum. Last scheduled stop. Heading home. ETA: 3:36 am.

Chesapeake Bay Day 7

Kids and M swam in lazy river one last time.Saw an aircraft carrier in the ocean from our porch. Drove north - took Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel.

Drove to Chincoteague. Hiked Woodland Trail on Assateague Island. Saw three horses very close and others further away. Drove to shores and relaxed on beach. Saw more ponies on the way out. Went back to hotel (Refuge Inn) and checked in. Went swimming. Ate supper at Don's Seafood Restaurant and kids (especially J) discovered that they like fried shrimp. (I shared.) Walked to "Misty" statue. Went back to hotel for more swimming and bedtime.

Chesapeake Bay Day 6

Kids swam in lazy river, then we drove to Norfolk, VA to tour the Naval Base. Guided bus tour - very interesting. Saw many ships, helicopters, planes. Saw historic state homes from 1907 World's Fair. Got a feel for what life on a base would be like. Drove to the USS Wisconsin for self-guided tour. Spoke to a vet that served on the ship in the early 1950's, and another that served on aircraft carriers.

Came back to hotel and walked on boardwalk down to Neptune sculpture and did some souvenir shopping. Kids had their first saltwater taffy. Ate supper in our room (pizza) after kids went swimming.

Chesapeake Bay Day 5

Drove Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park.

Stopped at Monticello - didn't have time to wait for tour.

Drove to Virginia Beach - Holiday Inn Sunspree. Kids jumped in lazy river. Drove around looking for a place for supper and ended up at Applebee's. Came back to our nice big room (king bed and pull-out couch/ocean view) for pillow fight and bed time.

Chesapeake Bay Day 4

Took metro to Smithsonian. Toured Museum of Natural History. Because it was raining, museums were crazy busy. Kids liked the mammals and ocean life exhibits. Dinosaurs were cool, too, but wall-to-wall people. Left at lunchtime and ate our "picnic" under a refreshment stand overhand while it sprinkled.

Headed over to Museum of American History. Saw presidents' exhibit and a house that had been lived in for 200 years. Didn't wait in line to see major attractions. Kids were done with museums, so we decided to head back to our car in Crystal City and take off for Shenandoah.
Arrived in Front Royal, VA at 5:00. Had supper at Wendy's. Went back to hotel and watched North Carolina beat Michigan State in the NCAA finals.

Chesapeake Bay Day 3

Woke in the morning to a call from my mom that my grandma had passed away. :(

Took metro into DC. Saw White House (front and back).

Walked to WWII Memorial (again), Vietnam Memorial. Had picnic lunch by Lincoln Memorial (pb&j, chips, fruit). Went into Lincoln, then walked to Korean War Memorial. Walked around entire Tidal Basin, including FDR & Jefferson Memorials.

Kids were pooped and cranky. Took subway to Arlington Cemetary. Took TourMobile up to Tomb of the Unknowns and watched changing of the guard, and saw Arlington House (house was closed) and the grounds. Waited awhile for another bus to take us back down. Went back to hotel and ate supper at Chili's across the street.

Chesapeake Bay Day 2

Kids woke up early (of course) around 7:30. We got up around 8:00 and ate breakfast in the room (donut holes, pb&j, cereal). Walked to metro (very close) and headed toward zoo. Realized that Ford's Theater was on the way so we stopped there. HUGE line to get in! We chose to admire it from the street and hop back on the metro to go to the Zoo. Not too busy when we first arrived. Saw pandas (yay!) and everything else. J loved the cheetahs. We all enjoyed the antics of the sea lions. B got to see lemurs. The "Amazonia" exhibit was impressive. Lunch at the Mane Restaurant by the big cats.

Finished the zoo by around 2:30 and took metro to Washington Monument. Super windy! Crazy! Kids enjoyed running around on the hill. Could see the White House, Jefferson Memorial, Lincoln Memorial and Capitol. Walked down to WWII Memorial. Very cool - pool with fountains surrounded by pillars for each state.

Headed back to metro station, but it was so full you couldn't even get in! Throngs of people were backed up onto the street! We kept walking to L'Enfant Station and squeezed onto a very full train, which gradually emptied as it headed out of town.

Went back to hotel and relaxed until supper. Ate in Alexandria at Generous George's Pizza. Long wait, but good pizza.

Chesapeake Bay Day 1

Left home at 11:59 am. Smooth sailing all the way to Arlington, VA. Arrived at the Radisson-Crystal City at 10:30pm.