Farewell Tour Continues

December continued to be a fun yet busy month for us. With the kids off school since the 20th and me off work since the 23rd we have been able to get lots of good things done. Over the break we have taken time each day to sort through the house and determine what things we want to move, and what things we would pull out of a box and say, "Why did I move this?" The latter things have been going in a donation pile or sometimes just into the trash. We have also been pulling things off the walls, and prepping things for the movers to come, like cleaning the mud and dirt off things in the garage, or wiping down and dismantling everything in my workshop. At this point I think we have a pretty good handle on things, and we still have a week and half to go.

With all of that work around the house we have also been trying to mix in some fun activities. On the 20th Trevor's swim team had a Christmas party. The pool he swims at also has several bounce houses, and even an obstacle course for the water. The kids had a good time playing on all of that.

Trevor about to go down the slide

Alexa inching across the narrow crossing

One thing that Trevor has been asking to do since he learned it existed several years ago is to go to the International Spy Museum. We always said he had to wait until he and Alexa were older, because it is not targeted at kids. At this point we had waited as long as we could, if we were ever going to do it, so we went there before Christmas. We all got to assume cover identities, the kids hid in some duct work, spying on people, and we  learned a lot about spy craft and spies through history. We also got to see an exhibit about James Bond Villains.

Trevor and Alexa listening to various signals

Leaving the Spy Museum we found that there was a Christmas market across the street. We walked through, buying a snack to eat, looking at the crafts, and enjoying the live music.

Then it was time for Christmas. We made a big dinner for Christmas Eve. We opened presents on Christmas Day and have been playing with different games, puzzles and crafts since then. Alexa also decided to try to make her own manger scene out of Legos. It turned out really well.

Christmas Dinner

Alexa's Manger Scene

Last Saturday some friends invited us to go on a hike with them through Prince William Forest Park. We ended up missing a turn in the trail and taking a longer detour than we had originally intended, but the weather was nice, so we really enjoyed getting to be outside and spending time with friends.

Another thing that we had always put off until the kids were older was visiting the Capitol and the White House. Visiting the White house is not going to happen for us. You have to request tickets for that through your Representative months in advance. The Capitol is a bit easier to get into. We went there this past Monday. They are currently doing work on the rotunda, so it is not the best time for pictures, but that is the breaks. On the tour we got to see the crypt (which does not actually have anyone buried in it), the rotunda, and Statuary Hall. For future reference for any of you that may visit DC, if you want to actually get into the Senate or the House of Representatives you have to request those tickets from your Senator, or Representative. Technically you can find their office while you are there and go ask for tickets that day, if anyone is working, but getting them in advance is easier. We were unaware of this until we were at the Capitol, but still managed to secure passes to enter the House of Representatives. You can't take pictures in there though.

The East side of the Capitol Building

Inside the Rotunda

To Cap things off we went to Christmas Town at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg. Most of the coasters are closed, but they did have Verbolten open, which is a really fun and unique coaster. They also had lots of smaller rides open, and shows to see. At night they have lights everywhere as you walk, or ride the train. It was a fun day.