Patrick and I decided to gift the girls an experience for Christmas this year. Last year, we went on a spring break trip to North Carolina, but this year we opted for something a bit bigger. We’ve never done a whole family trip to a big city, so we decided we’d gift the girls a family trip to Washington D.C.

The girls chose the things they wanted to do, and then I created a rough daily schedule around that. Their choices were Ford’s Theatre, the monuments, and a tour of the Capitol Building. They also wanted to tour the White House, but unfortunately, there was no availability for the week we were there.

We debated flying vs. driving. Driving would allow us to make a few stops along the way, like checking out Mount Vernon and Colonial Williamsburg. But, it would make the trip longer, which would tack on extra dollars. And, we would already be filling our days in DC so we didn’t want to push it too much. We ended up finding a pretty good deal on flights through Southwest.

The only bad thing about a family of 5 is that when flying, some combination of us is most likely going to end up with a stranger in our row. My dad checked the flight going up and it was mostly full – fewer than 10 seats left to sell. So, Regina decided she’d go full-on angsty pre-teen to deter anyone from sitting in her row with dad (when we fly, it always ends up with Maddy, Molly, me in a row, and Patrick, Regina in a row). It worked!

I’ve flown a zillion times in my life (perks of a dad who worked for airlines for most of my childhood and early adulthood), but you guys – this landing was insane. There was a gale warning, which meant high winds. And flying into Reagan International, over the river, in a gale warning is an experience. Maddy and Molly gripped my hands so tightly, and kept asking if we were going to crash. I’ve never experienced a landing like that, but we made it safely, although a bit queasy.

After collecting our luggage and finding a taxi, we headed to our hotel. We booked a Residence Inn because we wanted more space and figured the free breakfast would save us a bit each day. The hotel was fine and in a decent area, but next time, I’d prefer to stay a bit closer to everything. The hotel was packed, and breakfast each morning was a zoo. We ended up Ubering more than we probably would have if we had just stayed at the Marriot or JW. We know better for next time!

We started our afternoon in DC with a walk on the wharf. Not the best idea when the temps are in the 40s and there are 30+ mph winds! Not only were we freezing, but poor Molly kept getting almost blown away! After a quick lunch at Shake Shack, we decided to head to see a few sites. The last time Patrick and I were there, we loved the Renwick Gallery, so since it is right by the White House and right by where we had dinner reservations, we decided to make that our first official stop.

I love this museum because it has modern art that is so unique and different, and a lot of it made the girls think. It was a lovely first stop on our trip.

Next up, we headed to the White House for some photos. Regina was a bit disappointed that President Biden hadn’t rolled out the red carpet for her, and since a tour was unavailable during our time there, this was as close as we could get.

After a quick stop in the White House gift shop, it was time to head to dinner. We made reservations at Old Ebbitt Grill because not only is it a hot spot, it’s where Patrick used to eat on his trips to DC to visit Father Dennis. We had early reservations, but the place was packed! Unfortunately, we didn’t get to sit in the main restaurant (which is lovely with its emerald green booths and the feeling that lots of history has happened in them). We were seated in their courtyard, which is inside the main building in what feels like a giant office complex. They still try to carry the feeling of the main restaurant out there, and it was much quieter.

My plan was originally to visit the monuments and memorials after dinner. But, it was SO cold and the wind was still insane. So, we decided not to push it, and after a lovely leisurely dinner, we decided to head back to our hotel and call it an early night with snacks from the hotel lobby and a slightly inappropriate movie (the girls love vacation daddy!). We knew we’d be up bright and early the next day anyway.