Apollo 8 Christmas Eve Message

On Christmas Eve, 1968, astronauts William Anders, Jim Lovell, and Frank Borman were orbiting the moon on Apollo 8.  They were on a live television broadcast and showed pictures of the Earth and Moon seen from Apollo 8.  (I don't think that these are the pics they showed.)  This is the message that they shared on the most watched TV broadcast to date.  They took turns reading from the book of Genesis.  I love it!

Washington D.C. Continued............

Smithsonian Castle

The Capitol in the Capitol

Carrington in a fun kids' section at the Air and Space Museum

Orville and Wilbur Wright's airplane

The Jefferson Memorial at night

Clayton, Carrington, and me

This would have been a neat picture if it wasn't so dark.

The other side of the Jefferson Memorial ~ it was so beautiful!!!!!

The Metro

Mt. Vernon ~ george Washington's Plantation!!  this was Carrington's favorite place.

sitting on the front porch......not sure why I'm leaning over so much

outbuildings on the plantation

The garden was really pretty.

Carrington going into the garden.

View of the front porch.

A copy of Martha Washington's wedding dress.

The museum at Mt. Vernon was really great!!

Washington D.C. Part III

There is a tall fence on all sides of the White House, and security guards everywhere.  It's a very safe place to hang out.  ;-)

Washington Monument at dusk.

The White House was very beautiful at night.

Sights of the city.

We saw a long line of motorcycles every day, on the way to the Metro station.

The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, which contained a lot of stuff about the THEORY of Evolution.  I'm thankful for Science books (http://www.answersingenesis.org/) and curriculum that debates that theory very well!

A blue whale hanging from the ceiling.

The guide told us to look scared.  Don't we look scared??

This was a whale's tooth.

Carrington looking at the *Hope Diamond *

The Hope Diamond ~ didn't seem that big, and I don't like the new setting. 

Diamond earrings worn by Marie Antoinette!!!  I'm not that into diamonds, but I thought it was very cool that M. A. wore them!  :-D

A live tarantula.  They had quite a collection of bugs.

Dorothy's ruby red slippers.

Abe Lincoln's top hat from the day he was shot!

The Smithsonian Museum of American History ~ had a lot of wonderful memorabilia in it.  The flag that inspired Francis Scott Key, during the War of 1812, to write the Star Spangled Banner was in there.   It is kept  in a dark, temperature controlled room, under a glass case.  It is very thin and threadbare now, but it was a THRILL  to see!!!

George Washington's uniform!!!  He was 6' 2 & 1/2 " tall.  Martha was 4' 11".

A gunboat from the Revolutionary War.

Drum from the Revolutionary War.

Clayton would make a silly president.  ;-D

This flag was on the side of Lincoln's coffin when he died.

Martha Washington's dress with a new shawl and sleeves, of course.  ;-)

Mary Todd Lincoln's dress, which shows she had a tiny waist.  I was always under the impression that she was plump.