John and Kylee: Temple

This Washington DC trip was our trip when our plans went the most awry. We said it was our trip where Plan A didn’t work out, and most of the time Plan B didn’t work out. It was our Plan C trip. That was pretty frustrating, but it was still nice it be together.

How this trip came to be was that John and I were at odds at where we wanted to travel next. He wanted to go on an Alaskan Cruise, and I wanted to go to Washington DC. So we compromised by agreeing to do both, but with the idea that we would do the DC trip on the cheap. We had heard that you could take a direct flight to DC from the Provo airport, which was competitively priced, but then I heard that if you buy airfare in person at the counter they will wave the digital fee. I didn’t know what that amount would be, but I thought it was worth a try. The counter is open just 2 hours a week from 9-11am on a Tuesday. So I went over there and stood in line for the whole time. I was the very last person that was able to buy tickets that day. But I was so glad I was able to because I got the fee waved, which ended up being $92 per ticket. When you times that by a six person family, it ends up being a substantial savings.

However when I bought those tickets months ahead of time, I really didn’t foresee that there would be a government shutdown. I should have thought of that possibility considering how terrible politics are at the moment. But sure enough, the government was shut down and stayed that way for a while. I was so frustrated that my whole trip was getting messed up, which I know seems silly compared to the tons of people that were going without pay, including within my own family.

Anyway, we scrambled with just days ahead of time to plan an entirely new itinerary. We still have the old itinerary in case we ever make it back there. Unfortunately some of those plans didn’t work out either because of the weather and other reasons. I will say though that the trip was still a good time though, and now I know a lot of things to do in DC if for some reason you don’t want to do the obvious things like the visitor centers and the Smithsonian’s.

Flying out of Provo though…man that was nice. First off, it was so chill to leave midday. Let’s just sleep a normal amount, finish packing, and clean up our house before we leave every time. That sounds like a good plan. :) There was a lot of chatter that airports were a disaster because of the government shut down. TSA workers were required to work but weren't getting paid. That meant that a lot of people were calling in sick. There were lots of headlines about airports being short staffed because of this. We didn't know what to expect so we got there just a bit earlier than we normally would at such a small airport. There a little bit of a line, but not bad at all. It was so nice. One thing that was extra nice at the Provo airport was that they have a "Family Room" with a bunch of fun chairs and Bluey streaming on a large TV. Needless to say my kids were so eager to find a seat there.

It was so crazy windy today. I don't think of Provo as being an area with a lot of tumble weeds but there were a bunch flying all of over the place. Workers were fighting the wind to go collect them. That wind was so crazy. There was an addition to the airport that was under construction and I couldn't help but think that it must be getting damaged in the wind. Thankfully, by the time our flight departed the wind had died down significantly.

The direct flight to DC was so great. When went through the airport and went to buy our passes for the train. A worker stopped us and told us not to buy the 7 day passes for everyone. As we thought about it, we agreed with him. Plus he told us that we should just have our smaller two kids walk in front of us as we go through the gates, so not to buy them tickets. This whole exchange saved us a ton of money, which was so nice of that employee.

This system worked flawlessly, including in front of other workers and police officers the entire until the very last metro gate we went through--going through the gate back into the airport. At that very last gate a police officer stopped us and told us that only kids under a certain age are supposed to go through gates without a fee. Whoops! Also, he told us that at the moment when that information wasn't useful at all anymore. And literally no one in all of DC seemed to care except that one guy.

We got to our rental which was so nice. I loved the space. Our older girls loved having their own apartment space downstairs. The younger kids and us had the space upstairs. And the main living area was so nice. I love having space to spread out on vacation and not be in a hotel.

The next morning we hit that time difference hard when we had to get up and ready to do family pictures. It was colder than would have been ideal and way windier. I should have used hairspray on everyone's hair. Our little girls were especially sensitive to the cold. The photographer was so so nice. She was so complementary and happy. I wish she had edited her photos differently. I think she turned the contrast up way too high, but she still got some really nice shots. Love our cute family. I especially loved the photos she took at the WWI memorial. Fun fact that not a national monument, just a city monument. It was gorgeous though.

After the pictures we picked up the rental car right at the mall. It was a fancy Mercedes. Actually too fancy--we couldn't figure out how to put up the seats. It was a combination of buttons, and we really aren't sure what it was we did to get them to sit up. It was barely enough space for our family of six. Driving through DC was no joke, and it was pure chaos to find a lunch spot. We ended up having to pay for parking in a garage and go to a sandwich shop. The parking garage was psycho, and our rental car was stacked three cars deep in the parking area. At least we got some lunch! We also appreciated at the sandwich shop that there were hilarious framed posters with jokes and stories. It was a good time. And the food was good too.

After lunch we drove to the National Cathedral. The Washington National Cathedral, officially the Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, began as a vision by George Washington for a "great church for national purposes" but started construction in 1907, authorized by a 1893 Congressional charter, and finished in 1990, serving as a national house of prayer for major events like state funerals, with its Gothic design built without steel and incorporating unique features like gargoyles and a piece of moon rock. It is the second largest church building in USA. And it is the sixth largest cathedral in the world. It was cool to visit. We particularly enjoyed seeing the view from the top. We could even see the spires of the DC poking up through the trees in the distance.

After the National Cathedral we headed to the Hillwood Estate. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens in Washington, D.C. is the former home of philanthropist Marjorie Merriweather Post, now a museum showcasing her extensive collections of Russian imperial art and 18th-century French decorative arts, alongside 25 acres of formal gardens, woodlands, and a greenhouse. Visitors can tour the mansion, explore themed gardens like the Japanese-style garden and rose garden, see special exhibitions, and enjoy the on-site cafe and gift shop. It's known for its opulent collections, including Fabergé eggs, and offers a glimpse into Post's life and passions. The mansion is Georgian style, and houses the largest collection of Russian imperial art outside of Russia.

This is definitely one of the places that we would have never visited if the Smithsonian’s had been open. But it was actually a pretty cool visit. I loved visiting the historic mansion. She put in this whole theater room where she hosted famous people. One wall had a screen that would come down and it turned into the fanciest theater around.

The gardens were also lovely. I wish we had had more time to explore them. We loved the Japanese style gardens. The little bridges, stepping stones, and manicured trees and shrubs are just the cutest.

Then we took full advantage of having the rental car and drove out of town to see the DC temple. It was so impressive. We pulled into the parking lot for the visitor center and saw workers installing Christmas lights. I bet that would be so fun to see someday. We turned the corner and *bam* there it was. So huge and gorgeous. We stopped by the visitor center and saw the stained glass exhibit which is a twin of the exhibit they have in the Rome Temple visitor center.

We met a guy there who had a lot of unsolicited advice for us about what we should do with our time in DC. He even gave us his phone number in case we had questions. That was really quite nice of him, but it felt like a lot in the moment.

Then we walked up to temple, but didn’t take too long because we had to do grocery shopping before returning the rental car. We headed to the local Costco and used a gift card that we purchased with the Jacobsons help. We spent a couple hundred dollars for food for the week, and indulged in the easier prep food. I think that the biggest travel hack ever is to eat out lunch and use that easy food (that we don’t normally have at home, but is still way cheaper than eating out) for dinner. Works amazing.

We headed back to our cute rental and got there right as the guy who owned our rental car showed up to get it. I guess he lives right around the corner, so it was super convenient for both of us.

Our little girls had to bundle up because of the wind as soon as the pictures were done.

Sandwiches are always a good idea.

Crazy to think about how relatively new this church is.

The only president interred at the cathedral is Woodrow Wilson. Other notable people are Helen Keller and her teacher Anne Sullivan.

The stained glass is amazing.

The world's biggest candle. (not really)

In the children's chapel there was a child's sized organ.

The fanciest backdrop at the front of the church.

The mosaics throughout the church were lovely.

The old script for someone who just died in 1962. Also, how offensive is it for what was said about the husband vs the wife. Good grief!

We love the LEGO versions of the iconic buildings.

View of the National Mall

A window for each girl!

We loved the cool hallway around the top of the cathedral.

We found Utah's seal!

The loved the orchid greenhouse at Hillwood. How amazing are all of the varieties of orchids?

The mossy walkways!

This blossom is amazing

So so many!

The orchids in this breakfast room.

The Faberge egg! Fabergé eggs are handcrafted over 1–2 years by teams of skilled artisans using precious metals (gold, silver), enamel, and jewels, often utilizing a "rose engine" lathe for intricate, guilloché engravings. The process involves detailed sketches, enameling in vibrant colors, setting diamonds, and creating a hidden "surprise" inside. They are often sold for more than $30 million.

Theater room

Chalice

Iver Winfeldt Buch (Norwegian, active in Russia, 1749-1811) St. Petersburg, 1791 Gold, diamonds, chalcedony, bloodstone, nephrite, carnelian, cast glass (11.223)

Although Hillwood has a number of remarkable chalices in its collection, none are more culturally or artistically significant than this one. In 1791, Empress Catherine II presented a set of liturgical gold vessels, including this chalice, to the Holy Trinity Cathedral of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg in memory of her paramour, Grigory Potemkin, who had died that year. Involved with the design of the chalice, Catherine provided the precious materials and a selection of rare carved stones from her own collection. In the mid-1920s, the Soviet government sold the chalice to a London dealer who kept it in his inventory until 1967. That year, after several attempts, the dealer came to an agreement with Marjorie Post, who was eager to add this magnificent piece to Hillwood's collection.