Mount Vernon

Since we were just sitting around, waiting for baby to show up, I thought I'd better take my Mom to do some fun, local things...so she wouldn't get bored. :)

Annika had been trying to get us to Mt. Vernon ever since her 5th grade field trip there, so off we went to visit George Washington's historic home.

James, with George....

....other kids, rudely standing in front of Martha.

Cozette kept asking, "Why are we visiting this guy? Why are we at his house?"

...even after numerous explanations and an orientation video about George Washington. (Maybe that's because she thought it was terrifying and was hiding her face for most of the movie.)

I don't think she gets the whole president thing yet.

Sofi took a mental health day off of school to come with us...and thank goodness! She did a lot of Cozy carrying.

I could barely get my big, pregnant self around the plantation.

We toured the house. It was lovely.

Sofia plans to replicate it some day on her own estate.

Lucky for her that George was a little thrifty: the stones you see on the side of his house are actually planks with shaped edges and a coating of paint and sand.

Faux finish.

Grandma Linda, on the river side of  the the house.

Some hooligans, looking out over the Potomac River.

Looking at the ferry that we didn't go on.

I loved the farm-y parts of the estate. I may, in fact, need to purchase a sheep. Check out the amazing job she's doing cutting the grass! It's nice and trim everywhere she can reach. On the other hand, I do worry that any sheep we got might suffer the same fate as the the sheep in Cheaper by the Dozen, who likely died from being ridden too often.

..and the lovely walled kitchen garden! It was full of cherry trees and peonies.

Climbing roses!

The whole thing made me want to go home and garden...but I was too gigantically pregnant.

Grandma bought Annika some artichoke seeds from the gift shop, so we'll see what comes of it.

We had a great time, in spite of the heat, and I didn't give birth at Mount Vernon. 

All in all, a fairly successful field trip.