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Wednesday, July 6, 2022

the bean goes to washington

once we got home, the bean had one full day at home to do laundry and get packed for a long-awaited trip with her history teacher and most of the 8th grade class to the east coast.  they were spending a few days in washington d.c. before boarding a bus that would take them to philadelphia, plymouth rock, and boston.  originally, the itinerary had them ending the trip in NYC but because of vaccination requirements in the city they had to make some adjustments, which the bean was super bummed about.  still, boston is a great city full of historical sites to see, and i knew they would have a great time.

we were proud to learn that she'd been selected as one of four students in the class who would lay a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier on the second day of their trip.  and with a fairly strict dress code for those students, we made a quick trip out to nordstrom rack to pick out some appropriate attire for her to pack.

i managed to get our hairstylist to squeeze a haircut in for her too, which she was really excited about.  she'd been wanting to chop off a good length for awhile, but had to wait until cheer season was over.  and when it was done she was super excited and i thought she looked adorable.

each student had to present proof of a negative covid test taken within 48 hours of the start of the trip, so we busted out one of our home tests and sent the results in.

the students were instructed to meet up at the airport bright and early - 6am for their 8am flight.  that alarm went off mighty early, and since it was a sunday morning we hit zero traffic and got there with plenty of time to spare.

as much as i would have loved to join the trip - and i could have, as parents were invited to come along as chaperones - we knew that she would have a great time without mommy or daddy watching over her shoulder.  plus, we figured it was a great way for her to gain some independence and with high school starting soon, that was definitely a good thing.  and so we pulled up to the terminal where her classmates were gathering, helped her get her luggage out, gave her big hugs and said our goodbyes for the week.

we heard from her as often as she was allowed to be on her phone, and it was fun reading her reactions to the places they were visiting and seeing the pictures she shared with us.  i was also grateful to a lot of my mom friends who did go on the trip, as they texted me updates and sent me pictures that they took.








it was such an honor for her to participate in the wreath laying at the tomb of the unknown soldier, and it was the one thing that i wished i could have been there to see.



and i was so touched when she asked me to send her the picture of her and her sister sitting in front of the washington memorial way back in 2010, so that she could (partially) recreate it.


the worst part was the long delay they experienced on their way home due to some crazy weather in chicago, where they had an hourlong layover that turned into several hours.  the hub was gone for the weekend when she got home, so i was poised to drive out to LAX to pick her up when they landed at 10pm, but with the delay they didn't actually land till 2am.  yikes.  so i was super grateful when our friends offered to take her with them and drop her off at home.  we were so happy to have her back:

it was a whirlwind of a trip, and while the days were long (up at 6, lights out by 10) they really made the most of their time out there.  they made memories that will last a lifetime, and i hope she's glad she went.  

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