Happy New Year 2013!

The Herrons have continued to explore the Washington, DC area during the second year of our tour. Highlights of 2012 included:

• Attending the Cherry Blossom Festival to see the lovely flowers in bloom, and watching hundreds of kites dance in the sky at the Kite Festival. 
• Spending a day at the National Book Festival to watch Justin Roberts and attend the talk by Mary Pope Osborne. 
• Visiting the White House twice, for the garden tour and for a tour inside.
• Exploring the gargoyles at the National Cathedral.
• Spelunking in the Luray Caverns and wandering around Polyface Farm.
• Watching Fourth of July fireworks on the National Mall after Carter played the role of Thomas Jefferson at the White House Visitor Center re-enactment of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
• Gazing at the other-worldly flora at the Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens.

We extended our range outside of the Beltway, visiting Williamsburg, Monticello, Great Falls, Shenandoah, West Virginia, as well as South Bass Island (Ohio), New York City, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. Erik took a quick trip to Ukraine to observe the October elections. We also saw family and friends in Kansas, Ohio, and Michigan, including a wonderful day at our friends Todd and Diane's wedding.

We have watched Carter thrive this year. He truly loves our adventures, from visiting nearly all of the Smithsonian museums to climbing mountains in Shenandoah. He really enjoys his school, and is busy outside of school with piano, running (in addition to several 5Ks, he ran his first 8K this year), soccer, student council, and just playing with friends and with us.

More than the places we visited, we enjoyed spending time together as a family and with the incredible friends we have made over the last couple of years.

We wish everyone a healthy and happy 2013!