Weekends with visitors are among our favorites. It’s not that we don’t enjoy our time together but it is always great having extra smiles and laughs in the house. Out-of-towners are also a good excuse to go see the sites of DC. Tourists aren’t the only ones who should enjoy them right?

With some coming from the south and some coming from the north, we decided to all meet at The Mall and have a picnic. Equipped with an assortment of tasty treats and at least 16 lbs of sandwiches (three sandwiches and I’m not kidding about the weight) from Stachowski’s Market, we set up shop at the base of the Washington Monument. Sadly there are few places left that you could call a butcher shop these days but Stachowski’s is one of them. While we were waiting on our massive pastrami sandwich, Will got a tour of the kitchen where he even got to see a whole pig’s head! Too cool.

Animal heads aside, the picnic was a blast. Afterwards, Sophia showcased some previously undiscovered kite skills as we waited for the sun to set. After dark, it was off to see the monuments at night and try and snap a few pictures. The National Mall remains one of my favorite places to see at night.