And off we go...

In honor of my father's birthday, this is a tribute to his birthday weekend. My mom took off work early Friday and come and picked me up after my class. This was all kept secret from my dad so when we got home and he was conveniently taking the trash to the green boxes. My mom, my brother, and I moved all of my bags up to my room very quickly and when my dad arrived home, he was very shocked to see me laying on the couch and said very startled, "What are you doing here?"

Okay so boring story? My dad is extremely hard to surprise, being one of those people who shakes the box on Christmas morning and can tell you exactly what is inside no matter how unique you think the gift is. But he was truly surprised that I came home to see him on his birthday.

Saturday we went to the Steven F. Udar-Hazy Center aka the National Air and Space Museum in Dulles, VA because my dad loves places like that. I went in with an open mind but I wasn't sure how much fun I would really have.

To start we went up in a seven-story observation tower (the picture below is what it looks like and also a picture I used from Google, not one I took) the museum has that looks over the Dulles Airport where you can see planes taking off and landing. This was my family's favorite part because it has such a beautiful view, not to mention the awesome architecture of the tower itself.

This is part of the view that we had with me throwing a quat for Phi Mu of course! The tower to the left of my elbow is the tower at the Dulles Airport which gives you a glimpse of how awesome it was even though no picture can depict the real beauty.

We then walked around both hangars, the air and then the space. Southwest Airlines was there and provided me with pretzels which were very helpful for my always growling stomach. The coolest part of the Air hangar was the Enola Gay which was huge and for those who don't know, the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Japan. Fun fact of the day: the Enola Gay was named after the pilot's mother. The picture below was my brother's favorite plane. He thought it looked so cool because it was square-shaped and so tiny.

The Space hangar had the real Discovery Space Shuttle in it which just blows my mind. It was beyond huge it was so cool to see it in person because that's not a common opportunity. The sides had black marks on them from going in and out of space which was a really cool detail to me!

I was just dying to ride the simulator because everyone I know that's been to the museum said that was there favorite part. The simulator consisted of a white box-shaped machine that me and my mom got in with the hopes of me steering and my mom shooting. Mom had the whole shooting thing down but I wasn't the best driver so I just flipped us upside down a few times and it was still fun. Then was the gift shop, every girl's dream anywhere they go. I got freeze dried ice cream sandwiches for me and my boyfriend Trevor which I think is so neat.

Trevor had to work so he couldn't go with us to the museum but we were gonna be near his house so he tagged along to Longhorn Steakhouse which in my opinion is the best end to any day. The food was great and Trevor's steak was shaped like a heart so clearly I had to take a picture.

Overall it was a great day and I think anyone will enjoy their time at the National Air and Space Museum. I'm so glad I got to come home and surprise Dad for his birthday since I love surprises and I'm so thankful for all my parents have done for me and how great of a support system they are that it's the least I can do.

With love,
Bailey
xoxo