Fourth of July Vacation Layouts

Well we had been in Washington D.C. for the Fourth of July and I will have lots of vacation photos to scrap.  We got in late on the third and the first thing we did after on the morning of the 4th of July was head for the parade. However, we ended up being in parade as ad hoc volunteers! The journaling reads:

Richard and I were so excited to be in DC on the Fourth of July. We had found a wonderful spot from which to watch the parade. We walked down 7th street where all the parade participants where staging for the parade and found a spot on 7th just before Constitution; we'd be able to watch the parade as it began. Then a woman came over asking for volunteers to be in the parade.  We jumped at the chance.  We were given a red shirt and a bottle of water and assigned to help carry the 60 foot flag. It was hot work and we were done we were sweaty and exhausted. Other volunteers gave us ice-cool water and I went through the "misting" tent which totally drenched me. We watched more of the parade and then went looking for lunch.  We ended up at Quiznos, as most of the local places were closed.  Being in the parade basically shot the entire day as after lunch we went back to the hotel to rest before the fireworks. We had set out planning on watching the parade and then hitting a couple of museums, but being in the parade was much better!

4-July

Kit used: Independence Day by Snackpackgu

Individual Elements:

2 papers (cream and blue) from Old Tyme Junque by Cari Cruise

Alphas from: Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend by Farynar's Wings

and Sanctuary by Ramona Johnson aka Ramona Memories

(As an aside everything but the cream paper for the journal spot and the blue paper to mat the photos is from a Design Factor Challenge kit hosted by Digi Scrap Connect. A slew of designers are creating mini-kits that are available for free for a limited time.  The challenge is currently on week 4 and there are two challenges left. There is also an associated scrapping challenge, called Body of Art challenge. The challenges focus on a particular scrapping technique each week and if you complete all 8 scapping challenges you get a free one year Sponsor Membership where you get one free kit a month! Imagine, 12 free kits just for doing some scrappin'. How awesome it that? Check it out.)

Back to our regularly scheduled post:
Since I was carrying the flag, I was able to get some awesome photos of the flag with the Washington Monument as a backdrop. A layout featuring one of those photos made an earlier appearance in this blog and here it is again:

July 4th

Kit used July Grab Bag by Pixels by Jen

Brads from:

Fiesta by Julie C Designs (jasjul) (yellow brad)

Year in Progress by Denise Zavagno/ScrapDZines 

(red/silver star and metal brad)

Later that night we headed over the Thomas Jefferson Memorial to take more photos, I mean watch the fireworks. The journaling reads:

We watched the fireworks from the Jefferson Memorial. We showed up a few hours early and luckily there were still some good seats left. We were right behind some fellow New Mexicans, what a coincidence. Richard got us some over-priced hot dogs at the vendors in the National Park and we ate dinner while waiting for the sun to go down. The fireworks were amazing, but the show only lasted 15 mintues. Seeing the fireworks and the Washington Memorial reflected in the Tidal basin was absolutely awesome, though.                                                                                   –July 4, 2011

the Fourth in DC
Credits:
July Grab Bag by Pixels by Jen
Font: Handwriting-Dakota and Serrif Grunge

The next morning we went straight to the National Zoo to see the Giant Pandas.  I will definitely have to make more zoo layouts, including some with the panda, but so far all I've done is one on cheetahs, because my husband loves them:

National Zoo
Kit used Mumba Thumba by Irene V. Alexeeva
with element from Chocolate by AnnaBV Designs

I will definitely have more vacation layouts coming.  I must have taken almost 100 photos of gems and minerals at the Natural History Museum alone (and that doesn't include the ones my husband took!)