"Ish! Ish!"

David's attempt to excitedly exclaim, "Fish! Fish!"

Yesterday Joshua, David, and I joined another mom and her boys for a field trip to the National Aquarium in D.C. - which is as different from the National Aquarium in Baltimore as can be - but which is just right for little ones. It is about fifty times better than the big fish tank in the Germantown Library! Here is the whole gang ogling at some sea creatures. Despite the blustery day that brought back memories of Minnesota, we had a great time. The metro ride provided additional enjoyment.

I'll have to ask our kindergartner what these are called. He was our aquatic life expert and drew lots of pictures in his nature journal.

The boys LOVED it. They ran around pointing at everything with so much enthusiasm! They would hardly be still for a moment so that combined with the dim lighting made for difficult photography.

I think this might be a long-nosed gar, and I forget the name of the turtle.

Supposedly this tiny aquarium houses more than 200 species and is the oldest aquarium in the country, founded in 1832. The collection is in the basement of the Dept. of Commerce building, and I felt a bit like I was entering a high-security vault. The elevator was pitch black at first - fortunately the motion-sensor lights did come on when we finally got up the courage to go into a dark elevator.