Saturday, December 26, 2015

The Springers Go to Washington D.C. and The White House


You know how I joke about not having anywhere to wear the clothes I make? Well, that recently changed. My husband, was nominated for a presidential Customer Service Award and was invited to the White House for the ceremony.You can read about the award here on the The White House Blog. We are so proud of him and decided to support him in person at the Nation's Capitol. 

We were thrilled with his nomination, but we did not know if he would win the award. We were so nervous and excited for him.  That excitement made the 21-hour road trip bearable. Yes, we drove. We arrived in Washington D.C. in one piece.  

The reception was held in The Eisenhower Executive Office Building of the White House at 2 p.m. and the attire was business casual. For myself, I chose my African inspired maxi skirt with a scoop neck long sleeved tee. I needed an outfit that factored in a knee brace and the flat shoes I have to wear because of a hula hooping injury.

Family photo after the ceremony. Pictured with Beth Cobert of the Office of Personnel Management   























For Little Miss, I chose Mccalls 2590 it is a floor length circle skirt dress with a fully lined bodice and an invisible zipper. I made it up in blue satin with a multicolor print satin sash.

                    

This was probably the best tasting cake we have ever had! We dug into it to celebrate the fact that Justin won an individual award! 


Amazing! We are so proud of him for all the work he does for Veterans!
The entire experience was utterly surreal. There were extensive background checks before our travels. There were multiple Secret Service checkpoints to enter the event and for our West Wing tour later in the evening. We needed an authorized escort while in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. The most difficult thing were the restrictions on our cameras. We were having once in a lifetime experiences, but could only rely on our memories to capture them. We did manage to lean over the barrier in the Oval Office to steal a kiss.  


                       

Given this once in a lifetime experience, we decided to take advantage of the city sights. We went to the museums and saw the sights. I will highlight just a few because you don't need 632 pictures of my family making silly faces in special places.  The days were overcast and rainy, which made it perfect for us to have many places to ourselves.

The Jefferson Memorial 

The Washington Monument 

Arlington National Cemetery 

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier 
  
The Lincoln Memorial 

The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial 

The Capitol Building 

The White House in my multi-color reverse applique cardigan  

The Washington Monument from the World War II Memorial 

In the National Portrait Gallery wearing my Reversible Ankara Cape.
We had a great time celebrating Justin and seeing Washington D.C. I am so glad we joined him. With all the fun and excitement, do you want to know the most amazing thing? I survived without my sewing machine for more than a week!

Hope your Holidays were memorable and fun.

Happy Sewing,
Bianca 

16 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for sharing; how proud you must be! And you were all dressed beautifully!

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  2. What a wonderful experience for your family ! Thank you for posting your pictures. Everyone looks beautifully dressed.

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    1. Thank you Eileen! We had a fantastic time!

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  3. Congratulations and that's quite an honor and fun experience! Everyone looks great in their handmades, too!

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  4. Beautifully surreal. So happy and proud for you all. Xoxoxoxo

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  5. How exciting, and what a wonderful experience.

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  6. Wow! What an exciting and wonderful experience for all of you! Your whole family looks beautiful and the clothes that you've made are fantastic (do you make things for your son?). Congratulations and my personal gratitude to your husband! My husband is a combat-wounded medic who became a physician after his Army service so I have an awareness of the very important work that your husband is doing. But this is a blog about your excellent sewing and it always inspires and excites me. Thank you!

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    1. Thank you Tina for you kind words and encouragement! I do make things for my son, but he is a cuddly guy and he usually wants blankets, pillowcases, stuffed animals and pj's. He is now showing a clear sense of style and loves to take photos, so I will be sewing more apparel for him. My appreciation to your husband too for his service.

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  7. What a special occasion for you and your beautiful family. Congrats to your husband!

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    1. Thanks Tomasa! It was a great time for us all!

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