George W. Bush Presidential Library

After taking the boys to the William J. Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, I thought it would be great fun to take them to the George W. Bush Presidential Library while we were in Dallas.

Poor Papa Kirk, he felt the need to tell everyone that he was a democrat, and that he was being dragged in there somewhat against his will.  Since he told so many people while we were there, I feel it's only right to add this disclaimer here.  He was in attendance for the purposes of furthering his grandson's education only, and only because I said that's where we were going to conduct such business.  But he was a good sport about it.



Somewhere in Ohio there is a version of this picture that has Kevin in it, too.  Hopefully Grandma Ella will send me a copy.  In the meantime, here is a photo of my dashing husband:

I thought that the most fabulous exhibit at the museum was the temporary display of the Christmas decor from the White House in 2002.  The theme for that year's Christmas decorations was "All Creatures Great and Small" and the centerpiece was the large tree in the Blue Room, which was decorated with hand-made bird ornaments from all over the United States.



There were also all sorts of little statues of each of the White House pets throughout history.  Modern presidents have dogs and cats, but there were also lots of horses, ponies, pigs, sheep, and even an alligator.

Connor listened to about half of the guided tour for the entire museum while we were in this one room.

Lex's turn with the tree.

I can't decide if I like the owl better, or the little roadrunner with the cowboy hat.  Both are darling.

After this room, I took the boys to see a movie that highlighted and summarized the 43rd presidency.

I had totally forgotten that there would be things about 9/11 in the museum until we watched the film, and then as soon as we walked out from the film, we saw this:

...which kind of took my breath away.

There was a very large interactive exhibit area regarding the war on terror and the Department of Homeland Security.  Connor spent a long time playing with a huge touchscreen table moving forces around the middle east.

The next big highlight was the Oval Office.





I wonder just how many replicas of the Resolute Desk there are in the world.  Does it make me a nerd that I think that the kids should do a history project about the various desks used in the White House?  Because I think that's going to happen.  I mean, how great would it be to put these photos on a display board?



This museum was very lovely, and I think I will plan to take the kids to more Presidential Libraries as we get the chance.