I went to the WHITE HOUSE and saw the PRESIDENT!

My last day in Washington, D.C., was by far the BEST! I really wanted to go to the White House, so I stayed in Washington a few extra days. And today, my wish came true! Here I am at the White House!

Here I am entering the East Wing. The East Wing is where the president and his family live. They live upstairs. Downstairs there are two big halls and several rooms, like the Blue Room and Red Room that are used for formal events like today's reception.

Getting closer... Almost inside!

Here is a view from the front steps of the White House!

Today, the president hosted a reception at the White House for Jewish American Heritage Month in the East Room. Check it out... Here I am... with President Barack Obama!

So guess who else I saw? I saw Sandy Koufax! He's a Hall of Fame pitcher who refused to pitch on Yom Kippur, even though the high holy day fell during the World Series! I didn't get a photo with Sandy, but here is a snapshot I took of him. The blonde woman is five-time Olympic swimmer Dara Torres.

Anyway, back outside the White House, I went to check out the Press Room. The low building to the right is the Press Room. There are little offices where all the reporters work at computers and a big room with theater chairs for briefings.

And here I am inside the Press Briefing Room! Look familiar? This is where the president and press secretary Robert Gibbs hold news conferences with reporters!

Finally, here I am back outside the Press Room facing the West Wing. The TV cameras are always set up for interviews with important people.

And here I am in front of the West Wing. The West Wing is where the Oval Office is located. Too bad I didn't get to see the Oval! Maybe next time! Until then, goodbye Washington, D.C. I had a great time!

I saw the MONUMENTS!

Today was the best day ever! We drove downtown and I got to see the MONUMENTS on the National Mall. This long rectangle park in the middle of Washington, D.C., is full of wonderful things to see.

We started at the Lincoln Memorial. Here I am with one of my hosts and the baby! I was so excited they had to hold me so I wouldn't run up the stairs to see the statue of Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States.

Here I am with the giant statue of President Abraham Lincoln! Some of his most famous speeches are written on the walls, like the Gettysburg address, which starts out "Four score and seven years ago... " That means 87 years ago in fancy presidential language.

This next picture was taken from the top of the steps at the Lincoln Memorial. The view is of the Washington Monument and the Reflecting Pool. Amazing!

Our next stop was at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, which contains more than 58,000 names of those who died in the war. Many people come from all over to find a name of a loved one on the wall. Some leave flowers too.

Next, we walked to the World War II Memorial, which honors the more than 16 million who served and 400,000 who died. This is the newest monument on the National Mall. In the background, you can see the Lincoln Memorial!

The World War II Memorial has pillars representing all the states and territories in the U.S. Here I am next to each of the three states that I have been to: New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia!

Finally, here is the Washington Monument! There are stairs inside and if you get a ticket, you can actually climb to the top! That's an adventure I'll have to save until next time.

We went to Virginia! And the National Cathedral!

The cool thing about Washington, D.C., is that it's right next to two states: Maryland and Virginia. So people typically go to and from DC and both states several times a day!

We didn't do any touristy things in Virginia. We went to an event hosted by the Walking With Africans Foundation, which is a really great group that provides loans to low-income people in Africa who need help so they can start businesses. After they start businesses, they can pay back the loans.

Here I am at the event! We got to eat African food and enjoy African dancers!

The cool thing about Washington, D.C., is that since it's the capitol of the U.S., there are a lot of people here from all over the world. So it's a very multicultural place!

After the African party in Virginia, we went back to Washington, D.C., and visited the National Cathedral. This massive cathedral is the 6th largest cathedral in the world and the 2nd largest in the U.S.!

The National Cathedral has hosted many important events:

• The funerals of four U.S. presidents have been held here: Woodrow Wilson in 1924; Dwight Eisenhower in 1969; Ronald Reagan in 2004; and Gerald Ford in 2007.
• Many presidents hold a prayer service here the day after their inauguration.
• There was a national memorial service here for those killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
• Other people who have had funerals here include Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham and civil rights leader Dorothy Height.

I visited the SEC and Federal Reserve!

Today was interesting... I toured two places that are important within the financial industry, plus got to see where the vice president lives and a place that promotes peace!

My first stop was the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. This is where one of my hosts works. He is a senior enforcement lawyer here. He says that the SEC is important because it makes sure that any investments you make are safe by going after the "bad guys" who seek to rip off unknowing investors. 

On the way to my next stop, I ran into these protestors! How exciting! They were carrying signs and said they were from the National Chamber of Commerce. They are standing up for the rights of small businesses. I'm not sure what they are protesting, but check me out! They have signs! Yeah!

OK, this was my second stop of the day: The Federal Reserve. This building also deals with the financial industry. But this place doesn't investigate anything. They set monetary policy. I'm not really sure what that means, but I think it has something to do with interest rates. For example, if your parents buy a new house and they get a GOOD interest rate then they will have extra money left over to buy you toys and clothes! I think. Better ask your parents to be sure.

Down the street from the Federal Reserve is this place... The U.S. Institute of Peace! This group helps prevent and end wars and encourages peace. How cool is that?!

On our way back to Maryland, we drove past the U.S. Naval Observatory. My picture isn't very good since I took it out the window of the car. But the important thing about this place is that this is where Vice President Joe Biden lives! 

Below is a better picture of the vice president's house. Cool!

A visit to the U.S. Capitol!

Wow, another great day of exploring in Washington, D.C. Today, we headed to the U.S. Capitol. I've always seen this building on TV and had no idea what to expect. It was like walking into a movie! Here I am in front of the Capitol. What a great scenic shot!

We entered the Capitol and had to go through metal detectors while security guards went through our bags. Wow! Once inside, we walked along the ornate hallway to the Crypt. Here I am sitting at the very center of Washington, D.C. All addresses and distances are measured from this star in the middle of the room!

Next, we headed up to the Rotunda, a 96-foot circular room filled with impressive paintings and statues.

Check me out, that's the inside of the Capitol dome above me! It's 180 feet and three inches to the top!

Here I am sitting on a bench beside an important painting in the Rotunda!

Right next to the Rotunda is the old U.S. House chamber, which was in use until 1857. It's now called Statuary Hall and houses many of the Capitol's collection of statues.

Each state is allowed to have TWO statues of important people in the state's history. Many of these statues are of people that no one has heard of anymore. So a law was passed a few years back to allow states to switch out older statues for newer ones.

Click HERE to find out what statues each state has.

The two most important rooms in the Capitol are the House and Senate chambers. The House chamber is bigger since there are 435 House members and 5 non-voting delegates (like the the one from the District of Columbia) and only 100 senators. You're not allowed to take photos in there, so here are some photos to let you see what the chambers look like. This is the House Chamber:

And this is the Senate Chamber:

Next, we headed to the brand new Capitol Visitor's Center! Here I am overlooking Emancipation Hall in the new CVC. The big statue behind me is a replica of the one on the very top of the Capitol dome.

Finally... Shopping! We had stop at the gift shop to buy something for my friend Lexi to thank her for this awesome trip!

After our great visit at the Capitol, we walked outside and I got to take this cool picture out front. What an awesome day!

I saw the U.S. Supreme Court and Library of Congress!

Today was another great day! I started off early to get a look at the U.S. Supreme Court. Here I am sitting on the steps leading up to the high court. Can you see me? I am that very tiny speck of orange!

This is the chamber where the nine justices hear all sorts of cases from around the country. I wasn't allowed to take photos so I found this one on the court Web site so you can see what it looks like.

As you probably know, there is an upcoming vacancy on the Court due to the retirement of Justice John Paul Stevens. President Barack Obama has nominated Elana Kagan for the spot. She still needs to go through Senate confirmation hearings and get the approval of the Senate. But if she does, she will work here! She would be the fourth woman to serve on the high court.

Back outside the court, there were a ton of tourists and school groups! I met a nice lady who recognized me. She even knew my name! Here she is holding me up so you can see me among all the tourists.

Right next to the Supreme Court is the Library of Congress. Did you know that you can get an I.D. card for this library? I didn't get one because I don't have a Social Security number. But if you come to Washington, D.C., that would be a GREAT souvenir!

The cool thing about the Library of Congress is that it houses many important documents, like historic drafts of the Declaration of Independence, George Washington's copy of the Constitution, and the map that first used the word "America" for the New World. It also has on permanent display the Gutenberg Bible, which is the first major book printed with a printing press.

After visiting the Supreme Court and Library of Congress, I headed to the USA TODAY office, where my host works. And guess what? There was a press conference taking place across the street that I got to watch!

You can't see what is going on from where I am, but below is a close-up photo. The man in the black hat is Washington, D.C., Mayor Adrian Fenty! How about that? It's only my second day in D.C. and I've already seen the MAYOR!

By the way, do you know what the "D.C." in Washington, D.C., stands for? It stands for the District of Columbia. That is the official name for this city, which is the capital of the United States. Technically, the District of Columbia is not a state and it's not located in any state either. It's completely seperate! The reason is that back when the U.S. was founded, it was thought that it would be unfair for one state to be home to the nation's capital.

As a result, things are a bit different here than they are in any of the states. There is no governor -- just the mayor. And there is no legislature -- just the city council. Also, D.C. doesn't have any U.S. senators or U.S. representatives in Congress either! The District does have one delegate, but she can't vote. Many people think that is unfair and they are trying to get a law passed to change that.

Anyway, I had such a fun day! I can't wait to find out what is in store for me tomorrow!

I rode the Metro and visited USA TODAY!

Today was great! I went to Washington, D.C., for the first time. 

We drove from Bethesda, Maryland, to Washington, D.C., and I found out something pretty cool about D.C. -- Many of the streets are named after states! On our way into the city, we drove down Wisconsin Ave. to Connecticut Ave. to Missouri Ave., past Nevada Ave., Colorado Ave., Georgia Ave., Kansas Ave., and Hawaii Ave.!

We drove to Union Station to drop off the baby at daycare. Then I got to take the Metro! It was crowded, but I found seat.

We rode the Red Line from Union Station to Metro Center. If you look on the map below, you can see where we rode. Click HERE for a larger map.

After riding the Metro, we visited the USA TODAY Bureau!

A lot of stuff happens in Washington, D.C. The president lives here and lawmakers in the U.S. Congress are busy making laws. Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court hears cases. So, as you can imagine, there are a lot of reporters in this town to cover all this activity!

USA TODAY is one of the largest and most well-known papers in the country. It has a daily circulation of almost 2 million! I got to see many of the reporters hard at work! I can't wait to read what they wrote in tomorrow's paper!

At the end of the day, we went home to Bethesda, Maryland. I finally got to meet the baby! Here we are. She is pretty cute. :-)