The Final Day

So, today was the day everyone has been waiting for.

It started off with a radio interview at 7:10 am. We managed to get everyone up and ready to go and then at 7 am we got a call saying they'd pushed us off to 8:20. well at least it gave us time to get some cereal into the girls and get to Starbucks for some Chai. A quick shuttle to the station and we got a few minutes on air on the Hudson Valley Music station along with country music star Mark Wills. He's been traveling with our group but he's been on a different bus so we really haven't gotten to know him very well. But he's great with the kids. After that Mommy tried to get the girls to sleep a bit more but no luck. So we shopped for souvenirs, read stories and took baths before our White House visit.

Our group was right on time but we had to wait until the Prime Minister of Australia left the White House. We waved to his motorcade and then were invited in. The security screen wasn't as bad as we expected since we'd been warned in advance only to take our cameras.

Once inside the White House we got to see the East Room, the Green Room, the Blue Room, the Red Room, the reception room, etc. There was somebody in each room to answer questions. Plenty of pictures and even a nice family photo on the sofa in the red room.

After our tour, we were taken outside on the South lawn and we got organized for our photos with the President. When we were ready President Obama came out. He made sure he shook hands with each child and then asked if the kids had any questions. We learned that Michelle, Malia and Sasha were in Camp David for spring break. The President likes horses and he is 47, soon to be 48. He then faced a tough question on what his plans were for healthcare for children. He treated the question seriously and set out his thinking. At that point he indicated Sasha and Malia's swing set and gave a "Presidential order" that the Champions go and play on it before disappearing to a meeting in the West Wing. This set the Secret Service folks into overdrive wrangling 53 young kids for the next 30 minutes! The swing set is located close to the Rose Garden presenting some wonderful photo opportunities

Some time later the President re-emerged from the West Wing meeting and came to talk to the kids again, thanking them for coming. Suffice to say he is an incredibly charismatic figure up close and was wonderful with the kids. We later learned that the swing set was installed the day before his girls left for Camp David so the Champions were practically the first test pilots on it. We were then ushered out of the White House which gave Miss America the chance to let our girls wear her crown - another special moment (our girls absolutely love her). We then took the girls for a well earned ice cream sundae followed by a nap.

We then spent a frenetic evening at our closing party at ESPN Zone which involved the appearance of a very special guest with Miss America - Elmo! They sang together and for the girls, meeting the President and Elmo the same day was almost too much. Mark Wills sang a set including a great song from his new album and we then ate dinner followed by free games all night in the arcade. For the parents this was an emotional night as we bid farewell to our new found friends and traded war stories of our miracle children.

This was the capstone of a wonderful event. We have made new friends and seen our girls mature in their interactions with this group of people. Tomorrow we fly home but the memories we have made will last forever.