Thanks everyone! So many ideas! I'll let you know what we do!

>the Air and Space Museum closes for renovations soon.<

Don't forget that there are two Air and Space Museums that are part of the Smithsonian complex: the better known one on the Mall and it's lesser known cousin near Dulles Airport, Udvar-Hazy. My family and I visited Hazy on the recommendation of a Fodorite and loved it. It's not nearly as crowded as the one on the Mall, and it has famous aircraft like an SR-71, a space shuttle, the Enola Gay, and a Concorde, to name a few.

Since you're already on the east coast, I'll second the recommendations to visit the South. Savannah and Charleston both offer history, beautiful architecture, and lots of photo ops. I particularly loved going through the old cemeteries in each city, especially the Magnolia in Charleston and the Bonaventure in Savannah. New Orleans is another great suggestion. If you like country music, you may enjoy Nashville.

Hi everyone.... in the end, we flew to Vegas and got a car and frove out to Monument Valley, Arches and Bryce. There was snow and it was SPECTACULAR and we absolutely loved it!!

LakesideChick, That sounds like a great choice. Are you planning on a Trip Report?

Hi EMalloy.... yes, nearly finished it.... breaking it up into sections of the trip though so that people can just read bits they are interested in. On holiday this week so hoping to get it finished