Today was a lot of fun. We started the day by going to Rep. Schakowsky's office to pick up our tickets for the inauguration. Before coming here I read something that said "be sure to pack your patience" and that was the truth. I don't think anyone expected the lines to be as long as they were...we waited about an hour and a half to clear security and other folks waited even longer. But everyone was in good spirits, as we all realized that the wait was well worth it.

Once we got into the Capitol Building we met with our Representative and thanked her for the tickets. It was a great chance to see her in action as there were families and a Korean delegation in there as well.

It was a pleasure meeting with Rep. Schakowsky in her office and exploring the Rayburn House Office Building. I must admit that when we left and we thought about the fact that we had tickets to the inauguration of the 44th and the first African American President we did a little dance!

Then we crossed the street to the Capitol grounds to check out our area for the ceremony. It was another great scene - families, seniors, young people, everyone imaginable just walking around, taking pictures of the already-decorated Capitol grounds.

America was also being celebrated with rampant capitalism ("Buttons! 3 for $5!!). Believe it or not, I actually saw big foam "Number 1" fingers like you'd buy at a football game. After soaking in the scene and failing to get on camera in the crowd scenes with MSNBC, we decided to save our strength and head back to the hotel to rest up for Tuesday's early early start.