There is nowhere in the DC area that has more Christmas in one place than the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor. Each year, Christmas at Gaylord National seems to grow bigger and brighter, with more holiday decorations and more Christmas activities for families to enjoy. In fact, there is so much to do that it's become a holiday tradition for many locals to spend the night at the resort to experience it all. My family had our own December staycation at Gaylord National several years ago and did not run out of things to do!

When Gaylord National was temporarily closed in 2020 due to Covid, all of its Christmas programming was cancelled. But this year, Christmas at Gaylord National is back with a new experience called I Love Christmas Movies, new winter activities such as ice tubing and ice bumper cars, and tons of lights and over-the-top decorations.

My family of five—my husband, our 10-year-old twin sons, our 7-year-old daughter, and I—were invited to experience some of the attractions at Christmas at Gaylord National on a recent Sunday afternoon. Read on for my review, information about all of the Christmas activities being offered in 2021, and everything else you need to know about Christmas at Gaylord National.

When it comes to role models for our children, especially our girls and young athletes, we couldn't ask for anyone better than Olympic gymnasts Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles. Last week, Biles, Chiles, and other U.S. gymnasts wrapped up their 32-city Gold Over America Tour in Boston. They took time out of their busy tour schedule to speak with us about mental health (including Simone's new partnership with mental health app Cerebral), travel, playing sports as a child, and some of their favorite cities from the tour (here's looking at you, DC!).

As the leaves begin to burst into color each fall, families across the DC area pull on their hiking shoes or hop in their cars to view the spectacular fall foliage. But several fall train rides, all within a roughly four-hour drive of Washington, DC, offer a particularly fun way to see the fall colors. Some of these fall train rides also offer extra autumn or Halloween activities such as pumpkin picking and trick or treating. And, many of them have a great deal of history behind them!

Here are 10 fall train rides to add to your bucket list of fall activities. Be sure to double check whether they have bathrooms or food available on the trains. All aboard!