I am a software developer for a government agency in DC, and I have recently completed one year of employment. I am generally dissatisfied with my experiences here. I do not want to gripe too much, but I do not spend a lot of time doing actual development on projects.

I am asked to do everything under the sun: write requirements, review specs, test, attend random meetings, but actual coding makes up a small fraction of my time. The coding itself is fairly straightforward and simple so it feels like I am not growing from my experiences. I am not tasked with more challenging work, and I find the experiences are not rewarding. If I had a stronger resume/more work experience, I'd leave the position immediately but combined with the present economy, I am hesitant to leave. I have several questions:

1. Does anybody have experiences like this? How did you make the most of it?
2. I am currently doing some side projects, making simple webpages for people, but aside from that, and open source projects, what other things are out there?
3. What are general benchmarks for a developer after one year of professional experience? What should I be expected to know/do? I am outsider (coming from a math/science background) so I do not know what exactly I should know/do.
4. Is it possible to obtain a mentorship with a mid/senior developer to learn? If so, how can I go about making contacts in the DC area?