Sight-seeing and stuffing my face

Even though we were in Philly for Nate and Julie's wedding, I had hoped to see some sights.  I also wanted to blog in real-time but someone didn't take vacation days and had to work and had to send e-mails and do work stuff so I couldn't use the computer!  Computer hog!


The only thing I wanted to do while we were there was have a Philly cheesesteak and see the Liberty Bell.  We arrived Tuesday afternoon and after we went to Macy's to buy their gift, we went with Drew's parents to Jim's Steaks because we heard that was the best spot in town for cheesesteaks.  

I was starving by the time we got there and it's very Soup Nazi - be ready with your order when you get to the front of the line or you're out of luck!  Luckily, I was easy - I wanted a cheesesteak with everything!  Well, almost everything.  Apparently, you can get pizza sauce and cheez whiz on your cheesesteaks?  That sounded totally gross to me - and I'm pregnant!  I got mine with mayo, lettuce, tomato, provolone, peppers, mushrooms and grilled onions.  It was overflowing and all the guys behind the counter were giving me a hard time because they said there was no way I'd be able to finish it.  HA!  I'm pregnant and on my way to becoming a big fat fattie!  I'd already had two breakfasts that day!  Oh yeah, and I haven't eaten red meat in over fifteen years and all of a sudden nothing but burnt cow flesh will satisfy me.  Who am I?


It's a weird sensation, for sure.  The amount of food I'm eating these days is obscene!  Where I would get sick at the mere thought of so much food before, now I'm like that was a good snack, when are we eating for real?  I used to worry that I wasn't eating enough to gain a good amount of weight - I don't worry about that anymore.

Engrossed in the best cheesesteak I've ever had.

Drew was laughing at me and was a little horrified that

I was putting away that entire sandwich.  I think it was a foot long!

The last bite with the guys from Jim's.

That's not a bump, it's just a food baby.

Several of Drew's parent's friends piled into a van and drove down for the wedding - I thought that was so cool!  The day after they arrived, one of them arranged for us to have a carriage ride through the city.  It was really cool and much better than a bus tour!  Unfortunately, we couldn't get on and off like a bus tour but it was better than not seeing anything at all so I'll take it.

The smallish building to the left houses the Liberty Bell - this is as close as I got.

Wop wop.

Did you know there is no recorded proof that Betsy Ross had 

anything to do with sewing the flag?  Of course, that didn't stop them from

making her house a landmark.

Now, this guy Francis Hopkinson - he designed the flag AND signed the 

Declaration of Independence!  

It was a beautiful fall day and the brick and changing leaves made

the carriage ride very sweet!

This is Elfreth's Alley - the most continually inhabited street in the country.

I bet the houses on this street cost a fortune!

Charlie, our trusty guide.  He was so sweet and petting him

made me miss my psychotic doggie.

We passed the US Mint and Independence Hall but Drew was taking the pictures as we were kind of cramped in the carriage and he's nowhere near the photo enthusiast that I am.  I kept hissing to him to take pictures and he kept rolling his eyes at me.

To be fair, he was cramped too, but still!

I also really wanted to see the Rocky statue.  I didn't even know it was in Philly!  However, with wedding and family stuff we pretty much ran out of time.  I guess Google Images will have to suffice.

I bet it would have been cool to see in real life.  

The weather was wonderful and I packed perfectly this time.  I had just the right amount of layers and I wasn't cold until the day we left, which was a major accomplishment!  It went a really long way in helping me to enjoy myself and I'm so thankful I got it right this time!

I've also decided I want to learn how to use Drew's camera.  He's got a big DLSR - I don't even know if those are the right initials, and I want to learn how to use it.  Because of this.

Drew and Nate at the rehearsal dinner.

Drew and Julie - they're such great pictures and I hate that 

they came out so blurry!  I had to delete so many 

pictures from this trip because of the blur!

I even used the anti-blur setting on my camera!

It could be user error - I really just want to point and shoot and come out with great pictures.  Why does that have to be so hard?  However, I did get some good ones and those are coming soon!