A Rainy Day in Philadelphia.

After a couple days in DC and a quick lunch in Delaware so Joey could reconnect with an old friend, we headed to Philadelphia to stay with our good friends from SVU, Rachel and Nelson!

The night we got there the weather wasn't too bad, but of course the next day (and the day we planned on sight seeing and walking around) was grey, drizzly, and cold. I mean pretty much non-stop rain. All day. But hey, at least it was cool and we didn't get sweaty! Glass half full, people.

Rachel had to work (boo!) so Nelson took us out in the morning to see some of the major Philly sites. First stop was the Liberty Bell!

I loved the way the building was designed so that you can see the bell's former home, Independence Hall, behind it through the glass.

Our awesome friend and tour guide Nelson. Thanks for showing us around and getting soaked with us!

Next stop was Independence Hall which was a very exciting and humbling experience.

We're aware this photo's not in focus, but Joey liked it so its on here!

Loved the herringbone brick!

Another favorite part of Philadelphia was the murals throughout the city. Unfortunately because of the weather we didn't get a chance to see most of them, but I think its such a great initiative. The world can always use a little more art!

We got out of the rain for a bit and visited Reading Terminal Market. This place was totally up our alley. There were dozens of awesome artisans and food vendors, including a place called The Tubby Olive that sold a wide (and quite tasty) variety of olive oils and balsamic vinegars. Knowing that we were tentatively planning a trip to Italy in the fall (unaware that our trip would be much sooner than we thought! more on that later...) we decided to skip on the olive oil, but I did beg and plead for a beautiful glass jar of pure, raw clover honey. Joey just can't resist me ;)

Of course we had to try a philly cheesesteak while we were in Philly. Now, Nelson told us that the best one he's ever had is actually in DC near the temple, but you kinda just have to eat a Philly cheesesteak in Philly ("I wanted to eat pigs in a blanket, in a blanket"---can you name it?). You just have to. And though we didn't go on a hunt for the best place in Philly, I'm happy to report that ours was delicious and wonderful.

We also tried an Italian pulled pork sandwich from Dinics, which apparently has quite the reputation---best sandwich in America, in fact! It did not disappoint. While the sharp provolone was a little too overwhelming for my liking, Joey went crazy for that sandwich. Definitely a great eat!

And of course we had to try the peanut butter milkshake from Bassett's, America's oldest ice cream shop. This institution has been making ice cream since 1861! And just like our Italian pulled pork, the peanut butter milkshake did not disappoint!

After lunch at the market we met up with Nelson's mom---well not so much as met up with, more like she pulled up in the street and we quickly hopped in her van---who gave us a little driving tour around Philly. Nelson, your mom is fearless! But we had a lot of fun jumping out to see something then hopping back in the van and driving to the next stop. I don't think we could've had anyone better to show us the highlights of Philadelphia!

One of the stops was a sketchy, hole in the wall chinese cookie place. Now I'll be honest, when Nelson's mom told us that she loves getting their delicious fortune cookies, we were skeptical. All we could think about were the yellow cookies we get at a chinese restaurant that we break open solely for the fortune (which most times isn't even really a fortune) and then toss in the garbage. We were so wrong! I get that not everyone likes fortune cookies, but these were mighty tasty. Nothing like the ones you normally get. They were crunchy and light and so fresh---we actually saw them making some! A whole bag was dirt cheap--what, like $1.75 for a few dozen? Lucky for us we got the rest of the bag to take with us to Connecticut and we ate as many as we could before they started to go stale---it was a big bag for only two people! Oh and ps: try them with a little dab of peanut butter. Mind blowing.

We filled the rest of our time in Philadelphia with warm, dry clothes, naps, water ice (which Nelson swore up and down is not Italian ice), and some really fun dinners with Nelson's family. I was sad when I looked through our photos and realized that we didn't have a single one with Rachel, but so glad that we got to see her and Nelson for a couple days. We love you guys! Thank you again for hosting us and being so wonderful!

It Felt Good to be Back.

So remember that time when we stopped in DC for a couple days on our way to Connecticut, way back at the beginning of June? Ha well I'm finally here, sharing those photos. Talk about better late than never!

The first day we visited the temple where we got married and surprised our dear friend Jenna who's serving her mission in DC, but our second day was all about DC staples like the National Zoo and the National Gallery of Art. Art and zoo animals---two of my favorite things!

Friends, I love the zoo. Probably as much as I love the aquarium. I'm right up at the front of the fence with all the little field trip kids, going crazy any time the animal does, well, anything. What was so great about this trip was that we went in the morning so all the animals were bright-eyed and bushy tailed (some quite literally) and we got to see so much more of them than when we've gone in the afternoon and half of them are napping. 

That stork. I've got a bone to pick with that stork.

Flamingos are always a favorite.

These guys were being so friendly---their gorgeous tail feathers even brushed my foot! And has anyone else ever noticed that the sounds Kevin makes in Up are actually a peacock's?

Awesome.

Hey look! Its Cameron and Courtney! We were so lucky to meet up with them for a couple meals while were in DC. Its always great to see old college friends!

After the zoo and lunch with the Squires we headed to the (so wonderfully air conditioned) National Gallery.

We kind of have a habit of getting one of these chocolate eclair ice cream bars whenever we walk around DC. 

Maybe its because we miss Remy so so much, but we love sculptures with dogs included. So beautiful!

Joey loves the Degas sculpture collection, particularly the horses.

Ok see that special exhibit? Diaghilev and the Ballet Russes? If its still open and you're in the DC area---GO. It was incredible! One of my favorite exhibits I've seen. The costumes were beautiful and it was interesting to see how closely artists like Picasso and Manet worked with this culturally forward ballet. We wish we could've seen it again!

For dinner we were dying for some great pasta. I mean I literally googled "best penne vodka in Washington DC". We found this place called Acqua al 2 near capitol hill and it turned out to be a great find. And, their penne vodka did turn out to be quite delicious! 

And of course, what's a great pasta dinner without some Pitango gelato for dessert?

While we sat outside eating our gelato I noticed a plume of smoke near us, and since we weren't in an industrial area I knew it couldn't have been steam from a factory or anything like that. A few minutes later we started to smell wood burning and the smoke became darker and thicker. As we walked towards our metro stop we noticed crowds of people, dozens of police and fire department vehicles, news crews, and yellow caution tape everywhere. Trying not to let our minds wander to the worst scenario (you know, the T word), we moved a little closer to one of the news crews to see if we could over hear what happened. It was then that we found out that a hardware store and community icon had caught on fire just moments ago. We never found out much more about the situation and how much damage had been done but the last I heard was that no one was hurt during the incident. So anyways, as we looked towards the location of the fire and blackness filling the air, I turned around and snapped this photo of the capitol with the smoky haze slowly creeping towards it. 

The next day we left for Philadelphia (up next!) on our tour up the east coast. Though we were only in DC for a brief couple days, it was great to revisit old favorites from our time in Virginia!

Back to the Big Apple We Went.

We planned for last Saturday to be our second and final trip to NYC while we're up here in Connecticut and decided that there could be nothing better to fill our day with than the Manhattan LDS Temple and a show on Broadway. We originally planned to just do a day trip, requiring us to wake up at three in the morning---but dang it, we were just plain tired of waking up early! So spur of the moment, we booked a hotel in the city and left friday night so we could sleep in and recharge for a fun day. Once again we took the train in from New Haven, but not without stopping by Shake Shack for dinner first!

Joey was very excited to go to the Manhattan Temple---but first, we caught a glimpse of the insane and  infamous cronut line at Dominique Ansel's Bakery. And we said "ain't nobody got time for that!" But anyways....The Washington DC and Columbia SC temples are the only ones he's been to (or at least I'm pretty sure...), and this one is quite a unique experience. If you're not really looking for it (or looking up) you can completely walk past it! Also, because of its double wall construction, once you're inside you can't hear a single truck or taxi cab drive by. Its certainly a sanctuary amidst the bustling city. And we both decided the gorgeous interior is definitely our favorite so far.

We managed to avoid the heavier rain showers, but the fog Saturday morning was fascinating to watch engulf New York's towering sky scrapers. 

After the temple we had a very short window to grab lunch and make it to our matinee. Lucky for us, when we got off the metro we stumbled upon some kind of street fair near Times Square and were able to snag some too-tasty gyros (with seriously the best lamb I've ever had) and lemonade with an ice cream cone to finish. Yay for random fairs!

We saw Once, you guys!

We knew we'd kick ourselves if we went back to Charleston without seeing a Broadway show, so we bit the bullet and splurged on the tickets. Luckily we got them through the military and scored second row seats (!!!) for a fraction of the cost. We also decided to see something different from the classics and went with the relatively new, based-on-a-movie, (not quite a) love story that is Once. And oh, was it worth it. I won't give anything away, but friends, I was crying like a baby through half the show. It was so beautiful and touched me in so many different ways, and when I noticed it was starting to end I would've paid even more for the actors to keep on singing. Now, I will say that this was our first time seeing a contemporary show that isn't really geared towards family, so I didn't even think about language being a problem. And they did end up having a.... fondness, for a particular profanity. So judge me if you want, but I just tuned it out and enjoyed all of the amazing music, talent, and emotion that the show had to give.

 I can't thank this guy enough for taking me to New York for such an incredible experience!

While we were at Once, we noticed the couple that was sitting next to us had a yellow bag from the giant M&M store in Times Square. So of course we had to go get some M&Ms for ourselves. I mean we can't just sit there and watch someone else enjoy all of that chocolate candy goodness and not have any of our own. And now that he had M&Ms on the brain, there was no way Joey was going to leave without them. That boy loves his peanut M&Ms. So we closed our economical eyes, filled a couple bags, and paid the million percent markup for our treat before heading to Grand Central and catching a train back to New Haven. 

And OK. Yes, we did have Shake Shack again for dinner. But we're not going to be anywhere close to one when we get back to Charleston so we might as well live it up now. We can't get enough of those shack burgers and peanut butter shakes!

So long, NYC. You're totally crazy and far too overpriced, but we can't help but like ya!

I Made a Movie.

All right friends.

So for a while now, I've been wanting to make more family videos---I just love all of the old VHS tapes we have from when we were itty-bittys. You know the ones! And I thought that having some little movies could add to our memory preserving efforts. Obviously I love using photos to document our life, but there's something about old movies--seeing people walk and move and talk and interact. It brings more life and context to a two dimensional, still image. And I want to preserve that for our family. So while we were in Boston I tried to take short videos of various places and activities to compile in a family movie.

Now, I'm no.....I don't know, who's a great film maker? Well I'm not them. This ain't no Oscar winning work of genius. I don't entirely know what I'm doing with the filming and the music and the whatnot.  In fact, I kind of feel like a little kid, exited and still nervous to show mommy my new drawing. But this little project is important to me and I want to get better at it. So I'm swallowing my pride (and some self consciousness and embarrassment) and debuting my first official home movie to remember our trip to Boston.