Philly or Bust!

Over Memorial Day weekend, Jason and I took Tyrone to Philadelphia. The main reason for doing this was because Ty wanted to meet his pen pal, Danielle, before he went back to Germany. Ty and Danielle have been writing to each other since elementary school, and she happens to live in Pennsylvania not too far from Philadelphia. We thought that we would try to do as much of the Philadelphia experience as possible while were there, and I think we managed that! We walked for miles over two days and we saw so many great places and things. I can't wait to go back someday with our own children and spend more time doing some of things we missed (and also slow down the pace a little - two days for all of Philly was NOT enough!)

We started by heading straight for the Museum of Art - not for the museum (although I would have loved to do that) - but for Rocky, of course. The parking fee for the museum was outrageous, so I drove around the statue in front of the museum while Ty and Jason got out and looked around. That, by the way, was the extent of my driving in Philadelphia. I am so thankful to have married someone who is comfortable driving around in a big new place like that because I am most definitely not. (As we found out when I stopped the car and got out crying at a stoplight to make Jason drive because I couldn't handle it anymore!)

The one picture I actually made it into at museum - in my car, driving around in circles!

Next we headed to Macy's in the Wannamaker building. We love Macy's a LOT but this time we went there, not for shopping, but for the organ in the middle of the building. It's the biggest organ in the world, and I happen to believe it's in one of the best places in the world. (I did say how much we love Macy's, right?) Unfortunately, we weren't able to hear it played - we missed the organ times both days we went inside.

After Macy's, we checked into our bed and breakfast, the Thomas Bond House. I'm so glad Jason found this place because it was very convenient - we could walk everywhere we wanted to be. It was run by a mostly (but not always) nice, but very interesting lady, as most places like this seem to be. We had a lovely breakfast served to us, as well as cookies for a late night snack! There was also a wine and cheese time in the evening, but we missed that part. The hotel is the smaller building attached to the HUGE parking garage that I suppose is a necessity in cities like Philadelphia.

This was near our bed and breakfast. At the corner of this building, a man stood there with a lady puppet and a boombox - for the entire two days we were there. I never saw him leave, or stop singing. It was funny and very weird.

Right across the street from us was the City Tavern, a really neat restaurant where our founding fathers actually ate (and drank lots of beer). The food was delicious, expensive, and old-fashioned. We loved it, and it was worth the money! Ty had soup, I had turkey pot pie, and Jason had sausage and mashed potatoes, and we all enjoyed our food immensely! We sat next to a couple from Germany, and Ty got to speak with them for a few minutes as they were leaving.

We walked around a little bit, and then came back to the bed and breakfast to meet up with Danielle's family for the afternoon and evening. They were wonderful, and we really enjoyed spending time with them. It was so great for Ty and Danielle to meet finally, and they were also really great tour guides!!! We spent most of our time with them on South Street and in Penn's Landing. We ate Philly cheesesteaks and water ice - and THAT was good!

Danielle and Tyrone on South Street.

The lovely Leopold family.

One of the very first things we did with Ty was take him to Pittsburgh to see the recreations of the Nina and the Pinta as the make their way around the country. We were surprised to see them in Philadelphia more than 6 months later.

The next day, we did all of the historical stuff. It was HOT out, but I'm so glad that we did everything we could. We started at the visitor center, and then went to see the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. We stopped for some shopping and touristy traditions. We also were able to see the Christ Church, the Christ Church burial ground, Betsy Ross' house, and Elfreth's Alley.

The Senate Room

I wish that all meeting rooms still looked liked this...

As close as I got to Rocky!

The post office and the site of Benjamin Franklin's home. Unfortunately we couldn't see much of this because it was closed that day.

Betsy Ross' house

I love this quote from Ben Franklin.

Ben Franklin's grave - each year the Christ Church collects all of the pennies thrown onto his grave, and they have a church BBQ. This past year, they were able to spend $4000 on their picnic!

The windows at Christ Church. We went inside as well but there was a tour going on, and it was WAY TOO HOT to wait until they were done. We have to get the "sit in George Washington's pew" pictures next time we go!

Elfreth's Alley - the oldest continually inhabited neighborhood in the county

The back of one of the prettiest building in the city.

Every shopping place had beautiful architecture and light fixtures. While I was trying to capture the beauty of this Barnes and Noble, I got in trouble by the manager for taking a picture!

We did a LOT on our quick trip to Philly, but we had a great time! Like I said, I can't wait to go back and spend more time there some day.

The men in my life.

I am blessed to be able to say that I have a lot of fathers in my life who are wonderful, Godly men, and all of them have taught me so much. As I reflect back on the role of these men in my life, I wanted to share a little bit about each of them and what I have learned over the years from them.

First of all, my dad. My dad lived a beautiful 47-year-old life, and he taught me so much in the time I was able to spend with him. I still continue to learn things from him even now. Dad taught me that I should set high goals for myself and then go after them. He taught me that taking care of your family is the most important thing you can do in life. He taught me how to work hard but still have fun. He taught me the value of a family vacation and of family traditions. He taught me how to be creative and try new things. He taught me how important it is to be involved in my church and to continue to grow in my faith through reading and studying the Bible. I am so thankful to have been raised by such a man as my father, and I will continue to celebrate his life so that my own children can know how great their grandfather was.

My father-in-law is pretty great too. I am thrilled to have spent so much time with him over the past year since Jason and I got married. Larry has taught me the value of hard work - finding out what needs to be done and just doing it. He has taught me how important it is to take care of myself physically, and I look forward to the day when my lung capacity has returned and I can attempt to go for a run with him. He has taught me how great it is to do things for others and expect absolutely nothing in return. Most importantly, he has shown me how rich your life can be when you truly live for God and follow His will. I strive to be more like that each day, and I am thankful for an example to follow.

I love my Grandpa so much. Grandpa has taught me to not be afraid to dance to the beat of my own drum, which is why I chose the picture that I did. Grandpa has shown me that if I want to sing in the middle of a restaurant, or a store, or even Disney World, I should do it! He literally taught me how to skip, and for that I am truly grateful. He has taught me that life should be celebrated with song, even if they are songs that no one knows but the two of us. He has also taught me the importance and value of prayer - that I can accomplish nothing without praying without ceasing. I love my goofy Grandpa, and I am thankful for his presence throughout my childhood and even more so for it now as an adult.

My Papa on his boat with a ballcap (a "Papa hat"). That is how I always picture him. My papa has taught me to love the outdoors. To fish and gut the fish and then enjoy the fish! He has taught me how to be careful and cautious in life - a skill that I know I need to practice more often. He has taught me how to truly love someone, and I will forever be in awe of him for that. He has taught me to not be afraid to learn new skills - and I love every story I hear about his latest cooking or baking success. I am so glad that I was able to spend so much of my childhood with my Papa, letting him pull out my teeth, listening to his jokes (over and over again), and watching him work in his woodshed or on one of his boats. I am so thankful for his advice over the years, even though I may not always seem to be, because I know how much he really loves me and wants me to be safe and happy in all that I do.

My husband is going to be a wonderful father, and I cannot wait to see him with our baby in his arms. He already has done such a great job of finding the best and safest products for our child, and then buying the things we need so that we are fully prepared to do our best as parents. Jason has taught me that it is okay - no, better than okay - to dream BIG. He has also taught me to make decisions slowly and carefully and with all the facts and figures worked out first. He has taught me to give of myself to anyone in need and to be generous with what God has given me. He has taught me (or maybe it's a work in progress) that it's okay to laugh at myself sometimes and to relax about things that are just not that big of a deal. I thank God every day for allowing me to marry my very best friend, and I am excited about seeing Jason grow into his role as father as well as he has done with the role of husband.

Happy Father's Day to all of you! I am so thankful for each and every one of you, and I know my life would be very different without you. I love you all so much!

Dad, I miss you. Happy Father's Day...

100th post

This is my 100th post.

In honor of that (I guess), I thought I'd do something different and just write! There have been so many changes around here, it's unbelievable!

I'm falling more and more behind on this Project 326, and I'm thinking of scrapping it. I just don't know if I have the energy to catch back up, or even if I have enough pictures to post from the days I've missed. I think I'll do my best to catch up on EVENTS happening lately, and perhaps go back to the picture of the day when I have something really cute and adorable to get on camera, aka a baby!

Tyrone went back to Germany a few days ago. It's weird not having him around. Eight months was such a long time to have someone living with us. He truly was (and still is) part of our family, not just a visitor. We miss him a LOT. I know that his family is so thrilled to have him home though, and I can just imagine how happy they are every time they hear or see him in their very own house.

On the same morning that Ty left, I had an interview with our local school district for a junior high life skills position. I wore my new outfit (down to brand new pointy toe heels) that Jason helped put together at Macy's a few weeks ago and did my best to look professional despite my very large belly. The interview was long but I felt good about it afterwards. I thought it went very smoothly, and I actually really enjoyed the conversation! I went home nervous but confident I'd done my best, and then I settled down to wait the few weeks I thought it would take to hear back from them. You can imagine my surprise when they called me YESTERDAY, less than 48 hours later, to tell me that they wanted to recommend me to the board for the position! I have to meet with the superintendent next week, and then they will give their recommendation at the next board meeting in a few weeks. It's all very exciting, and I am so so thankful and blessed to have been chosen for this position. The school is about 5 blocks from our house, on the very same street as Jason's school. We are so grateful to both have jobs that allow us to work so close to home doing what we love!

We have been busy busy busy with projects around our house the past few days. We are getting new carpet installed and have been cleaning rooms out to make moving furniture around a lot easier. We are also preparing for a yard sale in a few weeks. It will be GREAT to get rid of some of the junk we've had accumulating for a very long time now. We can't wait to get the nursery set up and put all the little clothes and other baby things in their places. So far we've installed the light fixture in the ceiling, but we still have to paint the walls, get the carpet installed, build all the furniture (from IKEA!), wash and sort baby clothes, and get everything arranged the way we like it. I CANNOT WAIT!

Meanwhile, I'm growing and growing, the baby is growing and pushing its way around all my organs, and I think we are both ready to meet face-to-face. I'm almost 34 weeks pregnant now, and I've started to get emails telling me to pack my hospital bag! I feel like I'm ready, but I have so much more to do still. And most of it gets pushed aside regularly for my intense desire to sleep. A lot. Or eat ice cream.

I really will post our pictures from Philadelphia, my baby shower, my mom's visit, and Ty's last week here - very shortly. Maybe some of them tonight! Thanks for just reading my words for this post...

Life is full.

A few random pictures, then I'm going to post our trip to Philadelphia and my mom's weekend visit (which includes my baby shower!)...

I made a delicious new recipe - Pasta with Tomato-Blue Cheese Sauce... it was so yummy!

Jason and I bought this game, Uncle Wiggly, at a yard sale for 25 cents! We had been looking for it at game stores, where it cost MUCH MORE, so we were excited to see it! It's similar to Candyland, and all of Jason's piano students have been enjoying it tremendously.

We have been taking advantage of Saturday mornings with no children yet and having breakfast in bed when it's so late it can barely still be called breakfast. But it is nice, and we spend every minute knowing this will only last a few more months :)

We bought our NEW STROLLER AND CARSEAT! We decided on the Chicco Cortina in Discovery, and we are so excited about it! We actually took the stroller out for a stroll after we put it together that night... if you live around here and were wondering why we were out at midnight pushing around an empty stroller... well, I don't really have a reason! We just were very excited :D

Tyrone celebrated his 17th birthday, and we felt honored to be able to spend it with him. We went out to dinner at Ruby Tuesday, and we were extremely disappointed by their lackluster birthday celebration (they don't SING!), but we enjoyed the food and the company.

Wilson got groomed!!! He looks so handsome, and he seems to know it.