As I'm sure most of you have heard me say by now I am indeed NOT a Texan. I love living in Texas, Houston has been my home for the past 10 years and Dallas will happily be my home for at least the next 10...however a huge chunk of my heart still belongs on the East Coast. I am a Philly girl through and through! I try to make it back at least every other year, but my last visit was way back in July 2007 for my brother's wedding. Matt and I had only been dating for about 6 months and he was coaching swim team that summer so he wasn't able to join me. Ever since, I have been DYING to take Matt to my home town. We finally got the chance to go in June, and as a bonus my whole family met us there!
The first day my big brother picked us up from the airport and we got to enjoy visiting with him and his wife Bryn for the day. The next day they had to work so Matt and I went downtown to see the sights and all the amazing history that Philadelphia has to offer. We took the next day to see some old friends (most importantly my second mom Ms Terry and her husband Joe) and the two smaller towns that I grew up in. The trip down memory lane was just want I needed <3 class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Rogar. Rogar worked with my father during all 18 of his years at Sunoco, and continued to work there for another 20 years after my father came to Texas. 40 years at a company is unheard of these days! I really admire Rogar's commitment, work ethic and loyalty. I also value his friendship to my father and our family. When he attended my wedding in March I couldn't have been more touched that he had made the trip all the way to Texas to be a part of our special day. We defiantly love Uncle Rogar! (yes I know it is normally RogEr but he spells it a little different)
Here are some pictures from our trip:
Matt wore his Cowboys jersey off the plane, just to get a rise out of my brother! hehehe
Independence Hall
The Liberty Bell
Just as I remember it on field trips as a child
Betsy Ross' house
So cool
Original cobblestone....very cool
Cobble stone
We thought it was sooo funny that the fire house put Ben Franklin in a fire hat ;)
This statue is made out of keys
Matt :)
Matt's first authentic Philly soft pretzel
Penn's landing...yes where William Penn actually "landed" on the Delaware River
Benjamin Franklin's grave
The most creepy cemetery ever...graves date back to the 1700's
You can't go to Philly and not visit the Rocky statue!
"Yo Adrian!"
Yes Matt ran up the steps
No I did not run up the steps lol
The beautiful art museum
Awesome view of the city from the art museum
The infamous Geno's
Me eating Geno's cheese steak...part of our Mixon taste test
The infamous Pat's
Matt trying Pat's cheese steak....Geno's won the taste test btw
I love the Italian community in Philly....especially the food!
Matt and the Philadelphia Phanatic!
Me and the Phantic that I loved soooo much as a kid!
The awesome Reading Terminal Market
My favourite bakery ever! Love italian baked goods!
The best cannoli you will EVER have!
Our family is finally complete with the addition of Matt <3
Tim & Bryn...Matt & Katie...Daddy and Mom...Eric and Laura
Bryn said the funniest thing...clearly
My big brother Timmy and my sister in law Bryn
My big sister Lo and my brother in law Eric
The newlyweds <3
Me and my beautiful sister (best sister in the world btw!)
Soooo, funny story...this is Rogar's son and daughter in law, they were an interesting couple, super sweet (and wasted) and wanted to be a part of our family photo, they cracked us up!
Our awesome family...still laughing from the previous photo hehehe
On the way to the airport to head home, after a much needed trip to my favourite store...WAWA!
Matt and I had a fantastic time. He has never been to the east coast so it was a fun culture shock for this southern boy. He loved it so much that we kept questioning how he could be from Texas? He fit right in and I defiantly understand now why we get along so well and how he can put up with some of my crazy "yankee" ways. Ha! My favourite part was being able to show Matt where I grew up, my childhood homes and all the places that I love and hold so dear. I think his favourite part was the food...you just can't get good Italian food in the South, it's kind of like Mexican food in Texas ;)
