You all might think that finding out one week in advance that we were going to Washington D.C. was impulsive enough, but because we live for impulse we also threw in a day in Philly! My friend asked me a couple days ahead if we wanted to come see their stomping grounds over the weekend. At first I said no. (Because my feet hurt at the moment. :^) But, then I mentioned it to my husband and he LOVED the idea! My husband lived in Pennsylvania for a few years when he was a kid. He spent a lot of time in Philly and really wanted to show it to the kids. So Friday night, after a FULL day in D.C. we drove to Philly. It was a looooong drive in Friday night traffic, but it was well worth the effort since Saturday morning we woke up in Philly! YAY!!
Here is my friend with her adorable baby waiting for the train we took downtown. That cute little yellow hat was my daughters when she was little! It was such a treat to see our friends baby in it.
Here was my first glimpse of Philly when we came off the train.
My oldest and I were all wound up at this point! We kept telling each other "Jefferson worte the Declaration of Independence HERE!" LOL
The building is actually a reproduction built on the original site. I can't get over how narrow it is.
Then we went to the Independence Hall Visitor Center.
My daughter in front of items they found in an archeological dig of the site we were standing on.
My little man wants this costume!
Here we are in front of Independence Hall Please ignore my wild hair! It was VERY humid! LOL
The LIBERTY BELL!!!! I managed to tame my hair a bit for this picture! LOL
Here is my husband and my youngest in front of the bell. We lucked out because there was no wait for the Liberty Bell. We were told it is not unusual to wait 2 hours to see it!
Breath in, breath out, breath in, breath out!!!!
The architeture is amazing!!!!
This is the Court Room.
And here it is! THE room where the Declaration of Independence was discussed, amended and signed! The desk in the front is where John Hancock sat!
Right side of the room....
Left side of the room....
Check out this chandelier! This was all I got before my 5 year old's meltdown and I had to leave. I didn't get to hear any of the talk. But, my husband got it on video, so I can listen to it when we get home.
Here is the room we waited in.
Gorgeous! The famous key that saved the day!
In the building next door to Independence Hall is a small museum that houses just a couple (really cool) things.
One is this orginal copy of the printed version of the Declaration of Independence. The Park Ranger said about 50 of these were printed. One was given to each of the men that signed it and this one is the one that was read to the people on the streets of Philly! WOW!
This is the quill stand they used to sign the Declaration of Independence. The part in the middle held the ink. The part to the left held the sand they would sprinkle on the wet ink. The part on the right held the quills.
The front of the Hall. The little red box is a guard shack. (NOT an outhouse! LOL)
Where they pumped water for Independence Hall.
Another view of Independence Hall I love the clock built into the side.
This sign is on the building next door...
Here is the building...
Again...I was going over and over the movie 1776 in my head as we were surrounded by the place it all really happened! WOW!! (Yeah, I know I have said that before! LOL) See why my brain stopped processing at this point???
Okay at this point we walked many, many blocks across town to see this...
I am a big fan of Betsy Ross! Since I love sewing the thought of making the first flag of the United States of America just wow's me! So much of the countries history is all around what the men did, but this is a bit of history that belongs to a very talented, hard working women.
The house is tiny! It is basically 8 rooms all stacked on top of each other with the smallest circular staircases I have ever seen. I could brace myself on the step ahead of me with my hands as I walked up the stairs! I can't imagine functioning in this house! (It is really dark too.) Besides that it was a boarding house and more than one family lived there! I think she had 3 rooms in the house. Her sleeping room, parlour and a workspace downstairs and then she would have had access to the kitchen. (Which I think they all shared.) You can learn more and get a online tour of the house HERE. They didn't allow pictures inside, so go look at the online tour to see it all. We arrived 5 minutes before they closed, so our tour was a bit rushed. I may not have all my facts right! I remember finding the online tour a few years ago and I KNOW I spent more time exploring then than I was able too when were were actually there. But, I still loved it and am glad we got to see it in real life!
Here is a picture of Betsy Ross grave. It is in the courtyard next to the house. She was an interesting lady. I want to read more about her life when we get home.
Next we went to Ben Franklin's grave. My oldest son LOVES Ben Franklin. So this was really a big moment for him.
Oh, and we couldn't leave town without having a Cheesesteak Sandwich!
Here are a few of our tired, but happy kiddos on the train on the way back to our friends house.
Last but not least...Our Philly experience was even cooler because our friends live in a real row house! (It is about 85 years old!) Getting to stay with them and experience a little of what it would be like to live in one of these cool houses was an added treat!!
A HUGE thanks to our friends for welcoming us into their lovely home, letting me do laundry and for being our private tour guide of the city! We had a WONDERFUL time!
So that was our day in Philly! :^) Yep, we drove back to D.C. after all that! My husband is a trooper! Because when I say we drove I mean he drove and the rest of us slept!
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An extremely dense, vertically developed cumulus with a relatively hazy outline and a glaciated top extending to great heights, usually producing heavy rains, thunderstorms, or hailstorms.
That cute little yellow hat was my daughters when she was little! It was such a treat to see our friends baby in it.
Please ignore my wild hair! It was VERY humid! LOL
I managed to tame my hair a bit for this picture! LOL
We lucked out because there was no wait for the Liberty Bell. We were told it is not unusual to wait 2 hours to see it!
This was all I got before my 5 year old's meltdown and I had to leave. I didn't get to hear any of the talk. But, my husband got it on video, so I can listen to it when we get home.
The Park Ranger said about 50 of these were printed. One was given to each of the men that signed it and this one is the one that was read to the people on the streets of Philly! WOW!
The part in the middle held the ink. The part to the left held the sand they would sprinkle on the wet ink. The part on the right held the quills.
The little red box is a guard shack. (NOT an outhouse! LOL)
I love the clock built into the side. 
She was an interesting lady. I want to read more about her life when we get home.
Getting to stay with them and experience a little of what it would be like to live in one of these cool houses was an added treat!!
