Philadelphia

The first day we were there we went to Philly and went to the original makers of the Philly cheese steak -  Pat’s King of Steaks. You better know exactly what you are ordering and how to order before you get to the window, otherwise they will look at you like you are a moron and you could be asked to step out of line. The proper way to order is to say, “ one wiz with” which means 1 sandwich with cheese wiz and with onions. Of course that could change if you didn't want those things, but we dared not disturb the “delicate genius Philly cheese steak makers’ with our “measly preferences”

Our minds and eyes were again filled with history as we walked through Philadelphia.  We went to Independence  Hall where the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed. We stood in the Assembly Room and saw the actual chair that  George Washington sat in during the signing of the Declaration of Independence,    We visited Congress Hall where  George Washington was sworn into presidency for his second term.

                                                       Ink stand used to write Declaration of Independence 

Liberty Bell

George Washington's Chair in the center

The line to see the Liberty Bell wrapped around the building. People waited in the freezing cold and we joined in so we could view the great symbol of freedom that has lasted through such a long span of time. We grabbed some hot chocolate to try and stay warm partly drinking it partly hugging it while we walked to Christ Church Burial Ground where Benjamin Franklin and his wife are buried, as well as four other signers of the Declaration of Independence.

Benjamin Franklin's Tomb 

Christ Church Burial Ground

We also visited the sight of Benjamin Franklin's home, where they built a “skeleton frame” of what the home looked like right over the foundation of the original home. You can still see the foundation underneath.

We stopped by Betsy Ross' home’ the women who sewed the first American Flag. We had had just about enough of the freezing cold at that time so our visit there was pretty short.

Location of Benjamin Franklin's Home

The most interesting thing we saw was the Original Declaration of independence written on scrap paper by Thomas Jefferson himself. We also learned that the Declaration of Independence was “penned’’ or handwritten out by Timothy Matlack. We all had assumed that it was Thomas Jefferson’s writing.

Thomas Jefferson's chair he sat in while writing the Decleration

We learned that before the handwritten declaration was the Dunlap broadside, a "typed/printed" version , around 200 of them all sent out to the colonies to be read, before the handwritten one was signed.  

Thomas Jefferson's draft of the Declaration

First Post Office

Ally and Shelby were super excited about being able to have dinner with their online Science teacher.  Mrs. Sam lives in Pennsylvania  and it worked out that we could have dinner with her sweet family of 8. We went out to chinese food and while the restaurant turned out to be a pretty bad place the company was awesome. We all had such a great time visiting with them and getting to know her family a bit. 

Dinner with Ally's and Shelby's Veritas Press teacher

Wes and I also celebrated our 15th year anniversary  . We went to dinner at Longhorn Steakhouse, and just enjoyed a quiet evening talking about some of our favorite memories over the years.

I love NYC ....for a little while at least.......

Tori and Collin watching random people
play video games on the subway. 

What an amazing view of the Manhattan Sky Line we had from our RV site. We stayed across the bay on the Jersey Side and took either the Metro into the city or the ferry across the bay. I still can’t believe we took all 5 kids on the subway and that no one got lost … there were times  when the subway was soo packed that I had a difficult time corralling all the kids close to me. People push and shove their way in and out of the subway , not even looking up to see that they are shoving a child. On the other hand there were the select few that would give their seat up the let one of the kids sit down. 

Collin Listening 

We went to Grand Central Station, and got to see the beautiful architecture and witness the packed dining area where strangers share tables and others hover over you waiting for your table like a hawk circling its prey. Wes’ brother Jon who lived in New York tipped us off on the “Whispering Gallery” found in the Terminal. You stand with your face toward the wall and another person stands diagonally 40 feet across from you on the others side of the arch way and you can whisper facing the wall and the other person can hear whatever you say.

Ally and Shelby talking to Collin 

Jon happened to be in town that week so we were able to visit with him and we all went to the Museum Of Modern Art together. It was hard to grasp that we were actually looking at the originals of some of the worlds most famous pieces of art. We saw Vincent Van Gogh’s The Starry Night, Pablo Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon and The Three Musicians, Henri Matisse's Dance, Salvador Dali’s The Persistence of Memory ,Jackson Pollock's works and so many others.

 

 

Brothers found each other at Grand Central Terminal 

Top of the Rock/Central Park below

We went to the “Top of The Rock” which is the top of Rockefeller center , in my opinion it is a  better view then the top of the Empire State Building, and much less crowded.  It is bizarre seeing Central park’s huge rectangle of green amongst tall buildings. A perspective that is hard to grasp when walking through the park itself . The night that we went up to the Empire State building  was super cold and windy but still a sight to be seen all light up and towering over the bustling city. 

We walked the jammed packed city streets and went to time square where the ball is dropped on New Years Eve. We watched people skate at Rockefeller Ice Rink. Although the kids were more interested in playing with the toys and dancing on the BIG piano  at FAO Schwartz. We watched an IMAX movie on Sharks at the Museum of Natural History and found “Rexy the Dinosaur” from the movie Night at the Museum. 

We happened to be in town the weekend of the NYC Marathon and we joined Jon to watch the inspiring event in Brooklyn . The kids cheered the runners on by giving out high fives while I was wishing I was running along with the mob of people.

We took the  mile long   icy cold walk across the Brooklyn Bridge rewarding ourselves with a delicious hamburger from Shake Shake.

Finish Line

Jon also showed us around upper west side  and treated us out to some good NYC pizza at Patsy’s. For dessert he took us to a local favorite "Levain Bakery,” where they serve huge decedent cookies. We all loved them although, I think we loved the banana cream pudding Jon got us from Magnolia’s even better.

Brooklyn 

Brooklyn Bridge

Wes enjoyed going to NBC where the Tonight Show is filmed and also seeing where the Today Show is taped . He also gave the kids a lecture on how stocks work while standing in front of the NY stock exchange. 

Toward the end of the second week we finally made our way to the Statue of Liberty, we learned so much about the statue that we hadn’t known before. From the Crown of her head to the broken shakels around her feet , the statue's every detail represents something specific. It was interesting going to Ellis Island and tracing back our ancestors that came over by boat.

"Had to fight like a bull" to get a pic in front of this guy!
New York Stock Exchange.

Freedom Tower from the ferry

The last day we were there we went to Ground Zero, a very sobering experience. The museum was well done. It honored the victims, as well as educated the public about the events of that day.  It seemed that the Freedom Tower could be seen from anywhere in New York.

Last beam removed from Ground Zero 

We all were fully exhausted by the end of our two week visit and thoroughly great full that we don’t live in a big city.

Buffalo NY, Maine, Boston Massachusetts

The Falls 

 Upstate New York -Buffalo - We spent a week there visiting with my Cousin Kathy who I haven't seen in years.   It was a blessing to connect while exploring Niagara Falls together.  I loved hearing that New York accent that I remember my Mom and grandma having. Everyone calls their mom, mah, and they call soda "pop."

My mom's house 

Platters 

We went to North Tonawanda where my mom grew up and we saw her home as a child. I also found Platters Chocolates which is a chocolate shop in  North Tonawanda that makes mouth watering Orange Chocolate. My Aunts from New York would send my sister brother and I huge chocolate bunnies every Easter from this store.As I smelled the sweet chocolate aroma It felt like I was being transported to my childhood. It also helped the kids  make a tangible connection  to their grandma who they never were fortunate enough to meet.

Niagara 

Niagara Falls 

Maine-

Wes and I enjoyed early morning Coffee at a cute little coffee shop Called Breaking New Grounds that overlooked the Ocean.  Maine is known for Blueberries and Wes ordered the blueberry coffee each morning. Yum.  We went and walked around Kennebunkport Maine with the family. It was very busy. It happened to be Columbus day weekend as well as a Canadian Holiday, so it was bumper to bumper traffic.  One of the days Wes and the kids all went Surfing in the Ocean in Wells. The water was super cold, but it was  beautiful day. The leaves where very colorful . The kids and I went on a walk that overlooked the Ocean it was called Marginal way. The shore line was rugged and we walked down to the waters edge and watched the waves crash against the rocks. We also had a super yummy breakfast at a place called Cafe  Amore. They had amazing S'mores Hot Chocolate and Beef Brisket . While in Maine we had our first birtday in the RV .. Lacey turned 7 ! We went to see one of our favorite comedians ,Tim Hawkins in concert. We also got some apple pie and opened presents and decorated the RV , it was a blast.

 

State House

~Boston Massachusetts/ Cape Cod

 We had a very educational time in Boston. The first day we were there we went  on the “Freedom Trail” . As we walked the streets of Boston our eyes and ears were  filled with our Countries history. We started at Boston Common the oldest park in the United states , we didn't linger very long there because it was cold and windy and we knew that the trial was 5 miles round trip. We stopped at the Massachusetts State House, one of the most famous  public building in the U.S. The architecture of the building is beautiful and it has a golden Dome on the top. Next we joined the worship service at Park Street Church , built in 1809 and a key supporter of the abolitionists movement . The next  stop captivated all of us, The Granary Burying Grounds where John Hancock, Paul Revere, Samuel Adams,the parents of Benjamin Franklin and the grave marker for all those killed in the Boston Massacre, along with over 2,000 other tomb stones. Ally and Shelby recited The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere poem in front of his tomb. Something they never thought they would be able to do while memorizing it.

Paul Revere Tomb

John Hancock Tomb

We stopped at Kings Chapel and Burying ground , which is Boston’s oldest cemetery . There the first women to come off the Mayflower is buried as well as Boston’s first governor.  I enjoyed the stop at the Benjamin Franklin Statue in front of the Boston Latin School which is the oldest public school. I imagine the education of that day was very different from what most public school children receive today.  From there the road took us to the Old Corner Bookstore where  Henry Longfellow, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Emerson, John Whittier, Louisa Alcott and others books’ where published. We all thought it was strange that the bookstore has turned into a chipolte restaurant. Next stop was the Old South Meeting house where Samuel Adams is said to have given the sons of Liberty the signal to destroy the British tea. Suddenly the Boston Tea Party we have studied so many times became much more real. 

Old South Meeting House 

Old Corner Book Store 

Old North Church

Next was the Old State House where the Declaration of Independence was first read to the people.  We walked past the site where the Boston Massacre took place and then to Faneuil Hall where the sons of Liberty declared their fight against Britain's oppression.  We were all excited to finally make it to Paul Revere’s home where he left in the middle of the night to ride off to Lexington.  It was interesting to learn that he had 16 children and they all grew up in that home.  Finally we got to the Old North Church the oldest church in Boston and of course where the One if by Land and two if by sea from Longfellow’s poem came from . We got to look up and see where the two Lanterns were hung to signify that the British were traveling across the river “by Sea” .

Home of Paul Revere 

USS Constitution 

We had to go back a second day to get to the last two sites because it was too late,although it was well worth the effort.  We climbed to the top of the Bunker Hill Monument all 294 wet slippery steps. The wind and rain came wiping in through the small windows in the tower. Last of the Freedom Trail was the USS Constitution the oldest commissioned warship still afloat. This was a very interesting to me because my brother Paul recently was chosen to be The Sailor of the Year for the U.S Navy Reserves and lived on the ship for a week.  

Bunker Hill Monument 

We also visited the Mayflower II which is a replica of the Mayflower that took the pilgrims over to  America. All the people working on board are in full costume and in full character.

Mayflower II

Visiting the Plimouth Plantation was interesting, seeing what life was like for the pilgrims as well as the indians at that time.  The homes of the pilgrims where very rugged. Dirt floors, hay roofs and crud walls made of mud. Unfortunately the indian portion of the exhibit was done poorly, we were all laughing as the “indian women” , who didn’t even look like an indian would drape her animal skin over her head so she could looked at her iphone.

Lexington 

Plymouth Rock 

 Since we stayed on Cape Cod we went walking on the beach a couple of times. The sand was soft and beautiful and Mayflower Beach during low tide  was about a ¼ of a mile walk to the waters edge, that is a lot of sand. Most of the time we spent there was rainy freezing and wet so we didn’t spend too much time in the water.

Mayflower Beach Cape Cod MA