Trip to Philadelphia

My office is working with the Bible publisher who produces many of the Scriptures that we provide to send us up to their plant to see how Bibles are made.  The company is in Philadelphia.  So, 5 co-workers and I flew this morning and arrived mid-morning in Philly.  We went first to get something to eat before all the touristy stuff!

 Our driver suggested that we go to Jim's Steaks for the best cheese steaks in Philadelphia.

 You could actually see the guys cooking the steak and make your sandwich.

 Independence Hall

Liberty Bell

 Inside Independence Hall 

The chair in the middle of the picture is the only original piece and is where George Washington sat.

This is a state government building which is the largest building in the world built of stone.  Secondarily, the driver told us that it also has the most air conditioning units -- over 200!

We also went to the U.S. Mint and learned a lot about the creation of coins.  It was really neat!  We learned that pennies come from east Tennessee as blanks instead of the raw materials received like nickles, quarters, and dimes are.

Baby Basketball

Look what Nathan got...

We had been looking for one, but brand-new they were running between $40-50.  We found this one for $11 on clearance.  Granted it's not the sturdiest (do you see the Powerade bottle on the base?), but it gets the job done.

Ready? Set. Go!

 

Can you tell what Nathan is doing after he shoots?  Hint:  It's what basketball players usually do before shooting! :)

Last Day Together

Playing with Travis

 Reading books with Uncle Tod

Everyone together

L to R - Nathan, Jessica, me, Barry, Uncle Tod, Brianna, Aunt Michelle, Travis

 Reading with Brianna

The Cousins

Big Toys

Check out these cool toys that they have:

 Uncle Tod was quick to help out!

You have to throw a few rocks in the pond! :)  

(But be careful that you don't fall in!)

We got to play with our good friends the Robinsons last night and also Jessica made it home from college for the weekend.  Now we're just waiting on Travis!

The Boys

We went down to the road to wait for Brianna to get off the bus.  As you can see, Nathan wasn't too excited for his picture to be made.

It's getting warmer!

We're filling our days with visiting and looking for Michigan stuff.  We got to go to our favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner last night and Tuesday night we got to hang out with Barry's sister and family.  We're still looking for a t-shirt or two to take back, but having fun, none-the-less.

Fun Outside

"Am I close?"

Nathan also got to play on the playset. :)

Nathan has been quick to notice if someone has a basketball hoop at their house.  In fact, as we're going around, he'll start calling out when he sees one.  But, he's definitely way too short to get the ball in the basket.  It didn't keep him from trying to get the ball there!  We're glad that the weather isn't as cold as we thought it would be so that we can get outside and play.  (But, you can see we're still having to wear jackets!)

Visiting Animals

A friend of the family has some farm animals and we went for a visit to see them.

 Hi, Mr. Goat!

 These are sheep and they can have either 2 or 4 horns.  Interesting, huh?!

Look at that snow!  There was still snow in various places and the little pond was still frozen over.