Twins in Philly

It is not unusual for Jennifer and I to be mistaken for sisters. This weekend was no exception and we even had one old man amazed that we aren't twins. Todd thought it should be the name of my blog, and so it is.

Todd & Jennifer flew into New York late last Tuesday night. They had fun bumming around the city on Wednesday and Thursday while I was at work and I had fun playing with them in the evenings. One thing we did that I hadn't done in a very, very long time was go to Milk & Cookies, a cute little bakery in Greenwich Village. Todd enjoyed an ice cream sandwich while Jenn and I got cookies and milk. I had the best mint chocolate cookie I've ever had. Definitely worth going back for!

Friday morning, we headed for Philadelphia. We took the Chinatown Bus-- only $20 round-trip for me! I was excited to see a new city and spend time in the state of Pennsylvania (I've only driven through before and that doesn't really count)! Plus, it added a bit more time to spend with Jenn & Todd! I was surprised at how much I absolutely loved Philadelphia. Our hotel was located downtown and there were definitely some sketchy areas nearby, but there were also really nice neighborhoods in walking distance. I loved how peaceful these areas became. Tree-lined streets with adorable brownstones, cute shops and bakeries. I had a lot of fun exploring on my own when Todd & Jenn were in meetings or meals for her convention and with them when they had time to spare! Here's the run-down:

*Friday involved some road-tripping to northern Philly where we toured a Bounce U. Todd and Jenn have recently bought into this company and will be opening their very own Bounce U in the north-Dallas area in the coming months. It was fun to see one myself and learn what Jenn & Todd are getting into. Very cool place and I can't wait to bounce at the store in Texas soon!

*We drove to Delaware, making our 4th state of the day on Friday (had to drive thru New Jersey to get to Philly). Todd has some family friends who live in Delaware, so we had dinner at their house. It was a very pretty area with lush green trees. We had a delicious apple pie with apples straight from a tree in their backyard!

*Saturday, we started out with breakfast at the Reading Terminal Market. This is a market full of vendors selling every kind of food imaginable. I had heard that the Amish have booths there and have great breakfast. I had the best blueberry pancakes I've ever had.

*I went on a self-guided walking tour around Old City. I went in the church where George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Betsy Ross used to attend. I saw the oldest residential street in the U.S., Elfreth's Alley- soooo cute! I also toured Betsy Ross' house.

*I went to Rittenhouse Square- a super cute neighborhood with a park in the middle. I grabbed a light lunch near there and ate in the park! Also did a little shopping in the cute stores in that area. I could have explored this neighborhood for hours.

*Went on a tour of Independence Hall and stood where the likes of George Washington have been.

*Saw the Liberty Bell, of course!

*Took numerous pictures of City Hall, which we had hoped to go to the top of for the excellent view it has, but it was closed for the weekend. Very pretty building, though!

*Went to the most amazing dinner at a place called Rae. Jenn was in Philly for a Personal Chef convention. The head of the Dallas club had made reservations for everyone in their group and I got to tag-along. We had all decided what we wanted to order when the chef came in and asked if we'd like to do a Chef's Sampler. We all agreed to try it. I really had no idea what we were about to enjoy! We got to try almost everything on the menu. They would have 14 small portions of each item - one for each of us at the table. We tried fancy pizzas, delicious salads, shrimp, pasta, lobster, tenderloin, veal, asparagus, etc.... I can't even remember what all we had it was so much. And then came dessert! Todd & Jenn arranged for a special little cheesecake just for me and my upcoming birthday. The sommelier paired a wine with each course of the meal- 4 different wines total that were each amazing. It was a meal that lasted over 3 hours. It was very fun and very delicious...and very expensive. I decided it was my promotion celebration dinner!

*Sunday for lunch, I went to hunt for a good Cheesesteak. I wasn't terribly hungry after Saturday night's dinner, but you can't go to Philly and not get a Cheesesteak! Before going to Philly, I had heard of the war between Pat's and Geno's- 2 Cheesesteak places located across the street from each other. Once there, I was told by 2 local people that Jim's was the place to go. So, I decided to try Jim's rather than put myself in the middle of the war. It was located on South Street- a more eclectic, funky area of town. The Cheesesteak was good, but for those of you in Texas, I really think Texadelphia is doing a pretty good job!

*Todd and I went to the Philadelphia Museum of Art and pretended we were Rocky running up the stairs. We also saw a little bit of art...it's a nice museum, but I don't think either of us were in much of an art mood.

*We went to the super old, super cool Macy's. Mannequin, the movie from the '80's was supposedly filmed here. It was the fanciest department store I've ever been in!

All in all, an excellent weekend away. I have traveled near and far with Todd & Jenn, but not since they got married a few years ago! They are just as fun now as they were back when we were all single!

See pictures from the weekend here!