Today was kind of crazy. We started by leaving out of our hotel in New Jersey and drove to Philadelphia. The ride was about three hours long but most of all the kids slept the whole way. Even me.

We got into Philly about 11:30 and immediately went to the Rocky stairs. It is always fun to see the kids run up them and jump around at the top. I ran up first and videotaped them running up so it will be nice for the parents to see. We took a group picture at the Stallone statue and got back on the bus. Given extra time for lunch, we ran up to the Love statue and Franklin's statue of the Printing Press and took some pictures before we ate. Lunch was at Reading Terminal Market, which was amazing, as always. I had a pretzel dog for $3.25. Feeling bad for Beth though as there weren't many gluten free options for her. I did find a chocolate chip cookie for her that was gluten free and bought it for her. She said it was really good. After lunch, we went to Independence Hall and saw Franklin's grave, the Liberty Bell, and Independence Hall. Our tour appointment was at 2:30. I wanted to do the marine matching drills but the reenactors weren't there. I looked it up on the internet and they are only there from Tuesday through Sunday....today was Monday. Very disappointed. After Independence Hall we had about an hour of free time. We went to the Bourse to do some souvenir shopping. I wish we had gone to the Independence Center. I've never been in there to see the exhibits. Maybe next year. We met the bus and went to dinner. Kids were already getting rowdy. I have officially called this the evening dichotomy...the more tired they get, the more rowdy they are. The more tired I get, the more grouchy I am. Not a good combination.
We has dinner at Potbelky. In the past, we have been allowed to substitute our sandwiches for salads, but not this year...not sure why. After dinner we witnessed a homeless man ripping out flowers of the street flower pots and talking to himself. Another came digging through Potbellys trash can. Which leads me to discuss the homeless. I was very surprise at how many more it seemed there were than last year.