I'm back!!!!

I'm baccccckkk!!! Sorry for the long hiatus--I was traveling up north to the dirtiest city in America city of brotherly love. Since I am a big huge freak and such a worry wart, I didn't want to publicly post that I was leaving the state---you never know if you have some crazy stalker just waiting to rob your house while you are away. Instead I just scheduled some posts before I left to hold everyone over. But now I am officially back and ready to re-join the blogging world!!! I know it's only been a week, but I feel like I have been gone forever!!!

My trip to Philly was wonderful!! If you follow me on IG I tried to post a few pics here and there to keep everyone in the loop. The best part of the whole trip?? I got to see my big sister, who I haven't seen in 17 months!!!! And now I feel (more than ever) that she needs to move to Florida, like ASAP.

I will give a little recap of my trip, then I'll post some pictures to share the experience:

First of all, it was f'ing freezing. Like, wearing 2 jackets and I was still cold kind of weather. I know that I was born and raised in the frigid temperatures, but let me tell you--my blood has THINNED out since moving to the sunshine state. I am now a big baby when it comes to the cold weather.

Second, I ate a TON of food up there. I'm talking cheese steaks, pizza, spicy-cheese-chicken-nuggets, water ice, pretzels, tasty-kakes and lots & lots of Wawa. For the most part, I was eating just for the sake of eating, even when I wasn't hungry. I mean, seriously, who would pass up a greasy cheesy Whiz-Without? Not this girl! 

 

Nifty Fiftys is seriously one of the BEST restaurants in Philly...yum

 

If you are ever in Philly, I highly recommend that you bypass Pat's or Geno's steaks and take a detour to Steve's steaks instead...you will not be disappointed

 

Case in point...whiz-without

 

Rita's Water Ice--rot beer twist gelati with chocolate jimmies...oh.my.god

 

Peanut chews are absolutely delicious and they only sell them up north..bastards

 

To offset some of the grease and fat, we stopped at Saladworks since we don't have them down here in Florida..well worth it

Finally, we really didn't get to do anything that we planned. Take Steven to IKEA so he could bask in the glory that is the most amazing store ever? Nope, too cold. Take him downtown to see the Eastern State Penitentiary, the Franklin Institute and the sports stadiums? Still too damn cold. Introduce Steven to the famous Tony Luke's sandwiches? Hey look, it's 12º outside and I don't want to lose any limbs. Luckily, Philly has plenty of indoor malls, so we took full advantage of the shopping! They also have a FANTASTIC thrift store, 2nd Ave, and I was more than happy to make a trip there! 

As much fun as I had, and as amazing as the food was, (oh.my.god it was amazing) I am so happy to be back home and back in my routine. The 1300 mile drive up and back whooped me, and the lack of sleep/consumption of entirely too much fast food screwed me all up! I am happy to report that I am finally feeling back to normal again, and I am super excited to catch up on my reading!!! 

Here are some more pictures from the trip:

 

..skyline..

 

The only way to eat  Rita's Water Ice...topped off with a soft pretzel

 

Lunch with the hubby at Nifty's

 

Such a hottie he is

 

<3 sisters <3

 

Family shot..minus Mason, Brett & Gerri

 

 

Great shot of the family...with Brett & Mase poking over the top

 

Family pyramid <3

 

 

...love...

 

Papa dukes with his girls

 

Me & my sisters with grammom

 

She was CRACKING up laughing!!!!!

 

Pyramid on pop

 

 

 I hope everyone had a fabulous week while I was gone!!!! I had a wonderful time up there and I'm happy to be back!!!

We're going to Philly!!

Ok, so we aren't going for like 6 weeks...but I am still SUPER excited!!! Last year we went to Pigeon Forge in February. and we had such a great time that we were going to go again this year. But since we haven't been back to Philly in a few years, and since my grandmother isn't doing too well, we are going back up to the City of Brotherly Love for a few days. And I am psyched!! To start with, I haven't seen my big sister since our wedding (crazy!!) and I am dying to see her and excited to meet her boyfriend!! Here's a pic of me and my sis from a few years back:

 

Aside from seeing my family, I am over-the-moon excited for all of the food!! I absolutely love living in Florida, and I wouldn't change it for anything. But there is no comparison when it comes to the food. I have seriously contemplated driving up to Philly on several occasions to get a greasy cheese steak or some amazing pizza. The first time the hubby went up to Philly to visit, we literally ate pizza 5 times (we were there for a week). And most important of all----WAWA!!! The thought of being able to get Wawa whenever I want, 10 times a day if I so choose, is a GREAT feeling!!! In a few weeks when we do go up there, you can expect lots of pictures of family and me stuffing my face, but until then, I'll give you a sneak peak at all of the things I am looking forward to:

 

Cheesesteaks!!!! There is nothing that compares to a greasy, cheesy mess that has about 4000 calories and makes you feel like a fat cow after you eat it. If you are planning a trip to Philly, head to Steve's Prince of steaks and ask for a "Whiz-without." AMAZING!

 Real pizza!!! Down here the only pizza places are chains like Dominos or Pizza Hut. It's not really pizza unless you have to blot it with a paper towel before you eat it to get the grease off.

Nifty Fiftys---its a 50's style restaurant that has the most amazing cheese fries and spicy-cheese-chicken nuggets. And their milkshakes are killer!!!

 

Soft pretzels...if you are from Philly or anywhere close, you know that the best ones are sold on the side of the road from some guy who looks like he hasn't showered in 3 days...or you could just be boring and go to the Philly Soft Pretzel Factory

Tastykakes have finally made it to the Sunshine State, but they have yet to bring the Jelly Krimpets down here..so anytime I am up in Philly I make sure to stock up!

And most of all: 

You didn't think I would leave this off of my list, did you?!?! Wawa is the epitome of a perfect store. Want a hoagie? How about a bowl of mashed potatoes at 4am? Hungry for a sweet cream cheese stuffed pretzel or some french vanilla cappuccino?? Better head to Wawa!! 

((FYI, for anyone who is not from the Northeast, a hoagie is what we call a sub...a roll with meat, cheese and condiments...and they are delicious!))

If you have made it through this post without licking your screen, feel free to read it again. For everyone else, I apologize for making you hungry. 

Have a great night!!