SO, where were we?
Oh, yes. After the excitement from the Sixers game, we went back home to our hotel & passed out.
In my dreams, I could still see the glittery confetti and hear the chants from the crowd for Big Macs, since the Sixers were only a few points away from breaking 100 points.
I woke up around 8am and had already declared it a “rest day” from exercise, regardless of the fact that there was an awesome fitness center at the hotel. Jarid & I opted for the pool & hot tub instead.
It worked wonders for my sore back & neck muscles due to a physical game of basketball the day before.
Once back at our room, I jumped in the shower to rid myself of the chlorine scent, while Jarid ordered room service and went downstairs to grab me a yogurt & banana from the Starbie’s. I brought my own to-go pack of Coach’s Oats, which ended up coming in handy.
I made a raw oats, Dannon Oikos (not near as good as Stonyfield or Chobani), and banana parfait (total $3.11) while Jarid enjoyed his room service omelette, roasted potatoes, and toast (total$19.00) each with a side of coffee. I mixed my room Starbie’s with some diet hot chocolate for a cafe mocha. Mmm.
Then, we were off!
First stop: The Liberty Bell
Second stop: Independance Hall
[source]
Third Stop: The Constitution Center
Next stop: WHOLE FOODS for lunch. Isn’t he the best? Patronizing me with trips to WF… Any other guy would think I’m totally silly for getting excited to go to a grocery store for lunch. That’s just another reason why he’s not just any other guy 😉
Honest to goodness, it’s probably a great thing that I don’t live closer to one of these…Probably half of my paycheck would end up going to this place.
There’s so much to choose from in the healthy, nutritious department! I got roasted greenbeans, broccoli, cauliflower, tofu, cucumbers, chickpea salad, more seafood paella, spinach, vegetarian chicken salad, etc. A little bit of everything was the best option for me 🙂
Jarid loved their mac n’ cheese & baked goodies! He also thinks it’s hysterical to act goofy when I’m taking pictures for the blog 😉
It was his brilliant idea to take pictures of my favorites so I could recreate the recipe at home!
Szechwan Noodles ingredients: organic durum whole wheat noodles, carrots, onion, zucchini, red peppers, mushrooms, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, sea salt, & spices.
Paella ingredients: rice, blac beans, tomatoes, grilled chicken, salmon, shrimp, roasted garlic, parsley, saffron, green onions, red onions, salt, pepper, paprika
After lunch, we stopped over at the Magic Garden, something we had passed the night before, but it was dark and wouldn’t have had time to stop before the game.
They asked for a donation to enter, but we could see a lotof the artwork from the outside, so we checked it out briefly and kept moving.
The Magic Garden is a folk art environment, gallery space, and nonprofit organization that showcases the work of mosaicist Isaiah Zagar, a man who dedicated most of his life to beautifying the city.
The rest of the afternoon was spent wandering around random shops in the city. I found a cute Coach wristlet, but I decided I would spend more money in Whole Foods before we left on some groceries I couldn’t get back home instead 🙂
Jarid found an awesome Braves hat for $15 and I encouraged him to get it. I mean, he looks adorable in it, no?
Soon, 4pm rolled around and we had to be home for a birthday party in my family…I swear, we are constantly running from one thing to the next. The ride home was super relaxing. I love riding shotgun with Jarid in the driver’s seat ❤ Can’t wait to do it for the rest of our lives!
Overall, it was another amazing trip…we did have some bloopers, though…
Blooper #1 – Saturday, Jarid drove an hour out of the way to the wrong college and missed the first 1/2 of my game. Same name, different school.
Blooper #2 – Saturday night, we couldn’t find a parking spot near WF. We tried parallel parking in a really tight spot & ended up creating a HUGE line of traffic in the middle of an intersection. The Philly natives were NOT happy with us. WE tried and tried, but ended up in a $12 parking garage for just 20 minutes.
Blooper #3 – While we were on our way to the game, some toolbag decided he didn’t stop far enough behind the yellow line at a red light. We were behind him, and he definitely backed into us.
Blooper #4 – We spent all our cash on dinner & parking (unexpected expense) at WF, not thinking about the fact that it cost $15 just to park at the Wells Fargo Center for the game. FAIL.
Blooper #5 – After the game, we forgot where we parked and ended up walking the entire circumference around the Fargo Center.
Blooper #6 – On the way back to the hotel after the game, we accidentally went down a one way street, but we didn’t get caught.
Blooper #7 – We did the same thing (see #6) on our way to sight-see the next day…but we did get caught…Jarid thought he was going to get arrested, but thankfully, the cop didn’t even give us a ticket!
Blooper #8 – Jarid bought a soda that had a screw off top right before we went into the Constitution center. Needless to say, we had to wait for him to chug it outside, after a little bit of a spill, because drinks weren’t allowed.
Quite frankly, I wouldn’t change a thing about our trip. We were a perfect team, even when the odds were against us 😉
Stay tuned for a bunch of product reviews!
XOXO.
The Freckled Foodie 
