Philly!

We just got back from a short trip to Philadelphia. We were there primarily to visit the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) where Abby had a checkup for her heart. We were excited to learn that her Cardiologist from Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake recently relocated to CHOP as the Chief of Cardiology. Since Philadelphia is only a few hours away we thought it worth the trip to see him. He seemed genuinely pleased to see us (a taste of home) and as I mentioned, we were thrilled to see him.

Abby is doing very well and her checkup was terrific. We have known for some time that Abby will need at least one more heart surgery at some point and it looks like it won't be any time soon. In fact, the doctor told us it might be as long as 5 years. Regardless, we like the word "years" in that it means it isn't imminent. The best part is that Abby was well enough to even be cleared to ride a roller coaster now and then. Very cool.

Since we were going to be in Philadelphia anyway, we thought we would make a quick trip to see Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. You can see pictures by clicking here. It was a very nice trip and we had a good time. I even got to have an authentic Philly Cheese Steak that I bought from a street vendor (okay, stop rolling your eyes)!

Independence Hall is where the Declaration of Independence was signed. Even though there are SO MANY people that go through the place on tours and such, it still has a hallowed feeling. It was neat to be able to see and experience it. The Liberty bell was kind of fun too. They have it set up across the street in a special building with a glass backdrop that kind of frames Independence Hall (where the bell was hung).

This was one of our most enjoyable trips so far. I think we picked a good time to go when the crowds weren't too big. The kids were unusually well behaved as well so it was a nice prelude to the Holidays.

~Wade