Philadelphia Road Trip, Part Two

More blather from our recent road trip:

My brother took us to the Ikea near their house. And it was good. Most of the stuff was a little more sleek and urban than you see around here, but we found some pieces that fit our style. Among the great finds was a kitchen table with six chairs. We didn't buy it, but I think when we do we'll get out with it for under $500. Not bad.

Probably the most refreshing part was that the store's employees seemed to enjoy their jobs. And that was true all the way down to the guy who spooned up my lunch of Swedish meatballs in the cafeteria. It was actually strange to be in a retail environment where the people don't hate you.

Uncle B also tagged along on our trip to Sesame Place, the Sesame Street theme park outside Philadelphia. This was out first theme park foray with the little ones, and we absolutely could not have done it without my big bro's assistance. Thanks, Uncle B!

The "check engine" light on the Odyssey came on during the drive back from Sesame Place, telling us the car was in desperate need of an oil change. Bro and I ventured out at 8 a.m. the next day to the closest service place. We called to check on it around 10:30 and they hadn't even touched it. We went and picked it up and ran our errands.

Apparently last Tuesday was Get Your Car Serviced Day in the state of Pennsylvania because we had fits trying to find a place to get an oil change.

Now, I don't think of myself as speaking with a Southern accent. But when I walked into the first potential oil change place, I said, "I just need an oil change."

From those six little words, the service dude must have been able to tell I wasn't from around there, because he responded with, "We're too busy. We can't work on it until Thursday. When are you heading back down South?"

So apparently I do speak with an accent.

We discovered the hot, black nectar that is known as Dunkin Donuts coffee. The blueberry donuts weren't bad either.

My brother's Tivo is loaded with goodness. We spent a few hours watching a show called Kenny vs. Spenny, which was absolutely hilarious.

Son and Daughter slept in the same room for the first time on this trip. The first night, we kept hearing the pitter-patter of small feet coming from their room. Every time Son would lay down in the pack-and-play to sleep, she would spring out of bed and run over to check on him. The commotion she caused each time would wake him up, pushing their collective bedtime back to around 10 p.m.

Son tried to get his revenge the next night. We heard chatter coming through the monitor long after we put them in bed. Wife went up to check on them and found Son standing up in the pack-and-play banging a paci on the edge and shouting for Daughter. Despite the drama, Daughter was sound asleep in the bed.

Okay, enough typing for tonight.