East Coast Vintage & My MIL’s Sunroom

East Coast Vintage & My MIL’s Sunroom

lifeoflezure

September 14, 2019

Family trip to the East Coast, and what did we see?

Old stuff. Vintage stuff. The same boardwalk arcade and carnival rides my husband loved as a kid. Philadelphia. And my MIL’s sunroom–wait for it…

(a) Old school hoopty my husband rode when he was young. (b) The boardwalk in Dela-somewhere. It’s made of actual wood! *Gah!* (c) Boats from the same vintage arcade–Funland–family owned since the ’60s. Spooky but original mermaid (seaweed-covered thing in the center). Water might be OG, too.

We spent a day in Philly, AKA America’s Greatest City.*

*Fight me.

(a) Ornate antique doors in downtown Philly. (b) The building from the OG Ghostbusters, according to legend. This one could be false, but my kids like that movie so we went with it. (c) Independence Hall built in 1753. The Declaration of Independence and Constitution were adopted there. (d) Towers designed by architect I.M. Pei in the 1960s. Concrete condos added to the Historical Register in 1999. (e) Beautiful & badass Rittenhouse Square. Drank La Colombe there in the AM, went on Zillow looking for housing there in the PM.

For us, no East Coast trip is complete without a Philly pop-in. I met my husband in Philly (at Jose Pistola’s, a Mexican food/Belgian beer spot). I lived in Philly for about 7 years. I owned a condo in Philly for the better (worse?) part of a decade. And my husband and I both still have some of our best friends in Philly.

Philadelphia, The City that Bites You Back. Even if you wear your best adventure sandals, you will get messy.

Philadelphia is a city of firsts–first U.S. capitol (before D.C.), first botanical garden, first hospital. I love the city, even after the many, many hardships I faced there. It used to be called “The City of Brotherly Love.” Now it’s “The City that Loves You Back.” To me, it’ll always be “The City that Bites You Back.” But it hurts so good.

Baby’s first Septa!

Back in Delaware

After a day in our beloved Philly, we hopped in an Uber and went over the Delaware river and through the West Chester to grandma’s house that evening. My MIL keeps things crispy, so my kids played with cool old toys that once belonged to my husband. I mean, I could NEVER keep toy parts together for 35+ years. (Or even 35+ minutes, if I’m being honest.)

And Finally, the Crown Jewel

The living room where my kids played opens up to the crown jewel of my in-law’s house: the sunroom of my dreams! Pink and green. Wicker and plaster. I think a lot of people would have redecorated it by now, but I’m so glad that’s not the case because it’s 1980s-level glorious. And I think I took more pictures of the sunroom than of my own children.