March 3, 2017

Bob: It felt pretty cold this morning even though the temp was 31. Got the car reloaded and headed to the Philadelphia Temple at 9:00. We got there in about 30 minutes which is what Google predicted. Had to call the temple because we couldn't find parking. There is an underground facility next to the temple that patrons can use and the temple validates your ticket.
The temple inside is very beautiful. Most of the floors are hardwood. The stairs have small risers and wide treads for easy walking up and down. Did not hurt my knees like most stairs do. There is some intricate carving in the doors and other wooden trim. During the endowment you move from one room to another once. The original room had 56 seats for partrons and beautiful wall paintings on the sides. The other room was white and brighter. All in all it is a beautiful temple. Reminded me of the early days of our nation.
Drove to Misty's after the temple session. Stopped to do some shopping, get some gas and have dinner. Got there around 5:00 due to several traffic delays. None of them were major except the transition between I-695 and I-70. Then on I-70 there was another major holdup at exit 87. It's always a problem in the afternoon because a major entrance ramp is there. I-70 remains 2 lanes and when the cars try to enter traffic gets bogged down. Another engineering marvel!! It might have been designed by relatives of the people that designed the Don Valley Parkway in Toronto. It has the same problem.
Well it's time to go to bed. Got to get up in the morning and give blood. Hope you enjoy your weekend. Love to all and good night brothers.
Dad/Bob

Bonnie:  The temple session was great and the temple is a beautiful place. It is now one of my favorite temples. The chandelier in the celestial room is massive and brilliant and the patterned carpet is elegant. It certainly has an early-American theme, which is appropriate. The temple is built in downtown Philadelphia so the underground parking is a great blessing.
We are settled in at Misty's for the next few days. I hope that I feel better as time goes on. I seem to have had an allergy "attack". Tomorrow will be a busy day so I am going to bed soon. I want to have enough energy to participate in the activities. We'll write about it tomorrow.
Love, Mom/Bonnie