Trudy Meets Elmo Very Cute Video

Trudy Meets Elmo. That's what my calendar read on July 11th, yesterday's date for months now.

Trudy is a very big Elmo fan. Dadda was her first word (of course!), and even before Mamma, her second word was Elmo.  We live about 25 minutes away from Sesame Place and have been sooo excited to take her there to meet her hero.

Back in May, Sesame Place had a 50% off sale for season passes, and we went for it. Very soon after, my husband went away on an extended work trip. Womp womp. We didn't want him to miss Trudy seeing Elmo for the first time, so we waited for him. We marked Tuesday, July 11th when he got back as the day that "Trudy Meets Elmo", and yesterday that day arrived! We've waited for this trip for so long, and it didn't disappoint. We spent a sunny Tuesday afternoon visiting our friends on Sesame Street at Sesame Place in Langhorne.

There were shows and a parade, and lots of places to cool off in the water. We had so much fun. We didn't realize this, but there were a lot of great perks for season pass holders too. We got a discount on merch (and bought Trudy an Elmo purse), we got digital copies of all of the professional photos for free, and we stumbled upon a "Season Pass Holders Meet and Greet", and that's where we met Elmo at long last. We spoke with one of the workers there too, and these Season Pass Meet and Greets happen every day at 2pm, and the characters vary. We will definitely be back. She also loves Bert, so we'll try for him next time too.  For more info on Sesame Place, check HERE.

Here is the video of Trudy meeting her hero. And apparently her nemesis too... Cookie Monster. We'll have to work on that. Poor Cookie Monster!

~ Kristen

Wow. This year's Philadelphia Chinese Lantern Festival is incredible. Don't miss it.

I can't think of a better way to spend a summer evening, than sipping something refreshing while walking through this gorgeous space. It's crazy to me that this is only here temporarily. Open in Franklin Square through August 13th only, and open every evening from 6-11pm. A never-before-seen array of 1,500 individual lantern creations assembled into 34 enormous displays. There's food too. A number of Asian cuisine options, and the traditional SquareBurger fare too. Not to mention mini golf, a carousel, and a choreographed fountain light show! With lanterns created by over 80 people and assembled by a 30-person team of artisans from China over a one-month period in Franklin Square. Visitors can see 180 animals (25 pandas alone), over 2,500 flower blooms, and so much more.

Our favorite part? Smoke bubbles. That's right. This year, the tallest lantern is 33 feet tall. It's a Giant Lingzhi Tree (a type of mushroom), and there are bubbles filled with smoke floating all around it. It's a must see.

HERE's more on this year's Philadelphia Chinese Lantern Festival for 2023. There's a list of entertainment and schedules, food information, fun facts and more.

Purchase tickets HERE.