Army vs. Navy Football Game Recap 2017
There are few moments in my life where I really am just in awe of the fact that this is my life. This past weekend in Philadelphia, surrounded by some of my closest friends, watching Army beat Navy for the second year in a row and win the Commander in Chief's trophy for the first time since 1996 was one of those moments. Was everything perfect this weekend, absolutely not. The cheap hotel we had stayed in previously was practically in shambles and we got stuck in a smoking room, to kick things off. But it is moments like this, where you make the best of any situation, that you realize how truly blessed you are.
FRIDAY
Justin and I drove down to Philly about mid-day on Friday and checked into the hotel. Like I said, it left more to be desired but we made the most of it (yes, car vent clips in an A/C unit in a room really DO help with the smoking smell). Anyways, we relaxed and got snacks while we waited for the rest of our friends to arrive. I had previously made a list of all of the places I wanted to check out (mostly restaurants) in Philadelphia while we were there but nothing on the list really stood out. The last time Army/Navy had been in Philadelphia we went to the German Christmas market in Love Park that they have every year and I knew I had to go back there.
Naturally, my favorite new sweater made an appearance (there was a moment of panic during the weekend where I thought I had ruined it). I love the way it paired so effortlessly with my boyfriend jeans and these new boots I got from Sam Edelman. Side note: I am definitely turning into my mother when it comes to fashion choices.
Anyways, we found this Irish pub near the Christmas market called Con Murphy's and decided to go there as a group post Christmas market exploration. The wait to actually get food was ridiculous which we should have expected it but the upper bar area and the live music more than made up for it.
We had so much fun just chatting about life and where it would be taking all of us in the next few years. I keep saying this but I am honestly blessed by the amount of friendships West Point has brought me and not only the amount, but the quality. The only reason it truly seemed like we waited forever was because we were all starving! I also chatted about this saying that was over the door in the pub on my most recent Saturday Morning Coffee post. I just love the message that it gives.
This is literally the ONLY picture Justin and I got together all weekend...... *Insert face palm emoji here*. While I'm disappointed in that fact it was nice to just be present in every moment that was happening. Sometimes we can be a little too attached to getting the perfect shot for social media, me especially as a blogger. I love that I took the time to just enjoy being in the moment with my fiancé, buzzing with energy about what was going to happen the next day.
This is our last Army/Navy game while Justin is a cadet. This is our last Army/Navy game as being separate. The next time Army plays Navy we will be married and Justin will be a Lt. It's amazing how quickly time passes and just being in the moments to soak those memories up. I'm honestly getting teary eyed writing this right now because of how quickly the weekend went by.
Anyways, back to Con Murphy's. We waited forever for a table but the beer and the music was on point. Also, the food was completely worth it. The truffle fries with garlic aioli BLEW my mind. I'm pretty sure I said how good they were at least a dozen times while we were eating them. I chose to get the Ploughman's Plate for dinner because... um, hello. Mashed. Potato. Heaven.
I'm pretty sure by the time we were finished there wasn't a speck of food left on the plates. Everything was just THAT good.
SATURDAY
I mean Saturday was game day so it was crazy from the get go. Early wakeup call and an Uber for the guys. The rest of us got to relax at the hotel and enjoy our morning. We sat chatting in one of the rooms about literally anything that came across our minds. It was such a great start to the day. My only regret, like I mentioned, was not being able to get a picture with Justin this year.
I think this game-day outfit is my absolute favorite one EVER. I mean, I'm just going to rock boyfriend jeans until the day I die y'all. I was also wearing my new black boots with the heel which made things interesting since it decided to snow literally all day. I also love the way my Hillflint sweater looks paired with this flannel from Target. You can't tell in the picture but it had a gold metallic detail running through the plaid pattern which added a little extra flair.
Those of us who weren't going to the game decided on a place called Xfinity Live! to watch the game. It was packed at first but there were so many bars and places to eat that it was hardly noticeable until the game ended. I honestly still can't believe how cheap everything was. The fried pickles were also amazing. That plate of nachos was honestly bigger than me and we tried our best to eat it but eventually had to give up.
There was also a mechanical bull which I didn't ride. Maybe next time. I did, however, get some pretty embarrassing videos of other people riding it though.
THE MOST important part of Saturday though was that ARMY WON! I felt like my heart was going to stop when the kicker from Navy kicked that ball into the air at the end of the game. Army won 14-13 after a nail biting end. It was fitting that they won on a snow covered field given their all white uniforms. While I wouldn't say this experience topped last year's of storming the field after the first win in 14 years for Army, it did come pretty close.
We finally got a group picture (+Brandon) of all of us Brunch Bunch girls who got together for the first time way back in February (or was it March?). We haven't all been together at one time since then and it was so good to be able to have everyone at one place. I know this is how the Army life is but it's nice to constantly be surrounded by people who keep you grounded, even if it's just virtually.
SUNDAY
Sunday started off... interesting to say the least. I had a problem getting my heart to stop racing and for once it wasn't caused by my anxiety. I may write an entire post on this later because it's actually truly a very scary situation but to make a long story short, I might have a genetic heart issue that just decided to rear its ugly head. So after not being able to sleep for a very long time, I finally forced Justin to get up so we could start our day.
We ended up getting breakfast with one of my dearest friends so that I could give her a gift and found ourselves at this adorable little diner called Foods on First. I had the most amazing bacon, egg, and cheese bagel ever and a damn good cup of coffee.
Since the Christmas village closed at 8pm on Friday while we were waiting for dinner, I knew I wanted to go back. One of the things on my list was a steaming hot cup of apple cider and a Christmas village mug. Justin and I also go a delicious waffle and two ornaments for our Christmas tree. One we got to celebrate our engagement since we couldn't find one we liked last year and the other was a traditional Christmas pickle.
Before we left Philadelphia, we headed over to Reading Terminal Market where we got the most amazing lemonade I have ever tasted at Fox and Son. I want to go back there, order everything on the menu, and buy a t-shirt.
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