Oh, Charleston.
So I was thinking back to the last time I visited Charleston and nearly fell out of my seat. I guess it was FOUR YEARS AGO when three of our friends turned 30 and we surprised them with a girls weekend in Charleston! How had it been that long?? Time flies once you hit 30, I swear. Eesh. So it was due time for us to make a trip down to the holy city.
:: fun fact:: My mom was actually born and raised in Charleston until she was about 10 years old, since my granddad was stationed there when in the Navy. They lived in N. Charleston near the airport and mama still remembers walking up the road with her grandfather to watch them build the "big interestate".
:: backstory :: Ok, also the main reason we traveled to Charleston last Sunday-Tuesday is because our sweet niece Macy had an appointment with a dermatologist specialist at MUSC. You may not can tell from pics, but Macy was born with a port wine stain birthmark that starts at the top of her right arm down her inner arm to her inner palm/thumb. Doctors here in Greenwood wanted to make sure the port wine stain was not vascular (which is rare, but could happen and cause problems to the arm (blood flow, growth, etc...)) Their appointment was on Monday morning and PRAISE GOD, our Macy got a great report - it is NOT vascular and is just a common port wine stain!!! She's lucky it's on her arm because most port wine stains are on the face. She does have eczema and some other common skin conditions that can all be treated with medicine and sun safety. They can also think about laser treatment for the port wine stain when she's older, but for now they are just relishing in the fact that she is 100% healthy and a simple birthmark being all they have to worry about. So God is good all the time and all the time God is good! Just wanted to start this post out with that PRAISE!!!! She is our little baby doll, that's for sure and this smile lights up our world. So thankful!!
Now, on to the fun details of the quick trip. We stayed at Hyatt Place on upper King Street near MUSC (where Macy had her appointment). Nice location because it's not crazy, slap-in-the-middle-of-everything but it's close enough to walk most everywhere. There's a DryBar and coffee shop literally right next door. Starbucks down the street and tons of other fabulous restaurants right there on upper King.
Once unpacked and ready, we walked down King to the city market. Cade loved Leonardo the Bear, but Charlie wasn't so sure...
We were starved for lunch by 2pm or so and walked right into The Noisy Oyster (almost at the end of market street near the customs house). Laid back, open windows and kid friendly (even though huge bar in the middle). We grabbed some oysters and bar food to fill us up!
After we had full bellies, we walked on down to Waterfront Park!
couldn't keep Cade out of the water, nope...
We walked out on the pier and it was just a tad bit windy but they LOVED looking at the cruise ships and learning about Fort Sumter too (Uncle Mack is a history teacher).
there were actually a ton of kids playing in the fountains...
loving on their baby girl...haha she wasn't feeling it.
or the love from her cousin Charlie. We joke that he is her built in bodyguard and it's not all a joke. He really will not leave her side when they stay together and he's constantly wanting to know where "Mae Mae" go?? He loves her so!
On the {1.6 mile} walk back to the hotel {whew!} this one enjoyed nap time...
while we enjoyed lots of quaint little streets and historic sites.
By the time we hit King Street we were HOT and TIRED. Ice cream was just what the doctor {aka Cade} ordered. We were going to try to keep walking to Jeni's Ice Cream, but when we saw Republic had zero lines we darted right in the door. Made this tired little guy smile instantly...
Cool, little vintage vibe and amazing ice cream...
We went back to the hotel to rest for a bit, then at around 7:30-8 Grami told us to just go out get a quick bite and bring her back something (we were all full from ice cream and a late lunch anyways). We literally walked just down the street to The Darling Oyster Bar.
Usually they require reservations, because it's definitely a smaller joint and small tables. Mack, Courtney and I just went straight to the three seats at the bar and had our oyster order in and brought out to us in no time! Definitely the best oysters ever {even though I haven't been eating oysters long, y'all these didn't even taste like regular oysters. No need to drown in cocktail sauce and eat on a cracker. They were GOOD} I also had the blue crab pasta, then took mom and the boys back a fried shrimp + fries plate. Macy was already asleep but the boys were wide open until almost 10pm because 1. vacation 2. those late naps
The next morning I was up and at em' early and used the Callie's Hot Biscuit app to place an order for me, mom and the boys. Courtney, Mack and Macy had already left for her appt at MUSC. So the key is to definitely use the app, because there is a line out the door almost always. It wasn't as crowded as I thought it would be and that may be because it had been raining. The rain held off and I was able to get mama the ham biscuits, while me and the boys tried out the sampler of biscuits + I had a mint sweet iced tea. Duh.
Perfect to grab & go and bring back to the room. It's not even three blocks from the Hyatt! So close.
Once Mack, Court and Mae Mae got back from the doctor we were all relieved and ready to trek to the aquarium. Mack had to go back for baseball practice (#coachprobs) so it was just us gals + the kids. We had to load up in the car to drive over because even though it was just 1.2 miles away, it was drizzling and looked like it could pour any minute. Couldn't chance that with a five year old + two strollers. Eeesh.
We had a few snacks/lunch at the little cafe inside the aquarium next to the gift shop (there's pizza so if you're starved like Aunt Coco was , have no fear. Definitely food there). Cade loved petting a crocodile right off the bat...
Lots of fish made out of LEGOS which was so neat...
Charlie's first time to an aquarium and he was just IN. AWE. I love love love seeing their little faces light up...
They both loved touching starfish, stingrays, sea urchins, etc... and they loved the dive show. Well basically they loved every minute!
We got done around 4pm and knew we wanted to go have an early dinner at Fleet Landing (kid friendly, right there on the water in between cruise ships and the pier/Waterfront park. Court and I had been before and knew how good it was too!) FYI: it doesn't open back up for dinner until 5pm so we rode around and showed the kids Rainbow Row, the battery etc.. until about 4:45 then we went and put our names on the list. It gets full fast!
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| view from Fleet Landing with the pier in the background |
We sat outside, literally right there on the water and the kids loved it. Plus the weather was perfect. Cloudy and in the 70s, so not too hot. We had the fried green tomatoes + stuffed hushpuppies app, then I had shrimp & grits (always my fav). So good. After dinner we went back to The Battery to walk around and let the boys get out some more energy before being confined in the hotel room again :) It was early bedtime for all of us because we were so exhausted.
The next morning we just hit up the FREE breakfast in the hotel, got the kids ready and went by The Battery on our way out of town to snap a few pics. I really wanted some of Charlie since he's almost two and my last baby (aka: I need as many pics of these chunky little baby legs as possible). I have another post I'll do just for my Charlie, but here's a few favorites. We tried to pose them a few times, but honestly I just love taking candid pics of them running and playing. I mean, let's be serious if anyone knows how to make a five year old, 1.5 year old and 5 month old sit still and all look at the camera - lemme know.
We will definitely plan to go back in a few years, Lord willing, and take more pics at the Battery. Would love to see how much they grow and try to take them every few years. You just can't get a prettier background than Charleston, no matter where you go in the city. It's seriously one of the prettiest places on Earth, in my opinion, full of rich history and full of some of the best food in the South. I could list a million reasons to go visit, but I hope these pics have allowed you to see for yourself and seal the deal if you're on the edge about planning a trip!
Until next time, Charleston...
it's only been 4 years since I turned 30...don't age me that far ahead just yet. ;)
ReplyDeleteI was totally just looking at the years and knew it hadn't been that long, eeesh. just corrected!
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