Charleston, at it's finest.

Now keep in mind this is a 10 day trip. The first 3.5 were in Charleston. Definitely an amazing amazing place. loved it there. I even bought Nate a t-shirt there and he gets comments on how awesome Charleston is whenever he wears it. :)

 Day 1 & 2: Can you say traveling? We left at 9:30 am. Jeff's favorite aspects of traveling are definitely the transportation parts. Waving goodbye to daddy. We sent him updates like this all day every day so that he could still feel a part of the action. We missed him!! That is certain.

 Riding the tram in the Atlanta airport. yes. Jeff's happy time.

 We drove into the night to get to our final destination.... Charleston, SC. My dad got this crazy awesome hotel in the middle of downtown Charleston where we got to walk amidst the cute little shops and wait at this cute little trolley stop that was across the street and go see all the things that make it so wonderful and beautiful.

However, be mindful that it was in the middle of summer and we didn't exactly get an early start. So we took a ride on a really fun carriage to see all of Charleston. It was magical, but I was too busy enjoying the scenery that I totally forgot to take pictures. I learned a ton about southern life.

 After that we went to a restaurant to experience some southern foods. Jeff was hot and tired...

I got to sit in a tiger chair

and eat a fried green tomato BLT. It was pretty much amazing. Nothing quite like fried food to lift your spirits. And about 100 glasses of water.

We did a little shopping in the afternoon and eventually made it to this beautiful tree. It's called the Angel Oak Tree. Quite magical. Supposed to be 1500 years old. One of the oldest living things in the country. Provides 17,200 square feet of shade. Longest branch is 187 feet. We got their late so we had to take pictures from outside the fence. But it really was just a beautiful place.

Day 3: We got up bright and early to go see Fort Sumter. Trying to beat the heat today. It was much more successful. The views were just beautiful. Jeff was just so excited to ride the boat.

It was about a 45 minute ride out to the island. Aria didn't waste any of it.

 

 The museum there was just fantastic and it was fun to really get a feel for what it would have been like at the start of the civil war. they say it only stands about half as high as it once stood. They let you touch all of it though.

 There is even evidence in the walls of debris that had been shot into it. It was still stuck there. Pretty amazing place.

 The architecture was beautiful too. The arches remind me of something my father in law would love.

 I followed my Dad and the kids around. They were highly entertaining.

 On the way back we had to get a picture of the whole island from the boat. I loved it.

 We were smart on the way back and chose the air conditioned cabin and Jeff and Isaac loved looking at the air craft carrier and spilling cheerios EVERYWHERE... :)

In the afternoon we went to this beautiful place called the Magnolia Plantation. Had the magnolias been in bloom it would have been an amazing sight. But even without it, I was very impressed with this southern beauty. This home was owned by a woman earlier than any other woman had owned a plantation. Sort of up and coming in the area. And absolutely beautiful.

 I wouldn't mind this for a back yard.

Or a side yard.

 Some of us got to take a tour of the inside of the house and the rest of us went on a 'train' ride.

 It was really beautiful inside. and beautiful outside.

 We also got to drive across this landmark suspension bridge. Just gorgeous against the South Carolina sky.

That evening... we walked downtown to find dinner... and just amazing architecture..  pretty much everywhere.

 And then we rode the trolley out to the 'pineapple fountain'

 The kids loved playing in the water

 And I loved the beautiful sunset

 and the BEAUTIFUL water.

Oh, now I wanna go back with somebody special. Like maybe my spouse. Missed him so much this trip!
Day 4:The next morning we spent exploring 'the oldest museum' in the United States. They even had an exhibit on their exhibits. :) The highlight though was getting to try on these artillery jackets. I hope Carly didn't go too crazy on this vacation. It definitely was an eventful one.

 Cross dressers...

 Jeff's favorite... the boat. It was a really fun museum. I'm glad we went

I felt like I understood a lot more about what life had been like in the south. I totally loved every second of Charleston... Stay tuned for our next few days!