Fort Sumter

After our walking tour, we thought we could handle some MORE walking, so we dragged the kids 2 more miles up the peninsula to the Fort Sumter National Park boat dock. I thought we were never going to get there! The kids (and the adults!) did awesome, each taking turns riding the stroller and stealing "power treats" from Dad. When we finally arrived at the dock, we found out that the boat was leaving in 2 minutes and that it was the last departure of the day!!! Oh my! Tender mercy, right there. We enjoyed the boat ride to the Fort and learned a lot more about the civil war on the way there. The kids thought the Fort was amazing- we even found spots where projectiles were still encased in the walls of the fort. Pretty cool stuff.













We were all pretty hot and very tired from walking all day. We grabbed some food for the kids along the way while Grandpa went to get the car for us (thanks, Dad!). Then the adults switched off going out to eat. Bryce and I tried "Reds Ice House" for some local seafood and LoVeD every bite. A perfect ending to a busy day.

We had a wonderful trip and are all dragging our feet trying to get back to real life!

Charleston

Ahh, beautiful Charleston. We spent all day Saturday absorbing this beautiful city. We started off the day with a walking tour of historic downtown. I was worried that the kids were going to drag their feet the whole time, but they did GREAT! They had little treasure maps with pictures of things to look for on our walk. They could earn a Charleston Chew by checking off each thing. It kept Lucy and Caleb occupied for quite a while! We loved peeking in on everyone's gardens and were exasperated at how kept up everything looked. Our walking tour ended at the Battery at the far south end of the Peninsula where the kids enjoyed a picnic lunch and climbing on all the cannon balls.

At the battery:



James taking a break

Looking for our items to cross off:

peeking in gardens

cute cobblestone streets and pink houses!!

Tybee Island

The next 3 and half days we spent on the beach on Tybee Island. We rented a beach house right on the beach and it was so nice! It only rained one time, and it only rained for like 20 minutes - we were totally prepared with games to play, so it was ok. The rest of the time the weather was great! Hot (85-90 degrees) and the water was warm. Unfortunately, our beach house was that hot too because the AC stopped working! We got some money back and a free upgrade to a condo on the beach with a swimming pool. It was sooo nice to switch (we were dying!). The kids (needless to say) had a wonderful time just playing in the sand and water. We took a day trip to tour the lighthouse on the beach. The kids practically RAN up all 178 stairs to the top, but James couldn't get down fast enough and had an accident on the way down. Me: "James, did you like the lighthouse?!"
James: "Yeah, but I pooped in it."
Too funny.

Southern Hospitality

We just got back from a much needed vacation! Bryce was so busy all summer that this was the first time we could squeeze in a beach trip this year! We figured if we had to drive 6 hours to a beach somewhere, we might as well go down to Savannah and Charleston to the beach there and make a trip out of it! Mom and Dad Tarwater were able to join us and we had an absolutely wonderful time!


Our first stop was Savannah, Georgia. We stayed in a cute hotel right downtown near Ellis Square. We had dinner at Vinnies and then hit River Street to sample some pralines, gelato, a boat ride on the river, and some southern blues playing live! Love the cobblestone streets! Mom, Dad, Bryce went on a ghost tour together while I took the kids swimming at the hotel. James said, "Mommy, this was so much fun. When I go to bed tonight, I'm going to think about swimming!" So cute.


The next day we hit Paula Dean's "Lady and Sons." I skipped the buffet this time (gasp!) and ordered a meatloaf sandwich (Bryce shared some collard greens with me that are my FAVORITE!). I think Bryce liked his buffet - we were plenty stuffed. The kids went on a carriage ride with Grandpa and Grandma so Bryce and I wouldn't have to share our Paula's (they totally wouldn't appreciate it) and loved seeing Savannah that way. We had to stop by Jones street (one of the prettiest streets in America) and I saw a beautiful mustang parked right there on the road. It was a beautiful street! :)




Forsythe Park was where we took the kids to wait for Gma and Gpa to eat and it was amazing. We loved the spanish moss hanging from the trees, and the kids were happy to see a playground after a long day of walking!

Peanut Butter Urge

Do you ever fight about who gets to be the first one to dig into a freshly opened jar of peanut butter? Something about that creamy smooth top layer that is just so inviting! Well, evidently, that urge is an inherent quality in our family. The kids had just opened this peanut butter jar when Annabelle couldn't resist jamming BOTH hands in. What a mess!
Annabelle is REALLY good at messes lately. She figured out how to get into our lazy Susan where I keep (not for long) my baking products. Flour and sugar are her favorite, but the baking soda and cornstarch have also become prey to her curious desires. (Sorry the pictures so dark)



Although Annabelle has become quite the handful, she is still so cute and fun to play with! She is just learning so fast from watching all of us. Some things that she picks up on are good, and some things are slightly less than desireable! Apparently she has picked up the skill of "texting," which I'm not really sure if it is one of those good things or not!

First Day

How can it already be time for the first day of school?! Caleb started second grade this year and Lucy started KINDERGARTEN! AHHH! I thought it was supposed to get easier after the first kid, but I still cried when she got on the bus. I thought about her all day and hoped she was making good friends and having a great time (but hopefully thinking about her mommy a little bit). It was comforting to know what to expect and knowing that Caleb was going to be there on the bus with her. Lucy's teacher is amazing (she was Caleb's teacher too) and I know she will be great for Lucy. When we went to meet with her, Ms. Alden asked Caleb if he would like to walk Lucy down to her class the first day. Caleb said no. So much for the older sibling looking out for her! I guess he knew he would be preoccupied with trying to figure out where he was supposed to be the first day!

James and Annabelle and I decided to distract ourselves from the quiet house by hanging out at a friends house in the morning. It was a great deterrent and James had something special to do on the first day of school too.

The report when the kids got home was wonderful! They came off of the bus with smiling faces and happy reports of all the new friends they had made and how Lucy was "brave all day!" I love my kids.

Annabelle walking

This is a video from 2 months ago, but Bryce keeps hounding me to put a cute vid of annabelle walking so everyone who is far can see her. Enjoy!