Roaming the streets of Charleston {3 Stops to Make}

While in South Carolina we had to make Charleston a priority. We took a day trip in to Charleston and wanted to see as much as we could on foot. So today I'm sharing 3 stops I recommend making while roaming the streets of Charleston...

1. Waterfront Park: Home of the Pineapple Fountain.

This is a great spot to stop especially on a hot day. You can often see dolphins on the water from here and there is a little splash park too that's great for kids! Of course you have to get a picture of yourself in front of the adorable pineapple fountain as well.

2. Husk Restaurant: Real Southern Food

There is a saying at Husk about the food that they use to cook with, "If it doesn't come from the South, it doesn't come in the door." So if you want a true southern dining experience, eat here. The menu is ever changing so I can't tell you what to get, but I'm sure anything you get will be delicious. I also loved the building. The complex dates back to the 19th century so it has a historic feel to it.

3. Rainbow Row: Home of the most adorable colored pastel houses

When you walk around Charleston, you can just feel the history. The cobblestone paths, arches and architecture all make you feel like you should be back in time. I loved it. So even if you don't have a lot of time to spend in Charleston I highly recommend making time to simply walk around the streets and admire the houses. (Having some ice cream in hand as you walk doesn't hurt a bit either.) Rainbow Row is the perfect place to do just soak in the sights. So many adorable houses in all the pastel colors your heart can imagine. I could've taken hundreds of pictures...everything is just so instagram worthy. Haha.

If we would've had more time in Charleston I would've loved to also visit...
The Battery
Sugar Bakeshop
The Gin Joint
Poogan's Porch
Magnolias
Folly Beach

Another fun Southern stop to make just outside of Charleston is a Plantation! We visited Magnolia Plantation. You can read about my experience there in this post.

Do you have any favorite spots in Charleston?

Magnolia Plantation

We wanted to visit a Southern plantation while we were on vacation in South Carolina so we chose to visit Magnolia Plantation. It is known as the last large-scale romantic garden. We started out going through their nature center, which Aiden loved and then we walked through the gardens on their self-guided tour. Despite it being hot and humid, the gardens were beautiful and full of history.

*Traveler tip-If you go, allow 45 minutes to walk through the gardens!

Up next...3 Stops to make while in Charleston!

Because family selfies on the beach are way more fun...

The title of this post says it all. Family selfies on the beach are way more fun! 

See more of our beach pictures here.

Vacation is good for the soul {Seabrook Island}

We recently got back from our family vacation to Seabrook Island in South Carolina. We had the best time. I wish I could transport myself back in time to watch Aiden running up and down the beach with the biggest grin on his little face. (But that's what pictures and videos are for, right?)

I took hundreds of pictures so I'm going to break our vacation up into a few posts. This one...devoted completely to beach pictures and mostly baby beach pictures because as stated on Aiden's hat, I have the coolest kid ever.

Most of our days were spent packing for the beach, biking to the beach, walking the beach, building sandcastles and destroying them, eating lunch on the beach then playing in the water and searching for wild life, which we actually saw a ton of! (Horseshoe crabs, Blue Crabs, Hermit Crabs, Dolphins, Jellyfish, Sand dollars...)

Aiden was happy as a clam (see what I did there?) He ran up and down the beach and hardly sat still. He was in heaven! And Drew and I got our work outs in everyday trying to keep up! Thankfully we had a few extra sets of hands since my Mother in law and one of my sister in laws vacationed with us!

Kisses that involve licking are his new "thing." Haha.

I am already missing the beach like crazy!

More vacation posts to come...

Our first family vacation {Anna Maria Island}

We are home from a sweet and very memorable first family vacation. We spent a week on Anna Maria Island in Florida with my husband's family and had the best time. All 9 of us stayed together in a house just minutes from the beach with access to our own private pool. It was a little slice of paradise.

I took over 400 pictures and will obviously not be sharing them all in this post, but this is fair warning: this post does contains lots and lots of pictures mostly of a cute little chubby baby on the beach.

Let's start with Aiden's first experience with the ocean. Little man was intrigued by the ocean. He was very content just sitting and digging in the sand and surprisingly didn't eat any of it! He didn't mind the waves (except for when he got a wave to the face...he can thank his Dad for that one. Haha)

Aiden's Grams, Aunts and Uncles spoiled him with lots of attention and playtime every day. We are so blessed to have people who love our little guy so much and who will be ridiculous just to make him laugh. And I apologize to them all for having Daniel Tiger songs in their head all week long.

We spent a few days exploring different places like Myakkah State Park where we saw Alligators and walked along a trail with a canopy walk. We also visited the historic fishing village of Cortez, Anna Maria pier and several new restaurants and shops.

Myakkah State Park where my husband went head to head with an Alligator

Anna Maria Pier

Dinner at the Waterfront Restaurant

Ice cream at Dips

Seafood Shack in the historic fishing village of Cortez

While we had fun exploring the island, most of our time was spent on the beach or in our amazing pool. We took turns cooking dinners so most of our evenings were spent around the house, which was awesome for Drew and I since Aiden usually goes to bed between 8 and 9. Let me just say we had a house full of top notch chefs and every dinner we had was full of fresh seafood and delicious drinks! The meal Drew and I made can be found here. Trust me, it's a keeper!

I really did not want to see this vacation come to an end. It was full of family time, good food, lots of firsts for baby and some memories that I will cherish forever. I have a few more vacation related posts coming your way including our trip to Universal, family beach pictures and a sail boat ride in honor of my father in law.

Have you ever been to Anna Maria Island?