Our Trip to the Lowcountry

Matt had a training seminar for work in Charleston, South Carolina and the children and I got to tag along with him for vacation. Matt was done by 4 o'clock everyday and so we got to spend time together as a family enjoying the sights of the lowcountry. We had a blast! Madelynne didn't want to come home until she realized her best friend, Evie, didn't live in Charleston. Even then she wanted Evie to come to Charleston to live instead of us going home to Cleveland.

Most afternoons before nap time we would go swimming. My secret plot to tire my children so thoroughly out they would want to take a nap.

The Lowcountry Children's Museum...

...the perfect rainy day solution! Since we couldn't do outside activities without getting soaked, we spent the afternoon exploring the offerings of the children's museum.
First, we tried our hand at being shrimp boat fishers.






The cutest little shrimp boat fisher you've ever seen.


Next stop: The Charleston Market.
To market, to market...it was so fun to watch Madelynne grocery shop all on her own! I was pleasantly surprised to discover she filled half of her cart with fruits and vegetables.




Madelynne managed to find the only chocolate the market was selling. Chocolate chips! She is definitely my daughter.


Waiting in line to purchase her groceries.


Unloading the groceries on the conveyor belt.


Jackson loved playing in the water room. Look at that smile...




Madelynne getting ready to race her golf ball on the "roller coaster".


Pretty, pretty princess. We could have stayed here all day and Madelynne would have been perfectly content! A whole room of the museum was turned into a castle. Madelynne was estatic to dress up in a pink dress and sleep in a real castle with a real princess bed. She kept pretending she was Sleeping Beauty.


Last stop: The art workshop.
Madelynne really enjoyed creating her own masterpieces in the art workshop. She was very excited to use the paint. The picture she is painting is of a fish swimming in the water. She also painted him wearing a raincoat so he would not get wet in the rain. Don't you just love the way children think?



The perfect ending to a rainy day outing. We went to this cute bakery devoted solely to cupcakes! Yum!

The delicious choices!

I, of course, chose a chocolate cupcake. The actual name? Death by Chocolate...not a bad way to go if you ask me!

What could of turned out to be a not so great day on our vacation actually ended up being one our favorites.

Charleston Architecture

I was so intrigued by the architecture in Charleston. These pictures are a feast for the eyes of some of the architectural details and design to be found in the South.

The Charleston Aquarium

One morning I took the children to the aquarium where we were able to see a variety of sea life as well as penguins and snakes. My favorite was the turtles and Madelynne's was the penguins (we had to visit the penguins several times before our time at the aquarium was through). Right before we left, a man came out holding a snake and being the brave girl she is,Madelynne, actually held it and petted it. Not me! Snakes make my skin crawl!

The Magnolia Plantation

The last day of our trip we visited the Magnolia plantation. It is one of the oldest plantations in the South, founded in 1676 by the Drayton Family, with absolutely gorgeous gardens and grounds. The gardens are the oldest public gardens in America. They opened their doors to visitors in 1870. I couldn't get enough of the flowers! By far, Madelynne's favorite part was the petting zoo!

Things We Love About Charleston

Pralines! Have you ever had a praline? A little piece of decadence for your mouth! So yummy and when they are freshly made and still a little bit warm they just melt in your mouth. Every time we walked down Market Street past the sweet shop the air was perfumed with the smell of pralines. The best part? They give free samples. You can bet every time we passed we got one!


Shopping at the Piggly Wiggly. There is just something so quaint and distinctly Southern about saying, "I am going down to the Piggly Wiggly to pick up some milk."


The plantations.


The trees.



The shopping.



The wildlife.

Gone to the Lowcountry

Be back soon!

Stay tuned for highlights from our trip to Charleston, South Carolina.