Charleston

We go to the Charleston, SC area every summer for a family vacation.  My aunt and uncle have two condos on the Isle of Palms which allows us to enjoy some much needed beach time and great restaurants, shopping and practically anything else you can think of. :)  We really LOVE that area! We arrived on Sunday, July 15 and practically threw our suitcases into the condo and ran to the beach. 

This was Reid's first time ever on a beach! He seemed to enjoy watching the waves crashing onto the shore.  There used to be a time when Reid didn't care for wind at all.  In fact, he would lose his breath when we were at the ballpark last spring on windy days. Now, he seems to enjoy the wind through his hair.  He's changing so much everyday. :)

 Reid's first time on a beach! :)

Mom and I. :)

Nana Bug with Spencer and Briggs.

My sweet guys.

Of course they just HAD to get in that night! ;)

Tuesday
We were completely excited to meet Madison and her family while on our vacation.  We have been following Sarah's blog, The Condon Story, for quite some time and it was nice to finally meet up with them.  Madison was a bit shy (to be expected..she's 2 :)) at first but she did give me a little "sassy walk" presentation. :)  LOVE this little presh!  I've jokingly been saying that Reid has dibs on this beauty but truth is we loved hanging out with the whole family.  No pressure Reid...just kidding! Well, sort of! ;) I was completely drooling over all the girly cuteness!

Sarah is so talented! She made Reid the cutest little crab shirt and burp cloth with his name monogramed on them!  Thanks so much! 

Dessert!!!

Wednesday

The girls headed down to the market on Wednesday for a little shopping and lunch at one of our favorite restaurants, Slightly North of Broad...S.N.O.B.! :)

Darlene, Me, and Connie

YUM!

Momma and I

That night we got the whole family together for a little spaghetti supper!

Lounge lizards!

Uncle Mark making our appetizers...oysters! Yum!

Thursday

Thursday morning was spent playing on the beach and hanging out around the condo.  Sometimes it's easier to just stay in instead of getting our crew "ready". :)

Let's go fly a kite! ;)

GrandDadE has become our "Master Kite Flyer"!  He didn't have as much success with this beautiful kite as he did with his cheaper dollar store kite.  Go figure!  We watched the kite from the beach and then tied it off and continued to watch it from the condo balcony after we went in.  It stayed up until the afternoon rain showers came through.

Last year we made a big sand octopus on the beach during our vacation.  Hmmmmm......what should we make this year?

The dude hangin' out!

 This year we made a boat!  We didn't spend as much time on it as last year and I wanted to get a picture of Reid in the boat as well.  However, the heat was really starting to crank up so he had gone in with Rico for a nap.  Next year buddy!

 More kite flying!  Can you see our kite?  It's way up there!  Itty bitty little speck! :)

Maybe these will help!

 Bring out the bubbles!!!

Bring on the rain!

Spencer and Briggs have really been into fishing this summer.  They have been fishing like crazy in our lake at home so a request for some salt water fishing was to be expected.  Here are my guys ready to go!

Friday
We always catch a movie while on this vacation and this year was no different.  I love the seating in this theater!  We went to see Brave with Aunt Connie on Friday. :)

As soon as the movie was over it was a mad dash back to the condo to snap some family photos on the beach.  I really had planned on just photos of my boys but my mom insisted that Rico and I jump in too.  :) 

The guys decided they needed to race back. :) Love them!

That evening we went out to eat at one of our favorite restaurants, SeeWee!  I love how rustic this place is and well, that's just my taste!  They have all of their desserts on a buffet displayed under old cake domes...Take your pick! ;)  I think this is my dad's favorite place to eat and since we were celebrating his and my aunt's birthday, it seemed like a nice ending to our trip. :)

Saturday

On our last morning we ran down to the beach for a few more photos.  You can never have too many, right? :)

The boys LOVE to play chess!  So, they insisted we have a chess tournament while we were there for the week.  I lasted until the second round. Hahaha!  In the end, Spencer came in first and Briggs got second place. Way to go boys!  Next year I'll be ready! ;)

We really enjoy this trip every year.  I think Charleston is such a beautiful area.  Having the beach and the wonderful historic characteristics makes for a perfect vacation.  Thank you Aunt Connie and Uncle Jim for having us!