Our family vacation

The Miller family went on our first vacation since the honeymoon (you remember-B.C.-before children!) We took a three day trip to Charleston, SC. I have to say that I was very nervous about having our anxious lil' tot in a car for 5-6 hours, but he did very well! There were a few outbreaks of screaming, but they were short bursts not the hour-long drama I've seen in the past. We had a portable DVD player and I think that really helped. On the way home we gave him a big lollipop and that held him for a while, though once he started rubbing it on his feet that became a sticky mess!

While we were there, we visited downtown Charleston and I accidentally took my hubby on a three hour walking tour in 80% humidity 90 degree weather! I forgot how big Charleston was if you were on foot! We visited Palmetto State Park (the only one of three that I had wanted to see). It was just like walking in Jurassic Park minus the T-Rex. Along with the walking paths that took you to the marshland, they had an outstanding kid's park. Chasen had such a good time on the slides and swings. He also discovered it was a blast to throw rocks on the slide (thanks to some older children). That wasn't so fun when he turned around and threw rocks at the other kids (though maybe they deserved it)! We also went to the Charleston Aquarium which was nice. It in no way compares to the Atlanta Aquarium but the good thing about it was that it wasn't crowded. We could take our time and see everything. And then we could let the beast run wild and weren't scared that we would lose him among the 20 people who were there! We then took a trip out to Folly Beach, which I never knew was there. Justin went fishing on the pier (though no luck) and Chase and I played on the beach. Justin took him out into the ocean and he was OK for a bit, but then he got scared. He didn't like standing on the beach either where the water was rushing the sand from his toes. I imagine it could be a little scary that the earth is moving from underneath you and not understanding why! We settled for playing in the puddles up the beach that the tide had left and he enjoyed scooping sloppy sand into his bucket. He also rubbed sand all over my legs and gave me a deep sand scrub on my back. Spa Sydell eat your heart out! People would pay $100 for this service and I got it for free! Of course, he didn't rinse me off afterwards and then was upset when I went into the big scary ocean to get clean! I'm proud to say that I didn't get my baby sunburned (mother of the year award contender?!?) though I did burn in a few spots. Mainly my feet! Ouch! On our way home we took a long detour to the Charleston Tea Plantation. It is the only tea producer in the U.S. and it is the tea served at the White House (since it's Made in the USA!). That was pretty cool to see how they processed the tea, which we got to watch. Now I know how they make green vs oolong vs black. It's all the same tea-which I did not know. It just is a matter of letting them oxidate. If you'd like to learn more, just ask now that I have a wealth of tea knowledge!

The hardest part of the trip for us and was a huge learning curve was that you just can't get it all done with a toddler. It takes longer to do everything, and just when you think you have it planned out to go to lunch at a cool restaurant you turn around and the kid's passed out! So it's off to McDonald's! He also did not like to sit down for dinner, which is a big thing for us. We love to go out to eat for dinner on vacations and relax. There was no relaxing this time! One night we were lucky and went to Shem Creek to a bar-like spot. It was right on the pier and since Justin ordered all-you-can-eat crab legs I took Chasen on walks up and down the pier and up and down the stairs to the bar balcony while daddy introduced the snow crab population to the endangered species list! So, even though we really didn't have a dinner "together" too much, it was still cool. And it was laid back enough to let monkey boy run around a bit. The other nights....not so much. I don't know the solution to this problem, he will either have to grow out of this phase, or we will have to search out eating facilities that allow toddlers to roam and explore! Or, of course there is always McDonald's!