A Weekend In Charleston

This weekend was originally slated to be a quiet one with me and the baby -- the husband had plans to spend a night away and catch the ECU vs. Chapel Hill game with a buddy in Greenville, NC. 

But when an opportunity arose to go down to Charleston and support a worthy cause (and of course, mix in some Charleston fun), I jumped on it and asked my mom if she would like to join us for a girls getaway.

We arrived in Charleston Friday night and got Camille in pajamas, read a book to her, and put her in the crib that I'd reserved with the hotel. She did really well in it! She is not sleeping through the night, but having her crib right by my bed was really easy. Mom and I then had dinner delivered to our hotel room, Mediterranean food from a local restaurant. We watched Dateline (and the episode happened to be taking place in Charleston, as luck would have it) and next thing I knew, Mom was waking me up to get ready for bed. I was exhausted and had fallen asleep midway through the Dateline episode.

Saturday afternoon, we went to the farmers market in Charleston. 

We found the cutest little children's clothing line called Urbane Baby. I picked out a dress for Camille (which is designed to be worn now as a dress and later as a top when baby is taller ... so smart) and was chatting with the owner when I noticed the cutest headwrap scarves. I put this one on the babe and knew immediately it had to come home with us. People were stopping in their tracks in front of the Urbane Baby tent and talking about how cute she looked in it! The sweet owner was charging $6 for the headwraps which I thought was really fair. I couldn't find them on her website but I'm sure you could contact her through the site if you wanted one.

Here is the little dress we bought. I love the sweet elephant pattern.

We had the best time just walking around the farmers market and letting Camille take in all the sights and sounds. 

I love shopping the market. I think it's one of Charleston's happiest places. For our home, I picked out a new Rewined candle in the same scent I purchased last September -- spiked cider. 

 

From the farmers market we then made our way up and down King Street, ducking in a few stores but not purchasing anything. After building up an appetite, we lunched at Jestine's. We hadn't been there for years and years. Don't be discouraged by the waiting line that often wraps around the corner of the building -- we were only in line for maybe 10 minutes. The fried chicken is worth it! Mom got the meatloaf and also raved about it.

Camille was such a ham at lunch, very happy after having her bottle and feeling a little sassy in her headwrap, I think.

So the real reason we were in Charleston was for a fundraiser for injured war veterans. Earlier that morning we'd cheered them on as dozens of them completed a 30-mile ride around Charleston. This is the tail end of the procession. Seeing the bikes that were custom engineered for each veteran was remarkable. Some were pedaled by hand, by foot, some motorized, all a work of art to meet the veteran's needs.

That evening we attended a reception and a concert and were able to meet many of the foundation's donors as well as some pretty amazing war heroes. So many parts of this weekend brought a new perspective to me. When one wife came up to me that morning and asked me if my husband was participating in the ride, I felt a lump rise in my throat.

One of the event's speakers was SC Senator Lindsey Graham, and we snagged a photo with him.

I'm so thankful that we had this opportunity. Eye-opening in so many ways. 

Before lunch on Sunday, we stopped by the outlets and I picked up the cutest cat boots for Camille to wear this winter. I mean ... I can't get enough of them.

We all lunched with Megan from Fried Green Pickles at Jim 'n Nicks and I am still dreaming of their fluffy cheddar biscuits. And the best update ever is that when I just searched for them online, I found that they have two locations near my house! I was going to buy some of their biscuit mix online, but now I can just pop into the restaurant. If you are so inclined, it is $6 here and I promise you that they are probably some of the best cheese biscuits I've ever, EVER eaten.

Megan so sweetly gave this book to Camille and Ian and I read it to her Sunday night before bed. Such a cute book and great for Charleston lovers! Megan, we absolutely love it. You are so thoughtful.

Mom and I are already planning on a Charleston girls trip to be an annual getaway. We had the greatest time together and loved introducing the baby to such a special place, my very favorite South Carolina city.