Happy 4th Birthday, Robert Franklin!

Robert Franklin,

My sweet, sweet boy --- you are FOUR.

Four years ago, as we were preparing to meet you, we had no idea how much you would change and impact our lives for the better.

This past year has been one of transition for you, my little boy, but you have grown and matured in ways that make me so proud to be your mommy. I noticed the other day that you no longer need to stand on a stool or have me hold you up so that you can wash your hands at the kitchen sink.

You're growing up so fast and are such an amazing little person.

With a full year in a new state, town, house, and school you have become such a fun, full-of-life, little guy.

We visited the GA National Fair, museums, the beach, the strawberry patch, and the GA Aquarium.

You served as a ring bearer, had your first full movie theater experience, watered and harvested vegetables from your garden, and developed an imagination that makes me smile and laugh.

The simplest things make you happy – a trip to the park or playground, a cold glass of Kool Aid, or a trip to Chick-Fil-A for ice cream.

You love art-time, and even continue to indulge my love of your handprint artwork.

PlayDoh, rough-housing with your brother, and spending time outside are your go-to after-school activities.

You have the memory of an elephant, love to build pillow and blanket forts, and are quite the budding photographer.

Your evening routine of reading a book (although you get on a kick and we read the same book every night for weeks…) makes the teacher in me happy as does your vocabulary and ability to carry on a substantial conversation with adults.

You love to wear baseball hats, have developed an appreciation for movies – both new (you loved Zootopia) and old (Ghostbusters, the original Star Wars trilogy, and the original Disney version of Peter Pan), and you love, love, love your puppies.

You are so helpful and handled all of mommy’s traveling this summer like a champ and spent most of your summer in the pool while being treated to popsicles.

You still love trucks of all kinds, are learning your way around your emotions, and really dislike being interrupted if you are focused on something you deem important.

You, my dear boy, are an absolute joy.

Your smile, your laugh, your curiosity, and your energy-level (which exhausts me most days) makes me proud to call you my son.

Happiest of birthdays to you, my boy. Happy 4^th birthday.

Love,

Mommy 

Just the Two of Us --- A Weekend in Charleston, SC

After a crazy busy summer and the hecticness of the beginning of a new school year, RA and I decided we needed a weekend away.

We decided upon Charleston, SC for a Labor Day weekend tip --- just the two of us. Charleston holds a special place in our hearts as we honeymooned there (and in Savannah, GA) back in 2007. RA booked our accommodations and we decided that our "plans" were that we had no plans. If we wanted to wander around, we did. If we wanted to tour historic sites or go antique shopping, we would. If we wanted to nap and eat great food, we'd nap and eat great food. And that we did, my friends --- we wandered, we toured historic sites and went shopping for antiques, we napped, and we ate some really great food.

We arrived in Charleston Friday evening, check in to our bed and breakfast, and then headed out to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in Charleston - Tommy Condon's. It's an Irish pub with great food and a fantastic bar.

Our room for the weekend...

A nice little sitting area...

 

The room was very spacious and the bed was super comfortable. I slept like a baby all three nights. Although, maybe that's because I wasn't awoken by crying kids or barking puppy dogs...

Desk area looking east towards St. Michael's Church...

View of St. Michael's from our room...

Saturday morning sunrise over St. Michael's...

Upstairs hallway from our room to the stairs...

Second floor sitting area...

Beautiful staircase descending into the foyer...

Elaborate mantle in the entryway...

That staircase --- so pretty...

Entryway...

Entryway looking towards the dining room (left door) and another sitting room (right door)...

The home was owned, at one point, by Edward Rutledge, the youngest signer of the Declaration of Independence and a former Governor of Georgia. His portrait is hanging in the entryway...

Front sitting room...

Front sitting room...

Dining room...

Dining room...

Coffee --- really good coffee at The Governor's House Inn...

Monogrammed napkins and placemats...we're in the South...it's what we do...

Back sitting room...

Beautiful piano in the back sitting room...

Back sitting room looking towards the front of the house and the dining room...

Foyer...that staircase...

Side porch...we ate breakfast out here two of the three mornings...

Front of the house...

An amazing bed and breakfast...

 

Saturday morning's breakfast was pecan french toast with sausage links and fresh fruit - YUM! After stuffing ourselves with good food and good coffee we set off to tour The Charleston Museum...



 

Directly across the street from The Governor's House Inn is the John Rutledge Inn...John was Edward's older brother...

View of church steeples and towers from the front of the bed and breakfast...

What a great museum...it had a very large collection of artifacts that told the story of Charleston and a few traveling exhibits that were great, too...

Lots of boats...

We spent a few minutes in the kid's section of the museum and agreed that RF and Ellis would have loved it --- we'll have to bring them back one day...

Enjoying the gun collection...

After a morning touring The Charleston Museum we headed to another of our favorite Charleston restaurants --- Poogan's Porch.

Poogan's Porch on Queen Street...YUM, again!

After lunch we wandered around the historic area and when I saw this trash truck I knew I had to take a photo for RF. He loves all types of trucks and thought this one was really cool when I showed him the photo...

The Circular Church...

Graveyard of The Circular Church...

St. Phillip's...

An afternoon treat after tons of walking around the city...

 

For dinner we left the downtown area and ended up eating at The Glass Onion - another AMAZING meal with fantastic drinks and a great wait staff.

 

Sunday morning we had breakfast on the side porch and were served Eggs Benedict with Canadian bacon and fresh fruit - it was delicious...

 







Sunday morning we drove across the river to Mt. Pleasant and walked the Mount Pleasant Pier. A veteran statue --- "On behalf of a grateful nation..."

The pier had a great view of the USS Yorktown at Patriot's Point...

Large ship in the river...

View of the Ravenel Bridge from the pier. We got to FaceTime with the boys while we were walking the pier, tooo. They were exited to see us and we enjoyed chatting with them for a few minutes...



We then drove out of town a little bit to tour Drayton Hall on the Ashley River...

Original interior...the last owner left it in her will that the property be maintained, not restored...

Graffiti from some folks who broke in to the house on July 4, 1874...

Beautiful windows with amazing views of the property...

The growth (height) of gour or five generations of the family's children...there's a note at the top that says, "Do Not Paint This Panel."  

View of the back of the property...

Back of the home...

View of the Ashley River from the back of the property...

 

After a busy morning, we stopped at a local Indian restaurant for a quick bite to eat (and some of the best Tandoori chicken and Chana Masala I've ever had) before heading to tour the H.L. Hunley. 

I've wanted to tour the Hunley every time we've been in town, but for one reason or another, we were never able to make it fit our schedule. Well, this time we made it and it did not disappoint...

The exhibition area notes the location of the Hunley's assembly --- Mobile, Alabama!

The H.L.Hunley. It is currently submerged in a solution to try and remove the salt from the iron so that when it is exposed to air there will not be any damage. Our tour guide said that they expect the submarine to be in this solution for the next two years or so...

One of the best parts about bed and breakfasts in the South --- WINE AND CHEESE HOUR!

 

After relaxing Sunday afternoon we headed to dinner at Poogan's Smokehouse (sister restaurant to Poogan's Porch). Dinner was again, wonderful.

 

 

Sunday morning we woke up early to head down to The Battery to see the sunrise...

Flock of birds along with the sunrise...

Such vibrant colors...

Peeking out over the clouds...

Beautiful...

 

We headed back to the bed and breakfast to eat --- Broccoli and Cheese Quiche, Chicken Sausage, Croissant and Fresh Fruit --- before wandering through downtown for the last time on this trip...

 



Another shot of St. Michael's...

After mailing our last postcard (we mailed one each day to the boys --- yes, I know we will be home before they get the postcards, but it's a tradition in our family) and picking up a few thank you gifts for Nana and Babu (they came to Covington to hang out with the boys while we were away), we headed on home.

 

RF and Ellis were excited to see us and even more excited when we gave them their gifts - a replica of The H.L. Hunley for RF and a black bear stuffed animal from The Charleston Museum for Ellis (little dude is OBSESSED with any and all stuffed animals).

 

Another great weekend away for the hubby and I. Now, we're on to planning our trip to the NC mountains with the boys in late October and we're starting plans on our 10-year anniversary trip for next summer --- another trip up the East Coast to NYC, Boston, and Maine. :-)