Memories from Charleston...

We invited some friends to vacation with us so we could "get to know them better".... It turned out to be one of the best vacations we have ever had.

As Mr. Tom said "Y'all took a chance"

Yes, we did, but we are so glad we did.

We built so many beautiful memories!

Did I mention there was 19 kids between our two families?

We walked,

Downtown in the old market,

down King street, through the battery...

We played in the huge fountain at White Point Gardens,

we walked on the Cooper River Bridge, just to say we did.

We played on the beach, collecting sea shells,

and jumping waves.

We ate wonderful food at neat restaurants, and laughed MUCH.

We did nightly devotions where afterwards

we sang or talked until late at night.

We had a surprise 'treat' when Mr. Tom
brought home chocolate one night.
We watched Indiana Jones movies until Late or Early depending on how you look at it...minus a few adults...:-)

We had a lazy picnic underneath

the huge oak trees in Charles Towne Landing,

where we wished we would have brought a quilt to take a nap.
We watched the kids 'get rich' from retrieving quarters from underneath the coke machine.

The kids played in the yard, acted like pirates, climbed trees, and camped out underneath the big "Tree" bed...all the while looking out for the "Germans"..:-)


We had a big 4th of July surprise, the Isle of Palms was having a huge fireworks show and we didn't know it. When we walked out on the beach it was packed and we ended up having perfect seats a gentle breeze from the ocean and a big fat moon over head.

We waited in line for bathrooms and all had a blast doing laundry and dishes together.

We laughed more than I thought possible.


The kids would fall asleep on the couch during devotion time at night and one by one we would carry them off to bed...
Some even fell asleep under the tables.

We helped a single mom that was our "neighbor"

she had cancer and needed some work done in her yard.

All of the guys cheerfully pitched in and got the job done,

leaving a lasting impression and a new friend from Charleston.

We had a big shrimp boil for supper on Saturday.

This was a time for reflection of our trip and a wind down.

Every day was bitter sweet because we all knew it was one less day we had together.

By the time Sunday rolled around, there was a cloud in the air.

Everyone woke up knowing that we were leaving

and once again Mr. Toms words were right on target:

"We will all be melancholy for a few days" he said, and his words have rang true for our family all day..

We lingered in the driveway saying good bye many times acting as if we were at summer camp and would not see each other till the next summer when if fact we'll see each other on Sunday.:)

We have walked away with a special bond with this family that will continue to grow..and we're already planning a trip to the snow capped mountains next.

Now this is one family we can travel with.

We just need a bus........