Peeps at the Beach (Easter - Part 2)

When we were at Courtney and Guillermo's house, I was busy in the kitchen and turned my back for a second. I heard Judah say "Dean loooves Peeps!" I turned around to see that he and Quinn had taken the initiative to give Dean a little Easter treat and put a Peep in his hand. Dean could see by my face that he had to make a split second decision, so he shoved that entire Peep in his mouth and clamped his teeth shut. He knew a good thing when he had it and he CERTAINLY was not going to let his chance at pure bliss be snatched away!

Well, we saw our opportunity to have a mini beach vacation while we were in Charleston and you can say we snatched that Peep up! Charleston has two sides... The one side is the normal working world, where people go to work and pick up Chick-fil-A lunches for their kids in the drive thru. That side has strip malls and rush hour traffic. That is the side we normally see. But Charleston has this whole other side... the vacation getaway. The side where people lay around on the beach and stare at the dune grasses blowing. The side where people eat fresh oysters and crab cakes at beachside restaurants and drink cold beers at lunch. The shops here sell Palmetto hats, sweet grass baskets and wooden signs that say "Gone to the Beach." And this is the side, that my peeps and I wanted to visit!

So, we drove past the strip malls, over the bridges, past the islands until we hit Folly Beach...



We stayed at the Tides Hotel and were lucky enough to be right on the beach, with a perfect view of the Folly Beach Pier.

We loved taking a swim in their pool overlooking the beach.



And the boys LOVED swimming with their Papa!



After swimming, these two needed a quick lollipop break and snuggled under the towels.



We went out for lunch (although it was a sad, sad story that Bowen's Island was closed). We returned ready to take on the beach...



The boys got to build their much anticipated sand castle (or more like sand bucket) and Viviana got to hang out and rock the cutest little baby bathing suit you ever did see!



Seriously, could you just die of cuteness overload? I mean, come on... Look at those pink ruffles and little squishy baby arms!



After all our beach fun, the rest of the family headed back home and we stayed to enjoy the sunset and an evening walk on the pier.



This is our hotel.



When I asked Devon his favorite part about the entire Easter weekend, he said it was this moment...

"When the fisherman caught the sting ray on his pole!"







This sweet baby face with the still chubby cheeks just warms my heart...





Deansie, doing his best Abercrombie modeling...



And being a little boy again...





I treasure these moments with my family, when I can take a minute and truly be happy.







Family on the pier. Fishermen at sunset. Perfection.



The next morning, I woke to a very peaceful sunrise and peeked out the curtain while the rest of the family were sleeping and snuggled under the covers. But the empty sand was calling to me to come outside and wake up with the sun...



So we ran outside to play...



What a glorious morning! The ocean waves were just sparkling in the sun.



There were seashell negotiations...









The face that brings me so much love...





I was happy to let the boys have their moment, to just use their imaginations and let me quietly slip away to just observe them.



But the most fun we had was just playing under the Folly Beach Pier.









The sun was making the ocean glitter...



While I was enjoying the view, Devon was busy making "mud soup" in the tidal pools around the support beams.





Dean had a standoff with the tide...



I couldn't love this picture more...



Devon didn't care that the tide came in. He was perfectly fine getting soaked through his pants!





Dean loved being chased by the waves...





But to top off a perfect day, Dean had to find his favorite toy on the beach...



I had to laugh when I saw the angle of this photo. Hmmm... Dean looks like he is VERY blessed by nature!



What? My pants are NOT wet!



So after our morning of beach fun, Devon begged for one last swim in the pool..



And poor little Dean was VERY jealous...



Let's just say he was NOT happy to be stuck on the balcony overlooking the pool!



"Hey, how come I always get treated like the baby around here?"



Bye Beach! Thanks for the memories!

A Charleston Easter (Part 1)

You know how it goes, when you are from a city and you rarely take the time to enjoy that city like the tourists do. Charleston is a perfect example of that. Most times that we go home, we enjoy family time to the max, but rarely venture out of the house because it's such a short trip. People say "oh, you must love going to Charleston!" and of course we do, but we usually don't get to enjoy all the city has to offer.

This time was different. We made the effort to be tourists. To look forward to the trip and plan fun things that made it feel like we were on vacation, but with our favorite people around us. It was such a great trip and throw in Easter... it was perfect!

First stop - a date night out with Courtney and Guillermo to have some of the best food Charleston has to offer...



Two mamas let loose on the town... watch out!



It's kind of like that classic prom pose... but not exactly. (And this was before any cocktails!)



Two of our FAVORITE people!





Firoze and Guillermo were quite impressed with their cocktail. A perfect scotch on the rocks. But with a large hand cut "rock" of ice, perfectly kept just above the scotch with a well designed glass, so as not to water it down too soon.



Cheers! To date night!



Dinner was absolutely perfect and we all had amazing food. When the stars align and the food is so incredible that you savor every bite, you laugh with your friends until your sides hurt, and you enjoy every second... you also forget to take pictures of the entire meal!

That is until dessert. Lemon pie in a jar. Ooooooohhhh!



Second stop of our "Enjoy Charleston" tour... walking around the downtown district while the sun went down, trying to evesdrop on the paid Ghost Tours, getting quickly kicked out of the Ghost Tour, listening to Courtney's private Ghost Tour, and making up our own stories which were WAY better anyway!



Making our way to the best rooftop bar ever. Overlooking the entire city, with cool heaters and even a rooftop pool!



A few more of these...



And a few of these...



The Havana Kings...


(Photo quality courtesy of my Iphone in the dark!)

Best night ever!



Easter Sunday. Easter baskets, an egg hunt, cute Easter outfits and Church. It's tradition!



Look at my little cuties in their Easter outfits...



Cousin hugs!



Judah hugged, squeezed and carried Dean every chance he got!



Getting 4 boys to stand still for a photo... Easter Miracle!



And little Viviana, looking so sweet in her Easter dress!







It's Egg Hunt time... And they're off!







For the first year, Devon finally understood that an Easter Egg Hunt meant you have to be fast. He actually found some eggs, with other kids there! :)



Judah was happy with his haul!







We somehow ended up at Cracker Barrel for Easter lunch, but we made the most of it with checkers with Papa on the porch!



After Church and lunch, we headed out to the park for some sprinkler time in the sun. It was our lucky day because they were having Project Love at the park, the gospel fest that my dad helped to start many years ago. That meant lots of families enjoying the park and free bounce castles to jump in for the kids. Could not have been better if we planned it!

Dean was truly stylin' on his way to the park...







At first Dean wasn't sure what to make of these sprinklers...



He thought a stick might be more fun!



But he quickly got the hang of it...



And decided to cool off with a nice drink of water!





My Mom was unfortunately home with the flu, but my Dad was a trooper, spending all day with us and even going to the park wearing his casual outfit... a full suit!



I was so excited to get some of the best photos of Courtney and Viviana. They look absolutely beautiful!





That night, we had the best night with a family hang out night at Courtney and Guillermo's house. We had Chinese takeout, boys running around like wild banshees, and lots of time for just sitting around and catching up. Devon had his first sleepover, staying up late telling jokes with Judah and sleeping up on the top bunk with him! I know that will be a night to remember for him.

The next morning, we were treated to a VERY special breakfast...

By the Pioneer Man himself...



First G made us some fresh tortillas...



Tomatillos were bubbling away for a garlic and cilantro salsa verde... (And yes, we had nice strong espresso on the stove too!)



Piping hot tortillas were set under the towel to keep warm...



And the breakfast of "Championes!" And yes, we WERE the champions! Breakfast tacos... made with scratch made tortillas, a slather of refried beans, a golden egg, some sauteed onions, salsa verde and cilantro... ole! Thank you G for treating us like the kings and queens of your bed and breakfast. With breakfast like this, we'll be back!!