Charleston

We drove out to the coast and spent a couple of days in Charleston. We loved the city and the history that is there.

Tristan really liked his Auntie and Uncle. He wouldn't let go of Cammy's hand.

Everywhere you looked there were carriage tours.

We saw this restaurant and had to take Tristan's picture by it.

Not to feel left out, we took Wade's picture by his name, too! :)

We walked through a big public market. Think Pike's Place Market without the seafood and fresh flowers. There were several places where these women were weaving sweet grass baskets.

Fort Sumter is off in the distance...not really visible on this picture.

Beautiful bridge!

This waterfront park had swings!

South Carolina is the Palmetto State because of these beautiful Palmetto trees.

This is the Battery where Confederate troops shot the first cannons of the Civil War at Fort Sumter.

Crossing the bridge

We went and toured this aircraft carrier, the USS Yorktown. There are 2 USS Yorktowns, but one sank. This is the one that didn't sink. They made it into a big museum with a tour of the ship.

I love this picture of Wade looking over the side of the ship.

This is one of the jets on the carrier. The F-18. Jason's friend Chris flies this plane, although I'm sure his is a little newer.

Sitting in the Captain's chair.

We also toured this sub.

Very tight quarters!

This destroyer was also part of the tour. This is like the one Jason's dad was on!

25 and 2!

My wonderful husband turned a quarter of a century while we were there.

Look at the spray of powdered sugar!! At least, I hope it's just powdered sugar!

Tristan absolutely loves popcorn, so I dug out an old recipe for popcorn cake the my college roommate, Alesha, used to always make.

My big 2 year old!

Columbia Zoo

Yes, it's true, the rumor is confirmed. Cammy is an official member of the zoo. :) Actually, between her membership and her military status we were all able to go to the zoo for free! What a great zoo!

There they are, the two monkeys!

The boys absolutely loved it!! Tristan knew what a lot of the animals were, the sounds they make, and the sign for them. He was very excited!

What is so interesting?

It's got everyone looking.

Even Grandpa and Grandma.

This adorable meerkat begging for food.

This was the first alligator that we saw in South Carolina, but surely not our last. However, this was the only one we saw that was behind a fence.

Tristan milking the cow.

We went into a caged area with all of these beautiful birds. They landed all over us, which was pretty cool...

until they started pulling my hair!

South Carolina State Museum

We spent half of a day at the South Carolina State Museum. It was a very impressive museum. It had everything: Children's room, Discovery center, Animals, Dinosaurs, Space, History, etc. The building that houses the museum was once a textile mill. There are lots of old textile mills in Columbia, most of them have been turned into condos.

The adults definitely had the most fun in the children's room. Here Jason and Cammy have a dinosaur war.

Cammy the tortise.

Columbia, SC

The first thing that we did when we got to Cammy's house in Columbia is we found me some clothes. Cammy bought this house in July and some of her clothes tubs haven't been opened since. Everyone got some clothes from Cammy...Jason, Garrett, Dad..

This is Cammy's living room loaded down with treats.

The back of her house with a HUGE backyard! (You can't see much of it from this picture)

The front

Tristan tackling his Grandpa.

Cammy has this awesome screened porch. It was the favorite hang-out spot. It also was the only place to get wireless internet. Laptops galore!

Grandma singing along to a song with the boys....well, Tristan anyway.

Airport

The boys did a wonderful job traveling. They had a little trouble adjusting to the 3 hour time change, but just as they were catching on, we came home. :) We borrowed a DVD player from the Andersons, so Tristan was entertained on the flights. Jason and I weren't allowed to sit next to each other because we each had a lap baby and there aren't enough oxygen masks for 2 extra people. It may have worked out better, though, because often both boys were wanting to sit with me and having me a little farther away from them made it easier.

This is all we brought!! We didn't want to pay the $ to check a bag, and my sister borrowed 2 car seats from a friend, so we didn't have to bring those. We fit everything into 2 carry-on suitcases and 2 backpacks. My suitcase was pretty much empty, because my sister promised me a whole new wardrobe. She is being deployed to Iraq the end of March and even now she has to wear her uniform everyday. She didn't want all of her clothes to go to waste while she's gone, so I will keep them warm for her! On the way home my suitcase was overflowing!! :)

Marriott

We started our vacation by heading over to the Marriott on Christmas Eve. We met up with Mom and Dad S., Carolyn, Julie, Leah, Eric, and Heidi F. We spent the night in the hotel before heading to the airport Christmas morning. Our usual airport parking spot is about a block away from the Marriott, so it worked out perfectly!

Holiday Vacation 2008-2009

13 days, 6 different states, 3 new teeth, 2 birthdays, and tons of fresh snow!
We are back from our wonderful vacation, and I have lots of pictures to share with you. We got back this morning about 2 am, and it took me all of nap time today to organize my photos. I have no promises of when all my vacation posts will be up, but hopefully within the next couple of days. I use my blog not only as a way to keep you updated on our life, but as my own personal keepsake of my family. Therefore, you will see way too many pictures of this trip, so feel free to skip, ignore, etc. Enjoy!!