So, I think I may repost that baby name blog every time I’m pregnant–if for no other reason than to test my ability to cackle really loudly without my treacherous, baby-kicked bladder betraying me.

Y’all are funny. And fun. And if you didn’t go back and read the NEW “this is why I agonized for months over my child’s name” comments, you definitely should. So stinkin’ entertaining.

ANYhoo…today’s “post” is more of a cry for help.

My birthday is Thursday, and we’re headed to Charleston, SC. Normally, we’d just hang out in Tyler or Dallas for the day, but (and I know I say this every time we have another kid, but I really do think it’s true this time) this is probably the last solo trip we’ll get for a loooooong while. Which is totally cool. I mean, 7 kids, y’all. We’ve had a good run.

So, we decided to go for it and visit a city that has long fascinated us but has never been on one of Shaun’s work-trip radars (typically how we choose our travel destinations).

I heard over and over how it’s a super vibrant city with tons of charm and history and character, but…we’ve been so busy that I haven’t had much of a chance to research it like I normally would.

We love doing food tours, but I haven’t found one that just screams our name this time. So, instead, I think we’re going to check out The Fall Tour of Homes.

fall tour of homes

This is just one of the beauties that you can go inside on a tour. I’m thinking we’re not going to get too many practical ideas for our big-family-home in a multi-million dollar mansion, but I love the fact that these homes are chock full of historic detail and charm.

We also love farmer’s markets to get a feel for the local flavor (literally and figuratively), so I’m sure we’ll nose around at least one of those.

There’s also something called the Historic Charleston City Market, which has good reviews. Any locals know whether it’s worth a visit?

Other than that, I have NOT done my due diligence on this pretty city, and I’m starting to feel a bit antsy that we leave Wednesday morning without much of a plan (yes, thanks to the internet, “winging it” will be pretty simple, but still…).

ALSO–and this is a bit of a big deal–there’s a hurricane heading straight for South Carolina this weekend.

I am definitely praying (first for the folks in South Carolina and then, more selfishly, for us) that it doesn’t hit like it could.

So…here’s where the plea for help comes in.

Are you from Charleston? Visited once or often? What should we do/eat/see?

I’d be ever so grateful for any advice you can offer.

14 Comments

  1. It looks like the storm is coming closer to Charleston, so y’all might want to move this trip away from the entire eastern seaboard. Charleston is beautiful, but hurricanes are no Bueno. I’d say you could stay with us, but we are all EMS, FD, or 911 people just outside Charleston. Love and prayers, Laura

  2. We love Charleston! We just wander and grab coffee and wander some more. We’ve taken some of my husbands students there and the downtown walking tours (Historical) are amazing. I learn something new every time. Wandering the battery, and just eyeballing the architecture is my favorite. We’ve never looked up restaurants beforehand (terrible I know but no smart phones so…) we just go to places that look (and smell) good and don’t require a reservation or a jacket (both are prevalent). Never had a bad food experience. We enjoy all types of food and have always enjoyed what we ate there. Enjoy your trip! Praying about the weather!

  3. I recommend a carriage ride if the weather permits. When I visited there, we ate lunch at Hyman’s and the fried green tomatoes were out of this world!

  4. The in-laws live there so we’ve been countless times. City Market is historic and worth a shot – so many gorgeous old churches and good food within walking distance as well. Some notable restaurants include: Butcher & Bee, Five Loaves Bakery, Starz Rooftop Bar, Magnolia, Husk, Fig, so many great options! Sullivan’s Island and Folly Beach are awesome. Enjoy! We love the city so much.

  5. Chiming-in…
    We stayed at The Harborview Inn- amazing location on the bay, view of Fort Sumter, wonderful service, gorgeous rooms!
    I think the city market is worth a trip at least once, as it’s a landmark of Charleston and sports a super cute cafe inside called Caviar & Bannanas, not to mention one of the best southern hat vendors/prices!
    We took a historic carriage ride tour through the historic district which is an amazing way to learn a quick bit of history and see a good section of homes.
    SNOB (Slightly North of Broad) is a definite dine for an excellent evening dinner.
    We took the early ferry via the National Park system across the bay to Fort Sumter & really enjoyed it! We are homeschooling parents who love history with or w/o the kids! Ha!
    Hope y’all have a great time!!

  6. You’re going to love Charleston! It’s one of my favorite places to travel.

    Breakfast/brunch spots: Poogan’s porch (get there early for brunch or you’ll wait forever), Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit (amazing biscuits & French press coffee), Glazed (donuts – they sell out early)

    Lunch spots: Taco Boy (creative & delicious tacos, obviously), Butcher & Bee (exciting sandwiches & daily specials), Martha Lou’s Kitchen (hole-in-the-wall amazing fried chicken), Fleet Landing (seafood)

    Dinner spots: Slightly North of Broad (expensive but WORTH IT), Cypress Grill (ditto), Middleton Place (ditto)

    Treats: Paolo’s Gelato, Jenni’s Ice Cream

    Sights: Boone Hall & Middleton Place are both lovely plantations! Walking through Rainbow Row and the Battery (amazing homes) should be on your Must See list. We love just walking all over the city admiring the churches, houses, gardens, and more! If it rains, the SC Aquarium is fun (but we’re kind of nerdy like that).

    Shopping: King Street is whereto go (Savannah Bee Co., Anthropologie, etc.). Skip the city market (it’s pretty touristy). The farmer’s market is nice, though!
    Have an amazing trip! I’m also praying for good weather on the east coast this weekend… I have a girls’ beach trip planned!

  7. What a great trip! I’ve been there several times and really liked just walking around downtown and along the docks on the water. The houses are so beautiful and colorful. One of our favorite restaurants was Slightly North of Broad (SNOB (-;). If you do a lot of walking (it’s a very walkable city) the battery is a nice park area with views. I think Fort Sumpter is overrated although the ferry ride is an experience. There’s a battleship at that same location that might be worth checking out. Fort Moultrie has more to see and fewer tourists. There are lots of great candy and ice cream shops which are a personal favorite if you’ve got any kind of sweet tooth. If you go outside the city, Boone Plantation is an amazing tour and the Avenue of Oaks (Gone with the Wind, anyone?) is beautiful, but the Magnolia gardens and plantation are a more affordable and equally pleasant option. I hope the weather cooperates for you!

  8. We love Blossom, especially the red velvet bread pudding dessert! Tons of fun places to go, and awesome food, we’ve never had a bad meal when we’ve visited.

  9. I agree with what Kate said above. As a tourist, I could tell that much of the City Market was a tourist trap and not super authentic. That being said, it’s right downtown, by everything, so it’s not a special trip.

    Husk absolutely lived up to the hype, but you might be late to get a reservation. Poogan’s Porch is a couple of doors down and was super good, but if I could do it again, I would do Poogan’s Porch for lunch.

    This is the post I wrote about where we ate for (besides Husk, which had it’s own post) https://goodbadquirky.blogspot.com/2015/05/where-to-eat-in-charleston.html

    I would go back to Charleston in a heartbeat! It is such an awesome place!

    Also, seeing as baby names are on the brain, I’m the one who’s husband wanted to name their second daughter Dominique and call her Q 🙂

  10. When we visited we went to patriots point ( home of the USS Yorktown) and visited Fort Sumter. Both were well worth it.

  11. I live in Charleston! I would skip the market unless you go on Friday nights when local artists are there. During the day, it doesn’t have much local stuff – it’s mainly vendors selling cheap stuff from China. Downtown has a great farmers market on Saturday mornings in Marion Square. We love just walking around downtown. There is so much to see. Beautiful architecture and gardens. You can walk along the battery, or down King Street. I think you’ll enjoy the Historic Homes tour.

    There are lots of great places to eat! The Early Bird Diner is in West Ashley (not on the peninsula, but not a far drive) for breakfast/brunch. Oak Steakhouse is wonderful for a very splurgey meal. Downtown also has Glazed (gourmet donuts), Jeni’s ice cream, and a lot of good coffee shops. It really will be hard to go wrong as far as food is concerned 🙂

    I hope the hurricane avoids us too, and that ya’ll have a great time!

I love hearing from you guys!