We made it to Charleston (IOP)

There will be more, much more, birthday recapping but I need to get back on the travel trek or I'll never finish. 

So we made it to Charleston with only minimal pain.  Sawyer did sleep some, thankfully, but the traffic was less than desirable.  It became a joke between Wes and I to guess what the hold up was.  It's amazing how a stalled car on the shoulder of the road can slow traffic down that much.  I mean people, quit looking and drive!  Argh!  Very frustrating. 

Upon our arrival, we had a few hours to kill before Mom and Colin's flight was to arrive.  We did some sightseeing at a local Barnes & Noble (for Wes) and Marshall's and TJ Maxx (for me).  It was ghetto-fabulous.  It was hot, the stores were smelly, and I was ready to just get to the beach already.  I was pleased that I found a floppy beach hat for myself though. 

It was time to head for the airport.  Just as we were nearing the exit, my mom called.  They had missed their flight out of Charlotte!  I was calm as a cucumber - in part because I had just heard a little voice in my head, not 10 minutes earlier, advising me to stay calm if mom called to say they had missed their flight.  What?!  She was a bit of a wreck, I could tell, but hopefully my calm voice reassured her.  To make a long story a little shorter, they were delayed leaving Lexington (we're not a big city so why would that ever be a problem?) and ran like the wind to try to make the connection.  Poor Colin cried because he was running so fast, his shoe came off, and he was thirsty & hungry. 

They found a ticket agent and were able to get on the next flight, an hour or so later, on standby.  My mom plopped Colin up on the counter and he whined about being about to die of thirst, so the nice lady gave them 2 free food vouchers.  Nice but really the least they could do considering it was their fault. 

While we waited, we went on and got our groceries for the week and took them back to the house to unload.  The house looked nice enough from the outside but I didn't get to go in, as we were racing against the clock.  So the crip ran up 2 flights of stairs (x2) to take the cold items in and off we went. 

I'm not sure who was more excited to see who - Colin or me?  We gave each other a big hug and we were off to dinner.  Thankfully I'm a planner and had already planned and scouted out where we were going for dinner.  Oh and I should mention that Colin did great on the airplane.  My mom said he was the perfect traveler.  Surprisingly, he wanted to keep the shade pulled down over the window most of the time.  I thought for sure he'd want to see the wing and the sky but maybe it scared him.  Nothing too frightening though because he's ready to go again.

We ate dinner at Bowen's Island.  BI received the 2006 James Beard award for being a beloved regional restaurant.  Some things have changed since 2006 (and since 2008 when we were there last).  The place burned in either late 2008 or 2009 and they restored it to more spacious accommodations.  You go to BI for the food but even more spectacular are the views.  It's nestled right on the water and there's something about eating greasy fried seafood while watching the sun set on the water that is just magical.  The food isn't really all that noteworthy but somehow you don't even really taste it with the breathtaking views.

Back to the house for our first night's sleep.  The house was nice, 4 stories nice.  That might seem impressive but by the end of the week, we were ready to ditch the stairs.  Sawyer fell in love with them so it was a constant fight to keep him away.  The floors were also all hardwood and in case you aren't aware, hardwood is not soundproof - quite the opposite.  You could hear everything! 

Colin had NO trouble sleeping in his plush queen-sized bed.  We rented Sawyer a crib and while it was fine, it was crammed in between the bed and dresser, leaving me about 6 inches to stand next to it to get him in there.  It was also a stationary crib that was on the lowest setting.  I wasn't tall enough to reach all the way down in there to place him, so he woke up nearly every time.  Talk about frustrating!  Wes took over several nights, thankfully, and had a much easier time.

Good night day one.