Kyle and I love to travel. I would say it's our favorite thing to do together, but it's really hard to pick one thing when I love everything we do together. We selected Charleston as our babymoon destination so we could enjoy a little time on the beach, historical sightseeing, and (of course) excellent food. Silly as it is, I also love staying in hotels where we are guaranteed to have cable (a luxury we don't indulge in at home to save pennies). Where to start? Let go with food...
Each place we ate had great seafood. Kyle let me indulge in some serious fried seafood here at Sullivan's (on Sullivan's Island). We split crab stuffed mushrooms for an appetizer and a plate full of fried shrimp, scallops, flounder, oysters, and devil crab for the entree. Kyle loved a heaping side of hushpuppies.
Kyle's boss highly recommended Poe's Tavern for fish tacos. We loved this place splitting an order of chips & queso, 2 mahi mahi tacos, and a burger. Vacation eating is not for wimps; good thing Kyle brought a pregnant wife as his date. We also learned that Edgar Allen Poe had lived briefly on Sullivan's Island; the restaurant website says, "Poe enlisted in the army under the pseudonym Edgar Allan Perry and was stationed at Fort Moultrie at the western end of Sullivan's Island for thirteen months beginning November 18,1827."
We went to Hank's in downtown Charleston on our last evening. We both enjoyed she crab soup. For entrees I ordered mussels (a girl really learns to miss moules frites leaving France and all...) while Kyle ordered "Seafood a la Wando". This dish had 3 kinds of fish, shrimp, scallops, crab, and mushrooms served on a fried grit cake covered in a buttery cream sauce. Woah it was rich.
We learned a valuable hotel reservation lesson. Kyle wanted to take the hassle out of staying somewhere far from the beach. We stayed for two nights at a hotel right on the beach at the Isle of Palms. It is beach-goers central. Our first afternoon there, Kyle and I took a long walk up and down the beach~ a scene which can only be described as a real life Where's Waldo? illustration. What we hoped would be convenient was kind of frightening. The biggest motivation to find a calmer & less-populated beach? Too many smokers along the Isle of Palms. We happily spent the next two days on the beach at Sullivan's Island where we saw these things:
You may have to enlarge this one to get the full effect. There was a man who had these huge kite sets and was doing all these impressive tricks with one set in each hand. It was so fun and entertaining~ how does one get into rhythmic kite flying?
You can hardly see them, but we were visited by some dolphins in our cove one morning.
Bleh~ jellies were everywhere. I thought I loved the beach, but these creepies have me thinking I only love the Gulf of Mexico...
A sand covered crab in its shell. I managed to step on at least one crab and maybe two starfish that scared me out of my mind. Ocean life is good to observe~ not to tread on.
Boldly going where perhaps no pregnant girl should go~ a swimsuit picture! I unsuccessfully have been trying to tan over my running shorts tan lines for a while... looks like I'll be rockin' paler thighs until summer '12.
My handsome hubby and all our new beach goods thanks to Target. We got two beach chairs, two beach towels, and two Nalgene water bottles at great deals compared to the beach shops in the touristy areas. Our little set up made spending time on the beach so comfortable and perfect for reading.
Happy Hams on our wide open sandscape
We weren't beach bums the whole trip~ we managed to get in a little culture. We thought it'd be cool to visit Fort Sumter after having watched the Ken Burns Civil War documentary a couple of months ago, but we only ended up visiting Fort Moultrie. The fort had an impressive victory against the British during the Revolutionary War, but since then had done little to preserve the safety of the homeland. It has been decommissioned so now it's just a tourist sight where folks like we can pose with cannons.
Fort Moultrie
Kyle posing on the frontline of many a military conflict
We were trying to think of a way we could "Evel Knievel" that baby into this cannon. We went for a cute pose instead.
We loved the large water mines and did the best explosion faces we could muster. Kyle's working his explosion look all the way down to his calves~ what a stud!
With a helpful gust of wind that came right as I was posing, I think I look like I'm being blown away more than blown up... Kyle got a kick out of my expression.
Here are some other landmarks you may recognize from the area~
Ah, there's Fort Sumter off in the distance.
It was so sunny and hot at the Battery that we spent most of our time in White Point Gardens.
Pretty place
Every time I see a gazebo, I want to sing "Sixteen Going On Seventeen".
The yellow building is the old Exchange Building and Provost Dungeon. We wondered if our friends in Metz would find this corner of architecture in Charleston similar to messin buildings. The pinky-brown building definitely reminded us of Metz's post office.
Every port city has a custom house, but not all port cities have such a handsome fella to present their landmarks.
We meandered through the old City Market and thankfully made it out of there without buying something woven.
Lastly, I know this may sound weird, but we love hotel hopping on vacations. Kyle found a deal on a very fancy hotel in town for our last night. We say fancy because they had a wine & cheese hour, cookies and milk at bedtime, and an insane breakfast brought to our room whenever we wanted (I guess we think of food a lot). It was a beautiful place to stay. We couldn't afford to be there for the whole trip, but it's nice to go all out for one day.
Our room was the largest at the Harbour View Inn; it's exposed brick wall and tension rod date back to the 1830s. I wanted to move in.
A basket full of pastries, a carafe of regular coffee for Kyle & decaf for me, cups of fruit, and a small glass of chocolate milk for my husband. These were the best pastries we've had since we left France.
On the left side of this picture you can see our room's enormous window. On the right side you can see the pier by the harbor.
We met a lovely man who took our picture on the rooftop terrace.
From the roof we could see the harbor as well as a fountain that children love to play in. How fun!
It was a wonderful trip. I loved celebrating two years of marriage with my sweet husband as well as getting in one last big freedom excursion before the baby arrives. I was worried it wouldn't be very much fun for me because I feel so pregnant, but I definitely recommend traveling and babymooning (we were able to do it at 31 weeks or 7 months easily). I loved all the quality time we had reading, doing Bible study together, exploring, swimming, walking, eating, watching Food Network and House Hunters for hours, and talking. It was super restorative and such a blessing. I have more pictures to share with you, but it'll have to be another post since this one is ridiculous. A bientot!
Kyle and I ran in our first 5k on Saturday morning. We got up bright and early to make the short drive to Cumming (a first visit for me). This race was special because it was for ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease; Kyle has a co-worker who received a diagnosis for this incurable disease which affects voluntary muscle movement. According to PubMed, "In ALS, nerve cells (neurons) waste away or die, and can no longer send messages to muscles. This eventually leads to muscle weakening, twitching, and an inability to move the arms, legs, and body. The condition slowly gets worse. When the muscles in the chest area stop working, it becomes hard or impossible to breathe on one's own." Its cause is unknown as are any risk factors. Kyle and I were really heartsick after learning about what this disease does to the body. We were glad to get out with some of his co-workers and participate in an event that raises money for research and awareness about the disease.
Our two race t-shirts~ the blue one is from the event and the red one is what we wore to run (ADVA is Kyle's company).
The actual run was really good. It was nice and cool out~ ideal for my more pregnant body. With the exception of some tight muscles in my abdomen, it was pretty easy for me. Here's how I did:
Place No. NAME Age S GunTime Pace
179. 508 Hamilton Leah 27 F 36:14 11:40
(Out of 278 women)
My pace wasn't bad~ I was running a pace around 12:40 for the half-marathon, and managed to run a minute faster per mile 7 weeks later (and about 10 pounds heavier). I even completed the run in front of 99 other women (at 26 weeks pregnant)! That's not really important; it just is a reminder about how capable I am even when I feel slow and heavy. It's official, though, I am done racing until after Mr. Hamilton is no longer my internal companion. I'm now shifting my focus to walking and swimming once I get a preggy swim top.
That afternoon Kyle and I took a nap and then went shopping at Fresh Market~ one of our favorite things to do. We picked out some fun cheeses and a small afternoon snack. What were the cheeses for? Baguettes, of course. Kyle makes so many of them, and he decided to pack a bunch to share with friends as we headed down to Stone Mountain for some fun in the sun and the laser show!
Kyle and I posed with Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee (poor Stonewall Jackson is hidden behind my husband's marvelous crown).
We had a blast enjoying a picnic with friends and new faces. Kyle and I had picked out the same sampler block of British cheeses as our friends Rocky and Maria~ ridiculous, right? I felt like Wallace snacking on some wensleydale (if it had been Tuesday, I definitely would have required some porridge). Afterwards, the group decided to make a huge knot by all joining hands with different people. It's a great game to get to know folks better as well as problem solve (the goal is to untangle the knot to form a big circle). I opted out of this game because (even though you can't tell) my belly really restricts my range of motion and flexibility. I did thoroughly enjoy watching the group, though~ it took them right up until the laser show started to complete their mission.
Have you never been to the laser show? Don't know what a laser show is? Well, thanks to some lovely contributors on youtube, we are not left without any resources. I selected part 2 of what perhaps is a 3 part series recorded on a digital camera by a laser show enthusiast. If you think the video quality is bad, in truth it's probably the quality of the laser show. About 4 minutes into this video, you can enjoy a bona fide confederate treasure~ our Civil War heroes come to life from the face of the rock and gallantly ride their horses to the crooning of Elvis Presley. Southern patriotism isn't quite complete without a little rebel pride. If you want to go all out, I recommend drinking an ice cold sweet tea out of a mason jar while you enjoy this video....
Soon I'll report on the Mother's day activities; Kyle certainly spoiled me. Thus, the recounting of my ideal weekend will continue.....
Kyle and I went to the Publix Marathon Expo at the Georgia Dome yesterday after he got off of work. Boy, those things are fun, but we must look like a bunch of punks when we're there. There are all sorts of booths dedicated to selling sports products, promoting races around the country, and (our favorite) giving out samples of food. After we thoroughly scoured the maze of displays for every possible nibble we can get our hands on, it sinks in that athlete snacks are loaded with ridiculous amounts of energy boosting calories~ not exactly what this little lady needed with big Friday night plans to watch Who Do You Think You Are? on the sofa with the husband. Oh well....
Today I am so excited and nervous. It's a weird combination of feelings~the anticipation is like Christmas but the anxiety is like the night before a big test. Back in my test taking days, I typically would have read all the required material, done all the assigned homework, and probably even completed review exercises. On top of studying the night before, I couldn't have been more prepared. This, however, didn't remove the nerves I felt in not knowing what would be on the test. That's exactly how I feel about the half-marathon. I've done all the training and have prepared for months. I've been hydrating and eating well. There is nothing more I could do to be ready for the race~ yet in my stomach I get those butterflies that come when you face a challenge.
What better to do when you want to relieve your mind from the excitement/nerves than to have an action packed Saturday? Well, that is after some sleeping in, of course. Here's what Kyle and I have been up to...
Bake some baguettes~we were down to 2 or 3 in the freezer which just won't do.
Kyle always leans on Julia for her baguette wisdom.
Catch up on a stack of mail~ when the day comes along that we're homeowners, I refuse to use Terminix. Enormous images of termites only serve to disgust me, not entice me to use your business services.
Go through our loot bags from yesterday's expo
Grin merrily over all the free food I brought home~ kudos to the folks handing out Moonpies. you know my true heart's desire.
Fill out emergency information on my race bib~ Any medical conditions we should know about? This lady has a baby on board.
Play some Eric Clapton in our music area
Give a thumbs up and an odd smile for his race shirt
Check out the sweet motion one can make in a race t-shirt
Go for a diverting walk with my most comfortable (and hippy-ish) sandals
Speaking of diversions, how about I share some things from one of my running routes that I love. Top 7 countdown of things I like to see while jogging!
7. Trees in full bloom that snow pedals on me
Pedals galore
6. A tree trunk~ this Christmas tree has been slowly wasting away in the back of this truck since January.
5. Friendly faces~ even the trees are nice in the South.
4. Birds of prey~ sorry about the power lines and such. I love seeing hawks on my runs. They are so impressive.
3. Hills~ even though they wear me out, I always feel stronger once I tackle them.
2. The lake~ it couldn't be smaller or harder to get to, but it's always nice to take in the view at what I like to call the Peachtree Forest Pond.
1. The sewer~ never was there a happier sight. This is my finish line when I return from long jogs; once I get here I'm just moments away from a big glass of water and a shower.
Now, back to the events of the day...
Take off the super chipped and kind of bleh nail polish from before. My toe-separator is cute, but it's like a medieval torture device.
Get in the spirit of the Public half-marathon with Publix color toe nails
Shop craigslist for porch furniture, drive to Lawrenceville, bring home plunder
Thank my husband for deck furniture as spring sets in
Kick yourself for not asking if the seller was a smoker~ never venture to purchase upholstered goods off craiglist before learning about your soon-to-be-property's smoking history. *cough* *cough*
Thank the Lord that it was still a good deal & that the chairs are comfy enough until we can make it to Garden Ridge. Also, HYDRATE!
Bake those loaves of bread
Not without some steam action in the oven first
Conclude the day by carbo-loading on Kyle's delicious spaghetti carbonara
With a calm Saturday night in, we'll probably retire to bed very early and read. After all, we're getting up at 5am and hoping to have a pleasant journey with Marta into the city with plenty of time to make it to our corral. I'm so excited~I hope I sleep!
