Southern Getaway Part II

On Saturday we slept in late and then headed to Hunting Island beach.

The water was SO warm!  I am so used to the Santa Barbara ocean that is FREEZING!  This felt like bath water and the sand and ocean were really clean. 

Mrs. Janelle packed us a cooler of sandwiches, snacks and rum punch.  She really is just the nicest!

After the beach, we came home and got cleaned up for a cocktail party that the Proctors hosted with friends to meet all the California girls.  I am bummed I didn't get any pictures of their lovely friends and all the food.  Pickled shrimp, boiled peanuts, venison sausage, pulled pork sandwiches.....everything was delicious and everyone was so wonderful to us. 

After the cocktail party, Holley and I decided we could use one more night out on the town in Beaufort. After all, we were well rested from our late morning sleep in!

We hit up a bunch of fun bars in the downtown area and heard some great live music. 

The next morning we said goodbye to Colonel Proctor and Mrs. Janelle and headed to Savannah. Holley and I were on our own in Savannah because Meredith had a business trip she had to get to and Karen wasn't feeling well. 

Before we checked into our hotel, we had lunch at J. Christopher's. 

Holley booked us in a swanky hotel in a great downtown location, the Avia Hotel.

We hung out on the rooftop pool and relaxed.

And I was able to read an ENTIRE book on this trip.  With all that I have going on right now, I am averaging about a book a year.  So finishing a book in 5 days felt like the old days when I had a weekly Amazon delivery of books!

At one point, rain drops were upon us.  We welcomed it.  It was still very warm and tropical.  We sat underneath the cabana relaxing, chatting, reading, snacking, napping.....

After spending the day at the pool, we walked to The Olde Pink House Restaurant which is set in a historic pink mansion. 

Get a look at this menu, everything was superb!

My favorite dish we had was the fried green tomato with applewood bacon and sweet corn cream. YUM!

After dinner we headed downstairs into the basement of the mansion which is called Planters Tavern.  We listened to the live piano music over a glass of wine and laughed and laughed about things that happened on this trip and past trips we have taken together.  We actually had to apologize to the couple next to us who were giving us the stink-eye for being too loud.  Whoops!

Obviously we were in a silly mood since I made Holley take this picture.  I was convinced she and our hotel lamp planned their outfits that night.....

Fast forward to 4 AM the next day where I headed out of Georgia back to Santa Barbara.  My kids were waiting for me at the airport and it felt so good to see them. 

And because I was so bad a taking pictures on this trip, here is one from Holley's birthday party this year when her parents were in town.  I love this family so much!  Colonel Proctor and I have a special bond that consists of me falling for all his magic tricks and lending an ear to his stories that go on longer than they should but it is very endearing.  I've been told that he chooses his audience wisely which means I am a sucker but I still can't figure out how he makes that quarter disappear.  Mrs. Janelle is so wonderful to my entire family.  She is so thoughtful and kind.  Her thank you letters, gifts and generosity is genuine and loving.  And Holley, love her so much and our friendship means the world to me!  I feel so lucky that our family has this family in our lives. 

Girls' Trip 2013!!! Where will we go next?!

Southern Getaway Part I

Last year I took a summer girls' trip with my friends Holley, Meredith and Karen to Palm Springs.  This year we headed to the South which we were lucky enough to have THE Southern Belle of Santa Barbara as our tour guide and hostess. I've been to some southern states before with Holley, and honestly, she is who you want to be with while there.

This trip would mark the longest I had ever been away from my kids but I knew they were in good hands with Daddy and some help from Grandma Marilyn and Papa Ward.  (Thank you!!)

We had a short layover at LAX from Santa Barbara so everyone pulled out their laptops and started working in the United Club.  I am not working.  I am screwing around on facebook and checking personal emails.  It's a good thing I have the best boss in the whole world! (Hi Holley!)

Did I say short layover in LAX?  We sat on the tarmac for 2 hours due to thunderstorms in Houston where we were connecting. Good thing I was flying with Holley which meant first class - shortest two hours of my life with all the goodies we got ;)

After a long, LONG day of travel, we arrived to Holley's parents' house in Beaufort, SC.  Holley is one of the best hostesses and I know exactly where she learned it from, Colonel Proctor and Mrs. Janelle exude Southern Hospitality!   Each of us were given a goodie bag of Southern gems as a welcome gift.

We were also greeted with Redneck wine glasses because that is how they drink in the South, right?  Keeping it classy!

Supper (do I sound Southern yet?) was a delicious seafood gumbo.  I've never had it before nor have I ever had okra.  A friend of the Colonel and Janelle named Roland is the go-to guy for gumbo in the Lowcountry which is the what the area in South Carolina is called that they live in. We felt really special getting to try some.

We stayed up late on the wrap-around porch, chatting away until we realized how late it was. 

The next morning we were eager to get out and experience downtown Beaufort.  Janelle gave us a little walking tour around the area. The oak trees were amazing - you are going to get sick of all the oak tree pictures I took but really they were stunning!

And how cute is this little guy that came down from his porch to welcome us to Beaufort?!

See how beautiful these trees are?  The streets were lined with them. 

We had a lovely southern lunch complete with crab cake po' boys from Plums .

Relaxing after lunch

Beaufort is located across several Sea Islands just north of Hilton Head and south of Charleston.  This is on Bay Street which is right along the river. I loved, LOVED the heat and humidity.  It just feels like vacation! 

The Lowcountry is known for their Tabby concrete made of  lime, sand and oyster shells which we saw all over on sidewalks as well as homes (including the Proctor's home).

This is Doc.

How fabulous is his hair?!

Doc was our tour guide around the downtown area.

We saw classic Civil War era antebellum homes while listening to our tour guide tell us the history of the area as well as some fun facts.  And of course, we saw more oak trees!

The Stairs That Lead To Nowhere

 I should have been paying more attention to our tour guide.  I even tried a google search and came up with nothing.  It had something to do with being the original steps of the home that was there.  This was one of those fun facts I mentioned we heard earlier.  I do remember they had a list of movies filmed in the area a mile long including  Forest Gump, that is a fun fact!

After our tour we headed back to Lady's Island which is where we were staying at the Proctor's home.  Since we had arrived so late the night before and were downtown most of the day, I hadn't gotten a chance to take in the property that they live on.  AMAZING!

During low tide you could hear popping noises of little sea creatures coming from the marsh below.

We had a lovely shrimp dinner on the screened porch.  Crickets chirping, the marsh popping, balmy weather, great company, just perfect!

Later we headed out to the end of the dock during high tide to catch the beautiful lighting. 

Next up, back downtown to attend the Water Festival.  The Water Festival is a celebration of the natural beauty and charm of the South Carolina Lowcountry.  Over the course of 10 days they have activities, concerts and performances celebrating their town. 

Beaufort is a huge military town and we were honored to hear the Marine Corps band.  At one point they played the songs for each of the military branches.  When the US Army song was played, Colonel Proctor stood up along with several other servicemen.  Not a dry eye in sight!

Afterwards, we saw one of the best firework shows I've ever seen.

After the festival, we parted ways with the parents and headed down to The Breakwater for a night out on the town.

We ended up at several different clubs listening to music and having a grand old time! 

There will be more y'all, so come back soon!