Visit to Charleston!

On Wednesday, January 19th, Tommy, Reagan and I hopped in the car and took off for Charleston, SC to visit my good friend Jen Gaj.  She was kind enough to welcome not only a baby, but a dog into her home - I only travel places where my dog is welcome:).  We had a wonderful time and Jen was a fabulous host.  

When we arrived Wednesday afternoon, Jen was still working so we took the opportunity to explore the shopping center where she works.  Reagan and I went to a yoga shop, an outdoor clothing store, a baby clothes store, and a wonderful grocery store called Earth Fare.  I nearly lost track of time while wandering the aisles of a huge, organic, well-stocked market as I've spent the last year an a half at our local Food Lion which leaves the soul wanting...

When Jen finished work, we headed to the house she shares with 2 great girls, Lindsey and Alexis:

On Thursday, Jen had to work the majority of the day, so Tommy, Reagan and I headed to Folly Beach where I found my first sand dollar and several starfish.  It was a gorgeous day to explore and we had the beach to ourselves.  On the way back home, we stopped at the Fort Lamar Historic Preserve.  I had high hopes that we'd get to see some remnants of a Civil War fort and maybe an old canon.  Alas, it was merely a few signs and a small stone monument.  Nevertheless, we took a lovely stroll through the grounds where the fort once was.  When Jen got off work, we met up with her boyfriend John and headed out for a delicious dinner.  Reagan loved John - particularly his beard!

Jen was off work on Friday, so we spent the day together.  We went for a yummy breakfast at the Lost Dog Cafe  where they serve the best huevos rancheros!  On the wall was this quote:

"Dogs are our link to paradise...they don't know jealousy or 

evil or discontent.  To sit with a dog on the beach on a glorious

afternoon is to be back in Eden where doing nothing was not boring...

it was peace."

After breakfast, we relaxed at the house for a bit and then took the dogs (John's dog Molly was hanging out with us) to the park.  It was a beautiful dog park with a big lake and lots of new friends for Tommy!  After nearly an hour of chasing the tennis ball and sniffing _____ (you know), Jen gave both dogs a bath and we loaded up to drop them at the house before heading downtown.  We went to the market and found a great deal on 3 pashminas and visited an incredible spice store where I picked up some saffron (I'm quite sure no one in Jacksonville has heard of saffron) and some ghost chili salt.  We wandered around and visited a beautiful park on the waterfront.  Reagan slept through most of this in her umbrella stroller.  Finally, we stopped by Muse, a restaurant and wine bar where John was working.  We had bloody Marys and a tasty plate of hummus, baba ganoush, cucumber-feta salad and olives.  After a long day, we took Reagan home to sleep and went to bed early.



On Saturday, Jen worked again until 2, so Reagan and I went back to Earth Fare and soaked up some more time in paradise.  When she was finished, we went to Surf Bar, where we met her friend Nathan and ate the best black bean burger I've ever tasted.  Around 8 pm, I packed up the car while Jen fed Reagan her cereal, and then we headed home.  It was a fabulous trip and I can't wait to visit again.

Auntie Jen with Miss Reagan

At the Surf Bar