Our Little Summer Family Escape

We weren't able to take our normal family vacation this summer with the busyness of the kids' activities and everything else going on with Shiloh's health. However, the kids still really wanted to make it to the beach, so we found a way to squeeze in a couple of nights away. We headed to the closest beach, Isle of Palms, where there are only couple of hotels, and managed to find one that worked perfectly for our little getaway.

Our family loves checking out places along the way, so naturally our first stop was a locally recommended coffee shop. They also had the cutest little pizza place next door that we probably should have tried, but we already had lunch plans. We still wandered around and took some cute pictures before heading on.

After lunch, we ended up at a thrift store and stayed a little longer than planned while waiting for a storm to pass through. Not a bad way to kill some time and the girls found some treasures. Once the weather cleared, we picked up subs for a picnic dinner later on the beach and headed to the hotel to check in.

That evening was exactly what we had hoped for. We enjoyed the beach with less intense afternoon sun, ate our dinner by the water, and spent plenty of time in the sand and waves.

Later that night, the kids took advantage of the hotel's rooftop pool. It was tiny, but that didn't seem to matter to them one bit.

The next day was devoted almost entirely to the beach. There were walks along the shore, plenty of time in the water, sand play, and, most importantly, a lot of relaxing.

Hole mission....

Accomplished!

Got cleaned up and some silly photos.

One of the perks of Isle of Palms being so small is that we could simply walk next door for dinner.  (Zoe was the only one wanting to take a picture here.)

We ate on a rooftop patio with the most beautiful view, and thankfully the food was just as delicious!

Of course, we couldn't end a beach day without ice cream, so we grabbed some from across the street.

Afterward, the girls and I headed back to the beach for one last walk as another storm began rolling in. 

There is just something beautiful about watching those big clouds gather over the ocean.

The next morning, we said goodbye to the beach and headed into downtown Charleston.

Coffee (or Matcha) came first, naturally. 

We found a great spot with an adorable patio out back before doing a little window shopping along the main streets. 

Ezra even scored himself some gold candy along the way.

Then we headed to one of the main reasons for our Charleston stop: visiting Water Mission.

Water Mission is a nonprofit that we support through our business, and their headquarters are located in Charleston. 

Seeing all the countries they serve in....

and hearing more about the different things that they do.

We had wanted to visit for quite some time, so I was especially excited for the kids to see firsthand some of the incredible work they do to provide safe water to people around the world (and what a great need there is for their services).

I was thankful they could learn more about the process and see the impact for themselves. 

 I think it is so important for our kids to understand that there are needs far beyond our own little world and that we have opportunities to come alongside others, give, serve, and make a difference.

Then it was time to head home. Chick-fil-A had brought back Cow Appreciation Day, so naturally we decided to participate. We stopped at several Chick-fil-A locations along the way, in costume, and got to experience the madness firsthand. It was hilarious seeing how differently each restaurant and town handled the day, and it gave us a silly way to break up the drive home.

This wasn't the big summer vacation we might have originally imagined, but maybe that was part of what made it so sweet. We squeezed a lot into a couple of days: sunshine, ocean waves, good food, coffee, laughter, relaxation, a chance to learn more about something that truly matters, and plenty of family time. It was far from perfect (the hard details I will leave out) but I'm so thankful we found a way to get away together.