Hilton Head = HOT

We're back from our vacation and I must say it was very relaxing. Two days in Charleston and four days in Hilton Head does a body good.

Charleston is known as the friendliest city in the United States and I have to agree. The people there couldn't be nicer. I'm not sure if its a southern hospitality thing, an inability to be mean in such intense heat or continued guilt for their years of slavery, but the people there wave hello when you walk by, stop to offer directions when you look lost and take the time to chat in restaurants. In fact, when we were walking around the downtown area, we chatted with a local photographer who brought us to the oldest cemetery in the city. It was so beautiful and serene.

We took a carriage tour to give us the historical overview of the area and then we headed out to a local plantation. I consider myself quite the traveler, but the south is new territory for me and I'm thankful that we had a tour guide to give us the background. I never knew that there was confederate currency that was rendered meaningless following the Civil War (perhaps I was absent from history class that day). Here's a shot of us at the reflecting pool at the plantation:

Then it was off to Hilton Head. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the one thing we learned is Hilton Head in August is HOT. I mean, I'm a warm weather person, but this was just plain ridiculous. We arrived at our hotel at noon and our room wasn't ready so we decided to go to the beach. Joel called ahead and got us a cabana on the beach complete with our own waitress. It gave us some shelter from the sun and we spent the day going back and forth between the ocean and the shade. Here's the 22 week pregnant view from my perspective:

Hilton Head is a pretty family oriented town, so at night we wandered around the gated communities, listened to live music and took in the sights. Here's a good shot of us down by the marina:

Joel captured the new belly pic at 22 weeks (this time with clothes on):

Finally, we headed back to DC to pick up our pups who were having a great time with their dog-cousins (although I think they missed us a little bit). I love this picture of Lucy and just had to share. I think she was trying to lick me and the camera simultaneously: