East Coast, East Coast

 After being separated by a continent earlier in the month, it was nice to be together the last couple of weeks in December visiting our East coast kids and grandkids.  On Christmas afternoon, we flew to SC to enjoy some sunshine and visit with Jeff, Libbie, Benson, Sadie and Xander.  We had some sunshine but mostly the warmth of sharing time with their sweet family.
Thursday we did our errands and a little shopping at the outlets nearby.  I was looking for a new computer/travel bag.  We ended up getting buy one/get one big discount athletic shoes so we can keep up our walking schedule.  For Jeff and Libbie, they are preparing to run in a marathon relay in February.  Awesome for them!  Of course we made several trips to Costco since it is so convenient.  We got food for the visit and enjoyed the holiday samples.

 On Friday, we bundled up for a trip to Charleston.  It was actually a mostly pleasant day but we were warned that it gets quite CHILLY on the ships we were planning to visit so we were well prepared.

 We spent several hours touring the USS Yorktown, "The Fighting Lady", the 10th aircraft carrier to serve in the US Navy, commissioned on April 15, 1943.  We also toured the destroyer, USS Laffey, and the submarine, USS Clamagore.

 The area is deservedly named Patriots Point.  Some of it was quite emotional as one thinks about all the people who sacrificed their lives and/or health for our freedoms throughout the years.  The focus of these exhibits was WWII but also included many planes throughout the years.

 After the Yorktown, we drove into Charleston and enjoyed the quaint southern downtown area and had lunch at a very southern seafood restaurant.  I'm getting used to those hush puppies and grits.

 Here we are walking through the extensive marketplace that has been in use for hundreds of years.  It is nicknamed Slave Market but you won't see that on any signs or anything.  The locals just call it that.

 We enjoyed this fabulous train display in the lobby of one of the gorgeous downtown southern hotels.  It was amazing.

 Of course, Xander was even more enchanting than the displays and so were his siblings, Sadie and Benson.

 On Sunday morning it rained and rained.  There was no way to get into the church building without getting soaked.  However, the afternoon turned out to be quite pleasant and the warmest of our trip.  Therefore, after dinner, we want for a walk on the beach.  Sadie dressed for the occasion--you gottta chuckle at this.

 That evening we enjoyed fresh popped popcorn with a little butter while the kids watched church videos.  I also made some carmels.  They turned out a little soft but were ever so good wrapped around a southern pecan.