On our first day there we explored Savannah. Let me just say that I fell in love with it there. Love love LOVE!! I can't wait to go back. Surprisingly the humidity didn't bother me too much. I can't say the same for Emma. Poor girl was so sweaty and hot you could see it on her face.
I love the way Savannah was designed. There are so many parks as you walk around. We took a tour first thing and then just walked all over enjoying the architecture, history, and beauty everywhere. And I love spanish moss! It's so gorgeous. Some of the trees in the Colonial Park cemetery (fascinating by the way) were so incredible.
We also got to take Emma to the Atlantic Ocean. It was a beautiful day on Hilton Head Island too! You couldn't ask for better weather.
The rehearsal and the dinner that followed were wonderful. You can't beat good Italian food!
Patiently waiting for the rehearsal to start. What a pretty place for a wedding though!
I love how green and lush the freeways are back there!
This was just taken out the window as we crossed onto Hilton Head Island where the rehearsal dinner was taking place.
The next day was the wedding of course. Here is Emma having her hair done along with the beautiful bride! And also the after pictures. Emma loved the butterflies in her hair.
The wedding itself was wonderful. Such a beautiful location!! I thought the minister did a very nice job. It was so fun watching these two great people get married! And you could easily see how much they loved each other. So cute! The reception that followed was really nice too. Lots of great food, speeches, and dancing. Emma especially liked that part.
The girls did such a great job walking down the aisle. I don't know if she was nervous, anxious, or just felt goofy, but Emma had a weird and funny expression on her face the entire time. Their dresses were darling though!
Presenting the happy couple!!
It was so nice during all of the events throughout the weekend being able to meet all of Melissa's family. They are all such a great bunch of people - I can see why Melissa is so fun! She comes from a terrific family.
After saying goodbye to everyone after the Father's Day Brunch at Melissa's parents house, we headed north to Charleston. We went to a large plantation just outside of town called Boone Hall. It was so nice! The grounds were very extensive. The long drive into the house has huge trees on either side that are just magnificent. It was fascinating seeing the slave houses that were all in a row. Hard to believe that anyone ever treated other human beings this way. Hopefully everyone can learn from history.
We went to Fort Moultrie and looked around the visitor center and toured the fort itself. At the visitor center they showed us this hilarious video that's at least 30 years old. And EVERY part of it indicated its age! So funny!! Needless to say we did NOT stay for the entire thing. The fort itself was really interesting. It's been in use since the Revolutionary War, with some obvious changes and upgrades along the way. The rooms inside the bunkers were fun to see. We also had a great view of Fort Sumter where the first engagement of the Civil War took place.
Fort Sumter
We went to the battery in Charleston, which is along the water. The houses there are massive! You can tour many of them if you want. Just around the corner is rainbow row - a very colorful stretch of houses. Very cute. I'd live there. There's lots of pirate stuff to do too, as you can imagine for that area. Very fun.
Our last day we were back down in Savannah. We looked around the old town again and saw some really big houses there. We also saw an old pirate house (it was actually used by pirates back in the day) that has been added to and turned into a restaurant. Then we found a nice big park and let Emma play for awhile.
That evening we made our way down to River Street. There were some cute shops along there and some absolutely heavenly pralines! My mouth's watering just thinking about them. We went on a river boat cruise for dinner. There was dinner and entertainment, but the best part was going on top after dinner and just relaxing and enjoying the breeze and the view. The sunset that night was amazing.
When we arrived home, without asking or anything, the pilot offered to let Emma come into the cockpit and be his co-pilot. He even lent her his hat. She loved it!
All in all the trip was wonderful. It was a great occasion that brought us back there, and we were able to do a lot in just a short amount of time. I would highly recommend visiting if you've never been. Like I said at the beginning of this post, I can't wait to go back. And congratulations to Michael and Melissa again!
