Counting Blessings: Seewee

Before we moved to the lowcountry I thought I wanted to live where I could wear flip-flops year-round. Now that I live somewhere I can wear flip-flops for most of the year, I'm grateful for the seasons. November, December, and January in coastal South Carolina bring cooler temperatures. This weekend was downright chilly, and we loved bundling up and getting out.

My boy stopped wearing diapers, which is truly something to celebrate. It was a lot of work for both of us, but man does he feel good about himself now. His big reward was a bike. On Saturday night we bundled up and loaded up and went to the bike store to let him pick one out. After that we drove to Seewee Restaurant for dinner.

Walking into Seewee is like going back in time. You'll see checkered tablecloths, Nehi soda in a cooler by the door, oysters by the bucket, and grocery store shelves stocked with dry goods. They serve fresh local seafood and as many hushpuppies as you can cram into your mouth (hushpuppies could be renamed hushbabies or hushtoddlers, by the way).

And while the seafood specials are amazing, you can't go wrong with the vegetable plate either. Seewee has some of the best fried green tomatoes, collard greens, and mac and cheese around. We get to Seewee as often as we can, because there aren't many places like it anymore.

Some things don't last forever.


photo credit 1, 2 3

Blue Heaven

I had hoped to post pictures from our trip to Harbor Island to meet friends this past weekend, but since we were only there for twelve hours before we had to flee in darkness because our children wouldn't settle in and sleep, there weren't many photo opportunities. At 5:30 in the morning, after a night of little sleep, Andy and I looked at each other and made the mutual decision to cry uncle. If you have small children you may have a similar story.

Now that we are home and back to our routine (which I've realized is the only thing holding us together right now) my children are having a sleep fest. Apparently all they needed was their own beds. And I am traveling in my mind, remembering what vacation used to mean before it meant constant worrying about dangerous stairs, unfamiliar beds, the perils of room sharing and searching for diapers and feeding utensils when they are scattered amongst multiple suitcases.

One of our favorite spots on earth is Blue Heaven in Key West, an ecclectic restaurant with bright table cloths, a dirt floor, and chickens running around at your feet. They serve delicious bloody marys and one of the best breakfasts I've ever had: pancakes, benedicts, homemade banana bread, shrimp and grits, and fresh-squeezed orange juice. It may be a while before we travel again, but today I am at Blue Heaven in my mind, enjoying breakfast with Andy and deciding how we'd like to spend our day.

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How do you manage travel with small children? If you have any ideas or things that have worked, I would love to hear them.

Windy Reading and a Copper Lantern

I won't forget the snowstorm turned ice storm that hit Atlanta when I was in my early twenties. When the bad weather hit we were lucky enough to have my grandfather, Will Hayes Roberts, visiting from Nashville. He dug up the poem Snowbound (The sun that brief December day/Rose cheerless over hills of gray...) and suggested we gather around the table to read by candlelight. I don't know about you, but my early twenties weren't characterized by a desire to sit around a table reading poetry with my family members, and the poem is very, very long. I think I left the room after the first syllable or so. Nonetheless, something from that day must have resonated with me because when my cousin Hayes sent this over the weekend, it made perfect sense: sit inside, make a drink, and read great literature about hurricanes during a (potential, not so big after all) hurricane.

The Bar at Husk via

Meanwhile, we got out on Saturday night to celebrate an anniversary of sorts. The town was sleepy and the streets empty thanks to the tourists staying home in fear of Irene. We were able to walk right up to the bar at Husk and sample two of their highly raved about cocktails: the Copper Lantern and the Swizzle. I am a sucker for anything retro, and I'm in love with the new retro cocktail trend. While the Swizzle was excellent, the Copper Lantern was the kind of cocktail recipe that will survive for the next 100 years...smooth, honey-flavored, belly-warming deliciousness.