Our trip began on January 6th. We flew from DFW to Birmingham, Alabama.
It was about a 2 hour flight. I also figured out that pre-purchasing parking at DFW, can save you about 150$. You can pre-purchase up to 1 hour before your scheduled depart time. https://onlineparking.dfwairport.com/en/ . Adeline did great on the flight to Birmingham. We picked up our rental jeep from Hertz there at the airport. The receptionist very sweet and accommodating.
Since our trip was planned for 11 days, I only packed clothes and toys.
Our first stop was to Wal Mart. I picked up diapers and everything else I couldn’t fit into my luggage. We then headed to Mike’s lake home, Dans brothers. It was a nice coincidence that my sister and her Boyfriend we‘re staying Birmingham as well. We were able to get everyone together for dinner at Bone Fish, in Hoover. They have amazing food and great smoked old fashions. It is also where Mike and his wife Lori met on their first date. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Talladega, AL for two nights.
We headed out to Atlanta, Georgia on the 8th. It’s a 2 hour drive from Talladega, AL. We stayed at The Four Seasons in downtown Atlanta. The hotel is absolutely beautiful! The entire hotel is covered with marble with a grand staircase entrance. The service was amazing as well. The bellman gave Adeline a teddy bear when we arrived, which I thought was very sweet. They have heated lamps as you walk out of the door, it is very nice standing under them while waiting for the valet.
While in Atlanta, we visited the Aquarium. The Georgia Aquarium is the only aquarium in North America that is home to Manta Rays and Whale Sharks. Whale Sharks are the largest fish in the world. One and a half White House’s could fit into the 84,000 square foot Dolphin Tales gallery. The theater view tank is two school buses in length. Adeline was mesmerized, she loved it! One thing I wished we had done before hand, was pre purchase tickets. If you pre purchase tickets, you can walk right in. They scan your tickets at the door. We parked in the Aquarium Garage, so it was a short walk to the entrance. Also, you can pay as you drive out of the Garage or at the pay booth.
We ended our day with dinner at The Optimist. This was my favorite restraunt in Atlanta. Everything from the Valet parking, to the drinks and Oysters were just outstanding. You need a reservation to make sure you get a table here, they are very busy on the weekends.
On Sunday, we explored The Ponce City Market.We had planned to visit the Botanical Gardens, but it was just too cold and windy. BeetleCat is where we had dinner. We wanted to go back to The Optimist, but sadly they are closed on Sundays.
On our last day in Atlanta, we rode the SkyView gondola. We pre purchased tickets for 6:00 p.m. It was perfect timing with the lovely orange sunset, fading into twinkling lights. With Adeline just waking up from a nap, we headed to dinner at McCormick and Schmick’s. The food was very tasty, but the desert was my favorite. They have a delicious chocolate bag, filled with a sweet cream and berries. It was the cherry on top of a great time in Atlanta.
On Tuesday, we headed to Savannah, Georgia. It’s about a 4 hour Drive from Atlanta. Luckily, Adeline slept the whole ride. We spent a night in Savannah, drove to Douglas for a night to see my grandparents, then headed back to Savannah for two days. We stayed at The Mansion on Forsyth Park. The Mansion is stunning, with even better art and marble statues. The Mansion is an entire photo opt. The room was Victorian style, with beautiful large white headboards and a velvet green chair in a bay window. Adeline loved the big bathtub. We would defiantly stay here again.
My Grandparents live 3 hours from Savannah, so we made a detour to visit them. It was a little get up and go for 3 days, but well worth it! I haven’t seen my Grandparents in 20 years. I was also very excited for Adeline to meet them. I wish we had more time together, but I’m very grateful for all the time we had.
We returned to Savannah and the Mansion on Thursday, we stayed for two nights. The city of Savannah is very charming. They have town squares full of live oaks and Monuments, while standing in them you can hear the Church bells ring every hour. Down almost every street there are live oaks hanging over. We visited The Chocolate Shop by Adam Turoni, and were impressed. The chocolate was delicious and the store was lovely. Savannah has tons of shopping, from local to franchised. We had dinner at The Common Thread for our final night in Savannah. I believe my pallet isn’t rich enough for their food personally. The waitress also said their are no menu alterations whatsoever.
On Saturday, we headed to Charleston, South Carolina. It’s a 2 hour drive from Savannah. We stayed at The Renaissance Charleston. It’s downtown and in a great location. Our room was very clean and well decorated. The Renaissance has a modern abstract vibe. After we checked in, we explored some of downtown.
Adeline‘s stroller was pretty hard to push down the cobblestone roads but Charleston is beautiful! They have pastel colored homes lining the streets. I couldn’t decide which city I liked more, Charleston or Savannah. They both have that southern charm about them. We had dinner at The Pearl. They had the best clam chowder soup I’ve ever had. It was a early night, we headed to the airport around 4 a.m.
Charleston Airport is pretty small, (well compared to DFW). it was easy to navigate and get the rental back to Hertz. The flight home was quick, about 2 hours. We had to ride the terminal link back to the garage, but found the Jeep easily. Adeline only fused a little on the flight, but was ok as long as the cartoons were on.
It was another wonderful and fun adventure to places we’ve never been. We were tired! Adeline was very excited to see her daddy and be home with her toys.
