🌴 Santa Claus. In Summerville. In July.

Hi there, Palmetto Parent!

It’s the third week of July which means we have another Third Thursday event to enjoy.

Tomorrow’s event theme is “Christmas in July.” Stop by downtown Summerville between 5:30-8:30pm to celebrate with vendors and food trucks. There will even be a Christmas in July fashion show at 7pm in front of the stage in Hutchinson Square. Get out that Christmas storage bin and grab your Santa hats and festive garb to pair with a Hawaiian shirt to truly embrace the “Christmas in July” spirit.

Our son still says “Merry Christmas” when we put him down for bed at night (true story). Just wait till he sees Santa in July.

Also, for you shoppers out there don’t forget that the Just Between Friends Children’s Resale Popup is happening this week from Wednesday-Saturday at The Exchange Park in Ladson. This is one of the biggest resale popups in the Charleston area where you can find clothes, shoes, and toys for babies, kids, and teens (as well as maternity clothes). I went to the popup yesterday and it’s definitely worth stopping by, but make sure you go soon because a lot of people are buying the inventory!

Take a look at last week’s article to get all the details or visit their site.

Shake Up Tonight’s Bedtime Routine

Tackle Bedtime with Netflix Jr.’s Popular Podcast

Winning the bedtime battle with your kids can feel like an impossible task, but what if you had a little extra help?

Enter Bedtime Stories with Netflix Jr., the Signal Award-winning and chart-topping Kids & Family podcast made to help kids drift off to sleep alongside characters from their favorite streaming series (like StoryBots and Super Monsters).

Created with a childhood development expert, the show helps children successfully transition to sleep and build skills to navigate the world.

Listen to Bedtime Stories.

If you want over 1,650 Palmetto Parents to see your business, click here.

To Do: Fire Museum in North Charleston

On my agenda this week is to check out North Charleston’s Fire Museum. My son is currently very fixated on smoke detectors and exit signs (I cannot exaggerate this statement), so I only imagine how much he will enjoy a museum with actually interesting things 🤣 . Multiple friends have mentioned they’ve enjoyed taking their kids there and my nanny friend said it’s a weekly activity for her and her little.

The museum is free for kids 12 & under and $6 for adults. Considering that’s cheaper than my typical latte, it’s an affordable option for entertainment.

The museum includes a collection of over 20 firefighting vehicles, hands-on activities to teach about fire prevention and safety, and a small playground. The tour guides are all current or past firefighters with real world knowledge. Take a look at this article that gives 3 reasons to make a trip to the fire museum this summer for more in-depth details of what the museum includes. The fact that it’s a fun indoor (air-conditioned) activity in the midst of the summer heat is a given.

The museum is open 10am-4pm Monday through Saturday and is located at 4975 Centre Pointe Dr, North Charleston.

Have you been to the museum already? Reply to this email and tell us how it went!

An Event: Scavenger Hunt & Ice Cream Social at Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site

This month’s Kid’s Club event put on by the Summerville Museum is one you don’t want to miss. On Saturday (7/20) from 10am-12pm, you have the opportunity to join a private tour and scavenger hunt with Park Ranger Noah at the Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site.

At this historic site you can see a colonial village (settled in 1697), a fort made out of tabby (concrete made from oyster shells), a bell tower, and the remains of an 18th century wharf. After the scavenger hunt, there will be an ice cream social at the picnic tables in the park for the kids to enjoy.

This event is for kids 5 & up.

The event is free for kids and $5 for adults. You can pay for the event in cash on arrival or stop by the museum on Thursday or Friday to prepay the attendance fee. There is also a fee to enter the park ($3/adult, $1/kid age 6-15, free admission for ages 5 & younger).

Colonial Dorchester Historic Site is located at 300 State Park Rd, Summerville.

If you aren’t able to make this event but you and your kids enjoy geocaching, Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site is a great place to do that! There are several geocaches located on the park.

Restaurant: CiderHouse Pie Shop & Espresso

If you’re a lover of coffee, sweets, and supporting local businesses, this is for you! The baker and owner of the Lowcountry Cannoli & Coffee food truck and CiderHouse Pies has started a new venture with opening up a brick and mortar shop, CiderHouse Pie Shop & Espresso. The new coffee and pastry shop opened up this past Saturday with the official ribbon cutting on Monday.

The vision for CiderHouse Pie Shop & Espresso is to have a bakery case filled with samplings of pies, tarts, cannolis, cheesecakes, cookies, Whoopie pies and more.

They feature CHS local coffee King Bean Coffee Roasters.

As the school year gets back into swing, their hope is to sell breakfast burritos during the week and breakfast biscuits on Saturdays. On Tuesday morning we stopped in and I enjoyed an oatmilk latte while my son dug into a mini whoopie pie. The staff there was ridiculously kind and it was fun to talk to them about their dreams for the shop and see how much they are enjoying it already.

Stop by the shop to sample what they have in the pastry case, order a pie cream (pie flavor with scoops of ice cream), and sip a coffee or lemonade. You can also special order pies through their website.

Be sure to follow them on Facebook and Instagram to watch them grow and see what all they are offering. (But actually follow them because they have such cute videos and it’s joy giving content).

The shop is located at 100 Old Trolley Rd. and is open from 7am-4pm Tuesday-Thursday and 7am-8pm Friday-Saturday. On Mondays the kitchen is closed but espresso bar is open for coffee, boba lemonades, Italian sodas, Pie Creams and more. ​

Palmetto Piece: Positivity Changes the Course of Your Family

Recently I came across this post (linked above) that reminded me of how truly important it is to give your children positive feedback and encouragement.

The post describes how a 2019 study shows that children who receive positive feedback from their parents at least five times a day are better behaved, more attentive, and calmer. The study, performed by De Montfort University Leicester (DMU), led to them creating a short handbook for parents on using praise for your kids.

Here are the main points:

• Catch your child doing something good and give them praise. When your child listens to your instructions, completes tasks, or makes a good choice be sure it gets noticed.

• Make your praise descriptive. When you praise them, give the specific details of what they have done that you appreciate. For example, “Thank you for putting your clothes away in your hamper and putting your shoes in the bin. That’s really helpful for me.”

• Praise effort and hard work vs. achievement. Show your kids you notice the work they are putting in. They may not always be the best, but you can let them know you see them trying. Make sure your praise is genuine and specific to them.

• Look for the little things. Praise your kids along the way. Maybe they haven’t completed the task yet or achieved the goal, but praise the efforts they are making along the way.

This post was a great reminder for us this week. On weeks that our son is having challenging behavior, it’s a great to actively search for the good. It helps us and him remember that even though things can be improved, there is still so much going well.

Praise bonds us and promotes the positive behavior — a win for all!

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