🌴 Summerville Restaurants You Need To Try

Happy Friday, Palmetto Parents!

We’re officially 1,000 Palmetto Parents strong and growing! 😱 

As the school year winds down and summer gets closer, we hope you are able to take some time to enjoy the sunny weather and connect with your families.

If you haven’t been to Westbury Farms yet for strawberry picking, add that to the agenda for the week! The “U Pick” fields are on their final days of being open. We’ve been a couple times this season and have been throughly satisfied with our huge basket of strawberries for only $20. Just be sure to check their Facebook page before you head over to make sure they have the fields open for the day. Typically they are open from 10am-5pm each day. They have lots of fresh veggies on sale now, too!

P.S…

I (Daniel) have recently picked up running and signed up for a 10k right on the beach at Isle of Palms in July (lol why July in SC I do not know).

If you’re also a runner, there are over 300 replies to my tweet below from a bunch of runners! Give me your tips por favor.

To Do: Goat Yoga at Flowertown Charm Farm

Flowertown Charm Farm is a hidden gem in Summerville. Located right off of Bacons Bridge Rd., this urban farm hosts Nigerian dwarf goats, mini Scottish highland cows, fancy chickens, honey bees, barn cats, dogs, and a giant tortoise and bunny. You can also book a stay in their renovated 1870s colonial farmhouse. Hawaiian natives and owners of the farm, Chris and Jenna, have truly created something special, offering numerous events that allow adults and kids to bond with the animals and experience farm life in the midst of the hustle and bustle of Summerville.

What caught our eye the most was toddler goat yoga. This class is created for kids 18 months - 4 years old and gives them an opportunity to bond with their parents, snuggle goats, and practice yoga moves. The next session is coming up this Sunday, May 26th at 11 am. Click here to purchase tickets and see more details.

If yoga isn’t for you or you don’t have a child in that age range, check out their calendar for other opportunities to explore the farm. They host frequent “snuggle” sessions where you can interact with all their animals and they also have adult goat yoga classes.

The Charm Farm is known for hosting arts events like candle making, pottery painting, etc. with the goats. Coming up is a succulent terrarium making class on Father’s Day weekend.

An Event: “I’m a Donkey on the Edge!”

For Daniel and I, Shrek quotes live rent free in our minds. If you love the movie like we do and you and your kids like to paint pottery, Pepperjack Pottery is hosting the ideal night for you TONIGHT from 6-9pm. There will be Shrek themed decorations and snacks to create the perfect scene for painting your Shrek inspired pieces. They will provide stencils and you get to choose from over 350 types of pottery what you will paint. Cost is $10 per person plus the cost of the pottery you choose (most are $25-$35).

Click here to get your ticket for tonight!

And as a reminder, if you’re looking to add a pup to your home, this Saturday from 10am - 1pm there will be a Dog Adoption Event at the Dorchester County Library.

Details for the event are here.

Restaurant: Round Up of Free/Cheap Meals for Kids

In a season with a newborn, eating out has definitely been more frequent for us than usual. We’re excited about opportunities for our toddler to eat for free/cheap (especially when sometimes he barely touches the meal…) We figured other parents would appreciate this list of places in Summerville where kids can eat for free/cheap. We included as many details as we could find for each place.

Top Pick: Sticky Fingers in Nexton/Cane Bay

We thought Sticky Fingers wasn’t around anymore, so we were super happy to see one opened up in Nexton. Sticky Fingers is a bbq restaurant and kids can eat free, all day every day! Our family all loves bbq, so this was a big win for us.

Mondays:

• Co-Op Nexton offers a free kids sandwich with a purchase of a sandwich/salad from 12pm-7pm.

Tuesdays: 

• East Bay Deli at Carnes Crossroads offers free kids meals from 4pm-close (10 and under with purchase of an adult meal).

• Zaxby’s has 99 cent meals for kids.

• Poogan’s Southern Kitchen offers free kids meals from 3pm-9pm when you dine-in.

Wednesdays:

• Smashburger offers a free kids meal for those 12 & under with the purchase of an adult meal.

• Newk’s offers free kids meals from 5pm-8pm.

• Steel City Pizza Co. has $2 pizza for kids all day.

Palmetto Piece: Positive Reinforcement for Spouses

Becoming parents completely rocks your world and can really change the rhythms that you have with your spouse. (This part is written for those who are coparenting with their significant other. If you’re a single mother or father, the same characteristics can be applied to anyone significant in your child’s life).

In the chaos of childrearing, it can be easy to become critical and create negative communication habits of disagreeing, interrupting, and ignoring one another. Even though being intentional about how you communicate is difficult, this article in Psychology Today shows how giving positive feedback to your spouse can greatly improve your relationship (and is definitely worth the effort).

There are four main categories you can focus on to positively reinforce your spouse.

1. Gratitude. When you witness a positive interaction between your spouse and child, when they complete a task in the house (even if it’s expected), when they do anything that is nice and loving, say thank you. According to studies, gratitude makes your relationship feel more sacred and committed and encourages more loving behavior to continue.

2. Attention. When your spouse is already acting nice and loving, it’s easy to assume they are doing fine and not to prioritize connection and intentional time together. Take the time to have good conversations and let them know you see all the good they are doing.

3. Touch. Pause and give each other long hugs, hold hands while you’re walking, be intentional about your touch. This is a powerful tool of connection between the two of you and is a positive reinforcement when you feel tired, stressed, overwhelmed and may not have the ability to use many words to give positive feedback.

4. Forgiveness. Research shows that rewarding relationships rarely use punishment. Intentionally ignoring and mistreating your spouse contributes to an unhappy marriage. Practice being quick to forgive when your spouse makes mistakes and focus on any and all things they are doing “right” as a spouse and a parent and be sure to express those sentiments.

Until next time

Love,

The Berks 👨‍👩‍👦 

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