Hey Palmetto Parents,

We had a little change of pace at our house this week! My in-laws came into town from Austin, Texas, and while we absolutely love having the whole family together, we also took advantage of having some extra hands around and snuck away for a kid-free night out. We saw the Goo Goo Dolls, grabbed dinner at one of our favorite spots in Park Circle, and got to enjoy something that doesn’t happen nearly enough as parents—just being adults together! I’ll share more about our night out (and where we ate!) next week.

If you’re looking for something to do with the kids this weekend, Movies in the Park at American Gardens is always a fun, easy option, and there are some great family-friendly events happening around town. Be sure to check out our weekend roundup for the First Friday ArtWalk, Taco & Margarita Festival, and Lowcountry Jazz Festival, along with plenty of other things happening around Charleston.

And speaking of food, our restaurant pick this week is The Wedge in West Ashley. In my opinion, they have the best chicken cutlet in Charleston, but I’m always open to a debate. If you have a better one, I genuinely want to hear about it!

Finally, as we head into a long Labor Day weekend, our Palmetto Piece is all about something I think we parents need a reminder of every now and then: you don’t have to make every weekend a core memory. Sometimes we make the mistake of packing our weekends so full that we barely have time to breathe. A long weekend doesn’t have to mean doing everything. Sometimes the best weekends are the easy ones. The ones with no real plan, a spontaneous ice cream run, extra time at home and nowhere we have to be. So this weekend, maybe give yourself permission to slow down, do less and just enjoy being together.

Have the best week and enjoy this week’s newsletter!

‼️Coming soon‼️

A boutique coworking space directly in Hutchinson Square! If you work from home and have been looking for a desk right in the heart of Summerville, look no further. Hutchinson Yard, Summerville’s newest neighborhood workspace, is opening next month!

Memberships are first come first serve, and spots are limited. If you’re interested in learning more, fill out this short interest form and they’ll be in touch.

Gather the family, pack your blankets and lawn chairs, and head downtown for free Movies in the Park every Thursday night this fall! From September 3 through October 29, American Gardens will transform into an open-air cinema with local food and drink vendors, kid-friendly pre-show activities, and a movie under the stars. Arrive at 5:30pm to enjoy snacks, drinks, and activities before the movie begins at 6pm.

Families will especially want to check out the kid-friendly favorites, including The Parent Trap on September 3, Monsters, Inc. on October 8, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial on October 15, Back to the Future on October 22, and Hocus Pocus on October 29. Other screenings include Chariots of Fire on September 10, Father of the Bride on September 17, and The Rookie on September 24. Movies in the Park is free and open to all ages. There will be no movie on October 1.

If you want to make a full family night out of it, there are several easy, kid-friendly food options within walking distance of American Gardens. It looks like there will be options on site for dinner. But you could also grab takeout from Bar Taco, which has a great menu and is just about a five-minute walk from American Gardens. You can also stop by the Pineapple Hut for soft serve and excellent allergy-friendly ice cream. If you don’t mind walking another few blocks, head to Big Gun Bar and Burgers on Calhoun Street for burgers, fries, and shakes.

The best part is that you can park once, grab dinner or dessert within about a 10-minute walk, and then stroll over to American Gardens for a picnic-style dinner while you watch the movie with your kids under the stars. It’s an easy way to turn Thursday night into a fun, low-key family outing without having to get back in the car!

PLAYOFF BASEBALL IS HERE! 

Cheer on the RiverDogs at The Joe on September 10 as the road to a championship begins! Plus, the first 2,000 fans through the gates get a FREE RiverDogs playoff T-shirt!

Get your tickets here!

Friday, September 4 | 5–8 PM | Downtown Charleston

Kick off the long weekend with a little art and a lot of strolling. Charleston’s First Friday ArtWalk takes over downtown from 5–8pm, with participating galleries opening their doors for an evening of local art, artists, exhibits and plenty of people-watching.

The best part? There’s no official starting point. Pick a gallery, grab a map and wander your way through downtown. With more than 30 galleries participating, you can make the evening as short or as long as you want. You can use the ArtWalk scavenger hunt above from the Charleston Gallery Association to make it extra fun! And yes, you can absolutely make a dinner reservation afterward and call it a date night.

Our take: This is a great one for a girls’ night, date night or older kids who are ready to appreciate something other than a trampoline park.

Cost: FREE

Saturday, September 5 | 11 AM–5 PM | Riverfront Park, North Charleston

Calling all taco people! The Taco & Margarita Festival is bringing a full day of tacos, margaritas, music and waterfront views to North Charleston’s Riverfront Park.

Expect local food trucks and vendors serving everything from tacos and arepas to empanadas and pupusas, plus handcrafted margaritas, live DJs, contests, games and entertainment. Local favorites including Taco Boy, El Jefe, Matador, Mi Tierra Caliente and Papá Grande are among the food and beverage presenters.

There’s also a 21+ margarita garden, while beer, wine, mocktails and other drinks will be available.

Our take: This is less “quiet family outing” and more “grab your friends and make a Saturday of it.” If your kids are coming, there will be plenty of food and entertainment — but the margarita garden definitely makes this one feel geared toward the grown-ups.

Tickets: Admission starts around $30 and includes chips, salsa, a souvenir cup and access to the festival.

Saturday, September 5 | 8 AM–2 PM | Marion Square

Saturday morning at the Charleston Farmers Market is one of those quintessential Charleston things you should do at least once — and then you’ll probably find yourself going back all the time.

Head to Marion Square for local produce, prepared foods, handmade goods, art, crafts and plenty of breakfast options. There’s live entertainment, lots to browse and enough food to convince your children that waking up early on a Saturday was actually their idea.

Go early, grab a coffee, let the kids pick out a treat and wander through the vendors before heading home for nap time. Or stay awhile and make a morning of it.

Our take: Probably the easiest Labor Day activity to do with kids of all ages. No tickets, no itinerary and no one has to sit quietly for two hours.

Cost: FREE to attend — just try not to leave without buying something delicious.

September 4–6 | Charleston Gaillard Center

If your ideal Labor Day weekend involves getting dressed up, leaving the kids at home and listening to live music with a cocktail in hand, Charleston has you covered.

The Lowcountry Jazz Festival returns to the Gaillard Center for Labor Day weekend with three nights of smooth jazz, R&B and soul. They have performances Friday night, Saturday and Sunday night. Check out their line up and grab some tickets!

Our take: This one is for the parents. Call the babysitter, put on something other than athletic shorts and make a night of it.

I grew up in the most Italian town imaginable, where mozzarella was practically its own food group. So when a sandwich shop says that it honors the New England way, I take it very seriously. Charleston has a funny way of modernizing some classic Italian dishes, which, if you ask me, can be downright offensive! I am always paying close attention to restaurants and shops that ‘specialize’ in Italian foods.

Enter The Wedge in West Ashley: a humble, delicious sandwich shop that gets it. Their chicken cutlet sandwiches are exactly the kind of classic, no-frills Italian-American comfort food I’m always looking for. The bread is soft, the cutlet is crispy, and the whole thing hits that nostalgic sweet spot. I’m calling it now: The Wedge has the best chicken cutlet sandwich in Charleston. If you’re a fellow Italian-food traditionalist, this is one you need to try.

They also have a breakfast menu of bacon and egg sandwiches and burritos. They end their breakfast menu at 11am. Their lunch menu includes smash burgers and some kid friendly items. Don’t miss there meatball parm and cheesteaks!

The Wedge is open Wednesday to Sunday from 8-2pm and are located 2487 Ashley River road in West Ashley. They are quickly becoming a local favorite and it’s clear why. Yes, you will have mozzarella and bread on your chicken cutlet, but the Wedge knows how to get it right!

I think somewhere along the way, parenting got a little confused with event planning. We see the festivals, the beach days, the birthday parties, the family outings, the perfectly packed weekends—and we start to feel like we need to make every Saturday and Sunday count. We want our kids to have a childhood full of memories, so we try to create them. But the funny thing about kids is that the moments we work the hardest to make special aren't always the ones they remember.

Some of my kids’ favorite memories have come from the completely unplanned moments. Like the nights when we're all tired, nobody feels like cooking, and I suddenly say, “Do you guys want to go get ice cream?” Ten minutes later we're piling into the car in pajamas, heading to our local Sonic, and the kids are acting like we just announced a trip to Disney World. There’s nothing Pinterest-worthy about it. No reservation, no matching outfits, no perfectly planned activity. Just sticky fingers, melted ice cream and three very happy kids sitting in the backseat. And somehow, those are the nights they talk about for weeks.

I've also noticed this when we make a big deal out of something that doesn't need to be a big deal. One Saturday, instead of planning an entire day out, we decided to stay home. We made pancakes for lunch, turned on music, let the kids run around outside and eventually ended up having an impromptu water-balloon fight in the backyard. It wasn't an “activity.” It wasn't on the calendar. Nobody had spent three hours researching where to go. But at bedtime, my kids were convinced it had been the best day ever. Meanwhile, I had spent almost no money, barely left the house and didn't have to load three kids into the car. That feels like a parenting win.

So as we head into Labor Day weekend, and into the busier rhythm of fall, I'm giving myself permission to stop trying to make every weekend a core memory. Our kids don't need a childhood packed with elaborate plans. They need us. They need the ordinary Tuesday nights, the Saturday mornings in pajamas, the spontaneous ice cream runs, the backyard games and the nights when we decide that dinner can be cereal because everyone is tired. We can take them to the festivals and plan the special outings, of course. But we don't have to manufacture magic every weekend. Sometimes, the magic is simply being together when nobody planned for it.

Have the best week!

Love, Jenna