Anyone in Charleston?

[britta9913]

My DH will be traveling to Charleston for a job interview next week and we are seriously considering a move there. I don't see many posts from mama's in that area though... I am specifically interested in school info for my 4 year old who is hearing impaired. We will be in the Daniel Island area if he takes this job....

How diverse is the area? We are a mixed family (asian american) and are fairly crunchy (raw milk, food co-op, extended breastfeeding (a 4 and 5 year old) and family bed. We currently are the neighborhood outcasts here in MI for delaying vax, co-sleeping, breastfeeding... I don't want to get into another rigid neighborhood.

Can anyone recommend schools/neighborhoods/areas in the area?

Thanks so much!

Erin in MI

[Mel38]

Hello Erin,

I'm not sure if the search function is working today, but if you can search or scroll through the posts from say the last 6 months or so, it seems I recall someone was recently considering a move here and asked some questions.

I generally recommend signing up for the local AP moms' group on Yahoo groups (familyplaytimesc). If you search for that, it should come up. They are a great resource for information on this area!

Good luck in your searches and, if you do move here, I am sure you will find a group of friends. This area definitely has its pros and cons, but you will certainly find lots of nice people here.

edited: to plug the Mount Pleasant area! We think the public schools here are *mostly* great, and there are also some nice neighborhoods. We live in an older neighborhood that has very few restrictions, larger lots, older homes, but we think it's grand!

[jspring0308]

We moved to Charleston exactly 1 year ago from Portland, Oregon....it has been quite a change! I'm not sure exactly what to say cause I don't want to sound negative nor over positive which I guess is exactly how I feel here, very mixed. The area is beautiful, the people are friendly, the traffic is low key (although they don't use blinkers, EVER) and the weather (most of the year) is good. It's also pretty conservative (and not just politically), fairly segregated and semi-isolated.

I am who I am regardless of where I live so I don't feel pressure to be any different (I'm also only granola, not really the crunchy kind) but at the same time I do notice myself "dressing" to go p/u my daughter from carpool! We live in one of the straightest neighborhoods in Mt. Pleasant and probably you could only get more Truman Show if you live in Daniel Island! So I would look all around before moving if your neighborhood is really important to you.

Definitely check out the familyplaytimesc group at yahoo, you will find a group more in line with what you are used to then your average neighbor in Charleston greater. And just be very prepared for some things to be quite different then what you are probably used to.

[Autumn Breeze]

Originally Posted by Mel38

Hello Erin,

I'm not sure if the search function is working today, but if you can search or scroll through the posts from say the last 6 months or so, it seems I recall someone was recently considering a move here and asked some questions.

That was me And we are, we just have a pretty big road block, and then still need to sell our house, but we are definitely moving

Erin, you'll like the yahoo group, it's decently active, but you'll get a good feel for other crunchy moms in the area.

[britta9913]

Thanks ladies! DH goes down this week to check things out. I am so nervous.

[Mel38]

Originally Posted by jspring0308

probably you could only get more Truman Show if you live in Daniel Island!

laughup

Oh that's funny, can I steal it? I always feel that way when I'm on D.I., although it's got such pretty areas, a great tennis center, sidewalks, pretty parks... it seems very "staged".

You know, if we were to move here all over again, we probably would have settled somewhere in West Ashley or James Island. People who live there really seem to love it - and it definitely has some gorgeous older neighborhoods - much more "authentic" than our suburban life up here in Mt. P.

[jspring0308]

Originally Posted by Mel38

laughup

Oh that's funny, can I steal it? I always feel that way when I'm on D.I., although it's got such pretty areas, a great tennis center, sidewalks, pretty parks... it seems very "staged".

You know, if we were to move here all over again, we probably would have settled somewhere in West Ashley or James Island. People who live there really seem to love it - and it definitely has some gorgeous older neighborhoods - much more "authentic" than our suburban life up here in Mt. P.

You can totally steal it. It's what my husband said as we were looking around last year but I agree D.I. is a great place. We joined the club there but live in Mt.P. One of the things I think that the other areas have that all the planned developments don't have is that "authentic" feel. Maybe 20 years from now our development will feel homey!