I can’t believe my baby boy is 17 and it is officially that time. Yep, it’s college visit time!

Some may say we are a little premature in starting college visits a whole year and a half early but the firstborn gets our inexperienced, over-excited over-parenting. By the time we get our youngest going to college, we will probably pick her school based on a coin toss, but for now, we are over-zealous and ready to pick the very best school for the boy.

Our family conversation is constantly surrounding the big question of where we will be sending our man-child for college. There is a lot to figure out.  We’ve installed computer programs, we’ve subscribed to all the right websites, we’ve hired a consultant, the school counselor is on speed dial, we are looking at all the right college selection books, and some carefully vetted friends are sharing the ins and outs of sending a kiddo off to university. Our friends in the know have encouraged us to “go for a visit”. So, instead of taking our precious spring-break time to go to the beach, amusement park or Europe, we decided to fly the family down to South Carolina. That sounds nice doesn’t it?  Well, heading to South Carolina was a great choice but then the rest of the trip included a long car tour through five campuses.  The plan was to spend just one quick day in South Carolina and then get loaded up in a rented, smallish SUV, stuffed with luggage and three kids, with our final destination being New York City.

Now, this trip was a selfless choice (currently waiting for our parents-of-the-year award). We at least gave our youngest kids the promise of seeing the ocean. Their spring break did not include one roller-coaster, barely a grain of sand, and only a smidge of fun. Mostly, it included a confined drive focused on college campuses, rainy and freezing-cold weather, hotel basement pools (not great) and grumpy, map-wielding parents. This is why having our trip start in South Carolina was so special. Our trip savior was waiting to fill our bellies with plates full of home-made chocolate chip cookies.

This is where my angel-friend, Ally, comes in.  We slotted one day to visit with Ally at her beautiful home in South Carolina. The hubby and kids had never met my fabled foodie friend and I was so thrilled they would finally get the opportunity to. The kids wanted to hang at our hotel and do the pool thing with dad in the morning, so I popped over to Ally’s to help her get ready for the fabulous dinner she had planned for us all.

I arrived to giant hugs and a glass of wine. Yeah, she knew I was gonna need that. Then, we chatted and cooked like we hadn’t been a part at all. Isn’t that how you know a good friend, when you can just jump right in like no time has passed?

Ally has some serious South Carolina pride and once we got things settled for the dinner, she took me on a guided tour of the coast. She showed me her town, we checked out her yoga studio (we both love yoga), and we even took a trip to the famous Piggly Wiggly (of course I got a Piggly Wiggly T-shirt!). While at Piggly Wiggly, we picked up some food for this fellow sitting outside the store. Ally had noticed he looked like he needed a good meal and he sure was happy to get some delicious food! But then, he tried to get in the car with us. The thing is, an average visit to a grocery store can easily turn in to an adventure with Ally. This is why we have so much fun together!

After we had successfully convinced our new friend to hang back at the Piggly Wiggly, we headed back to Ally’s house to get things underway for the family’s arrival.

I was getting excited for the family to arrive. They knew Ally from stories and pictures and they were excited to meet her. Their expectations of a smiling, hugging, funny friend were met immediately as they entered her super-cozy oceanfront home. The hugs abounded, the fresh-from-the-oven cookies were immediately offered up, and the family warmed right up to their new pal.

The kids were treated to a fun experience of hanging out on the dock, eating cookies, playing the piano and sitting on stools in the kitchen while we flitted around cooking-up dinner. It was a regular, southern-coastal Americana moment.

We made the dinner linger because bonds were made and… we knew as a family we would be heading out of Ally’s into a grueling six days of driving and serious college touring.

Our quick day with Ally in South Carolina did not disappoint. It was so much fun. Unfortunately, we had to move on. We had the business of investigating schools to get to.  We drove out of South Carolina on such a high-note and with a giant bag of home-made chocolate chip cookies to go! Ugh… and then, the rest of the trip… It was all exciting for our big boy but exhausting for the rest of us. We went from South Carolina to Virginia to D.C. to New Jersey to New York City. Six hotels, what seemed like 95 “lovely” public restrooms, gallons of coffee, a little ice cream, some cupcakes and lots of patience, or sometimes, no patience. We finally made it to NYC.  But this is not where the trip ends, not for me anyway. Once we hit New York City, the sweet hubby got the kids on a plane and headed back home while I stayed behind. Well, actually  I took a drive over the George Washington bridge to New Jersey, hopped on a flight and ended up in San Francisco!

Check back to hear about my next exciting adventure that includes another great food competition friend and a favorite Food Network chef and cutie, Tyler Florence. Teaser: Virgin Airlines jets my buddy and I off to San Fran!