We moved to Charleston after falling in love with the city on vacation. Our family is thriving here years later.

• My partner and I grew up in the Midwest but later moved our family to Charleston.
• We fell in love with the city on our honeymoon and are still glad we moved years later.
• The city's history, weather, natural environment, and culture of Southern hospitality won us over.

In 2017 in the dead of winter in West Michigan, our car slid into the parking lot of the local hospital as snow fell in the darkness of early morning.

My water had broken in the middle of the night, sending my husband and me into a frenzy as we rushed to meet our sweet firstborn.

From there, those early days of parenting were isolating. The cold temperatures and snow kept us indoors and our extended family from making the trek across the state to offer support.

By the time we took our baby for his first stroller walk in the spring of 2018, we'd had enough of cold Midwest winters. We decided it was time to move to a warmer climate so our son could grow up outside, not stuck in a house for months at a time.

Luckily, I knew exactly where I wanted to go.

We set our sights on Charleston, which we'd fallen in love with on our honeymoon

Our honeymoon road trip two years earlier had taken us through Charleston, South Carolina. The historic city wooed us with its romantic Spanish moss, Southern hospitality, and beautiful beaches.

It seemed like the ideal place to raise our little one and start over as a young family, so we packed up our townhouse and headed to Charleston in August 2018 with our baby.

As we settled, I knew it was the right choice. Instead of feeling lonely and homesick, I found myself relaxed and energized by each conversation I had with a new acquaintance in our community, church, and local library.

Making connections hasn't been hard for me here — Southern hospitality feels alive and well. Although "Midwest nice" is still a thing, I've noticed many Southerners go out of their way to say hello, strike up a conversation, or offer a courtesy wave from the car as they pass on the road.

I've met other transplants from all over the US who are also making their home in Charleston, and we've connected over the parts of this unique place that drew us in.

We are proud to be Charlestonians and feel grateful for our community

Now a family of four, we love getting to raise our two sons, 4 and 7, outdoors. We take frequent nature walks and often hang out at the beach, even in the winter (the season is quite mild here).

There's so much beautiful wildlife to take in, whether we're going for a "hike" on our very flat Lowcountry trails or a drive down a nearby country road.

We feel inspired by Charleston's diversity and local Gullah Geechee culture, which adds value to our experience of living here. As a person of faith, I also appreciate our city's many churches and congregations of all denominations.

Local community events, like the Thanksgiving golf-cart parade at Wild Dunes Resort and Folly Beach New Year's Eve Flip-Flop Drop, have allowed us to experience new traditions and connect with others. They're especially lovely during the holidays when we're missing our family and friends up north.

Even hurricane season, one of the downsides of living in South Carolina, has had a silver lining as it's only made our community stronger. The annual nail-biter brings the neighbors together, whether we're helping each other fill sandbags or pick up debris.

We look forward to continuing to grow as a family in Charleston — a special place that's been a part of our love story from the very beginning.