Surf City

After the horrendous day that was Saturday, we packed, got up bright and early and headed down to the coast. Amazingly, Kiddo fell asleep Saturday night at 6:30 (um, about 4 hours early) and slept through the night. Therefore he was not at all upset by our early wake and leave time. I, on the other hand, was not too thrilled with the prospect of facing a 4 hour drive without coffee. But, I sacrificed for the team and purchased a gigantic Dr. Pepper for the road and off we went.

(Let me just interject here that though I am a die hard Dr. Pepper fan, it is no substitute for my morning coffee. Let me also say that there is not one stinking Starbucks between here and our destination - dang back roads!)

When we got to our destination we were tired and hungry and grouchy. We scoped out the location of the condos and then went on a hunt for a cheap, fast food lunch. Unfortunately in a little island town there isn't much to choose from. Just as we were about to settle for a Subway sandwich out of a scary portable building, Hubby spotted the top of a burger joint sign and we took off with new determination.

We located the burger joint, placed our order and waited for what seemed like forever. The service was so slow that people were getting irate. Once it arrived, we scarfed down our meal and headed for the beach.

Of course, Kiddo loved the ocean. It was difficult keeping him out of it. We were scheduled to meet up with the rest of the fam shortly so the plan was to just walk along the water's edge for a few minutes. Kiddo was having none of that so we crammed him back into his car seat and trekked over to the condos to wait. G, H, Aunt A and Uncle W showed up shortly after and we made our way to the condo. The accommodations were nice; plenty of space for the 7 of us and a wonderful view of the ocean from both patios (it was a 2 story).

The first night we dined at a local seafood restaurant. I was battling a tummy ache but the clam chowder and salad I ordered was wonderful. Kiddo ate every single one of his chicken tenders with gusto and even had some calamari with the rest of the family. We walked along the docks for a bit after supper, then retired back at the condo.

I slept surprisingly well, and even woke up with no back pain. We had a wonderful traditional breakfast and then spent the day on the beach. At lunch time we took shifts going back to the condo to eat, and when I took Kiddo back I knew he was bound to crash. All of the sun and water and playing with various family members was wearing him out fast. Sure enough, once I got him to eat he passed out, and so we stayed in the condo together while he slept. Eventually Grammy came to get us, and only the bribe of a popsicle was enough to rouse sleeping beauty. Once he was awake we headed down to the beach to see what everyone had been working on all afternoon.

Do I have a talented family or what?!?!

All they had were buckets and shovels and a dye-cast car to model from, and within an afternoon they were able to create an amazing sand sculpture of Lightning McQueen almost as big as the Kiddo. It was really incredible!

Kiddo totally loved it. He wanted to ride on top,but we weren't sure it would hold his weight. The next day we found out that it would have indeed, when a little girl about his size climbed it from front to back and it maintained it's shape. Unfortunately, her older brother saw her do this and climbed up himself, collapsing the entire back end in the process. This of course, prompted yet another brother to kick and punch the sculpture until it resembled nothing more than a pile of sand. *sigh* It was lovely while it lasted.

Aunt A did find a new friend on the beach, though he/she was not too happy with her.

After leaving the beach, we prepared to grill dinner on the grill next to the pool. G&H got into the pool and there was no way I was going to get Kiddo back up to the condo to change into his swim suit. So I did what any mom in my position would do....

Hey, how many times in your life can you skinny dip in broad daylight? I had to let him have some fun! Trust me, he didn't stay that way long, just long enough for me to run up and get his suit and floaties; but he surely enjoyed it!

We had a great dinner that night, and another wonderful day at the beach the next day. More critters were found, this time in the pocket of Uncle W's swim shorts.

Shrimpy, shrimpy, shrimpy!!! The sea gulls loved these things!

After yet another great dinner prepared by my lovely sister-in-law and her hubby, we all decided that no vacation would be complete without a trip to a local ice cream shop. Hubby and Grammy were craving shakes and I desperately needed a brownie! ;)

It is amazing to me that out of the 6 adults, at least half of us are pretty darn good photographers. No one took pictures the entire trip! Thankfully I thought to bring my p-n-s to the ice cream shop, and here is the official family vacation photo, taken by Happy.

Hmm, it kinda shows our true personalities, doesn't it? ;)

Well, there you have it, our family vacation on the beach. I am so glad we made the trip. It was truly wonderful! Oh yeah, and that brownie was goo-oood!! :D

Until,

D :)