We drove down to the beach with a FULL car. Some friends drove with us, maxing us out at four adults and three kids. With luggage (very limited luggage), we barely fit. A few DVDs and a stop at Cracker Barrel later, we were at the beach. Just in time for a quick trip to the shore and pool before dinner. Eli and Maddux had a blast, playing with our friend, Bryce, who came with us for a few days. The three of them ran in the waves, jumping and laughing the whole time. The boys took turns on Eli's boogie board, catching waves here and there.
The next day the kids woke up before the sun (really....REALLY), so we were at the beach well before 9. Lehr rented Eli a bike with training wheels, so he no longer rode in the trailer. It was very odd to have him be in charge of his own transportation...the first time we brought him to the beach he could barely crawl! Both boys had boogie boards, so they 'surfed' together until we went up to the pool. Given how early we were up, an early lunch at the house was in order, so everyone could catch a few winks. We did more pooling, more biking, and then back to the house to make homemade pizzas. The kids loved stretching their own dough and deciding what to put on top.
Friday found us with just two kids, and another early morning. This time, just the four of us went down to the beach to start. Eli spent much time finding waves again, while Maddux perfected her sand castle skills. She did run up and down the shore with me though. This year found her a little more skiddish of the waves, but I showed her how she could stay in water that never got above her knees and jump over the waves. She loved it. When we hit the pool on this day, both kids were already visibly tired. I never had a hard time getting them to sleep on this trip! Eli napped hard, but woke up before Maddux, so he took a bike ride with D and Daddy. On the way back, it started to rain, which made D and Eli work together to bike faster, which resulted in a crash. It was bad enough to scrape up Eli's elbow and a little bit of his knee
(and put a HUGE dent in his helmet), but it didn't break his spirit. As soon as Maddux got up, Eli and I went for another ride. Since it was still raining, we played some corn hold on the deck and then made dinner. Seafood was on the menu for the night, and I made some mac-n-cheese to add to the kids' plates as well. (Side note: It felt SO GOOD to use a stove again!)After dinner we took the kids on a bike ride to get ice cream. It was really dark, and the ice cream store was a little farther away, so we convinced Eli to ride in the trailer with Maddux. They both loved the ice cream (gelato). We got them a cone with two flavors: Eli got blueberry pomegranate and blood orange, and Maddux got lemon and raspberry. Delish! When we got home we took quick showers outside and went to bed.
Saturday. The last day before we left.
We woke up to overcast skies, but the four of us went to the beach right away. We took a little bit of an extended bike ride on our way and stumbled across several white chairs set up on one of the many pristine grassy areas, seemingly for a wedding later in the day. I shot a few pictures as the kids sat in each row, and Lehr showed Maddux how to walk down the aisle. Somehow I doubt he'll be as willing in about 20 years....This day was probably the most fun. The four of us had such a good time just hanging out before the rest of the world woke up and joined us. We had a huge section of the beach all to ourselves and we used ALL of it.
Eli boogie boarded and Maddux ran up and down the shore. We notice that to our right was a small 'dark spot' in the water; we assumed it was just a deeper drop off from the beach. Maddux found out just how deep. She was running along, minding her own business while Eli and I were working on sand castles and POOF: she was gone. She swam really good, treading water until Lehr got to her, but the depth of the first area she entered was 3-4 feet. Right next to ankle-deep water that she was running in. So crazy! So now it became known as the 'pool', per Eli. For the next twenty minutes, Eli and Lehr ran up to the spot and did cannonballs and can openers into the deep section. What a blast!
We tried for the frog pool again, but the rain chased us back to the house for lunch. More corn hole after naps, and then a trip back to the beach for pizza dinner and sunset. We did this last year and loved it, so it will now be something we do each trip. Eli and Maddux had a great time messing around in the sand and getting washed over by the waves. They each scarfed down a few pieces of pizza before it got too dark and we called it a night.
We would normally spend a few last-ditch-effort hours at the beach before heading out of town, but when we woke up on Sunday it was pouring with no chance of a reprieve. The kids are already asking when we can go back. For more pictures, click here.
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