Summer Vacation

We've been home a week and I'm still in "vacation mode." I had always heard that Mom's never really get to have a real vacation on family vacations -- it's true. To make up for that my brain must have decided to check-out this week. That's what I'll tell myself anyway. 

We joined my husband's entire family in South Carolina for a week in an ocean front beach house. Elisabeth and her cousin, Taylor, made sure we were on the beach each morning by 8 am! They played for hours without stopping and crashed at nap time (yay!). As the morning drew to an end, Elisabeth would just start walking up to the house. When we would ask, "Where are you going?" she would respond with, "I done here. I go eat lunch!" Apparently the needs of the belly far outweigh the need to play after we've been out there for 2+ hours! 

Elisabeth's toes in the sand

View of the beach from our private walkway

Will's Grandma, Aunt, Cousin and second Cousin came to stay with us for a few days. The kids (all 3 years and under) had a blast playing together, chasing one another and having tickle fights. Elisabeth is really into tickling, so she instigated all of that. Haha! We enjoyed seeing extended family (it had been almost a year since we'd seen them last!) and catching up. 

Keeping her balance

Sunset on the beach

We all took a mid-week trip to the Aquarium. We all thought the girls would enjoy it more than they did. Elisabeth's most favorite thing was playing in the kids' area and climbing on things. When Will took her into the underwater walkway (the part we were certain she'd love) she started to freak out. Later, she told  me about her experience: "The sharks are scared of me!" Ah-ha!

We got to meet a mermaid, touch horseshoe crabs and see lots of pretty fishes. Elisabeth and I even saw a sea turtle come up for air while we were sitting in the dining area for lunch (while everyone else was enjoying the mermaid show). It was still a fun trip despite the lack of enthusiasm from the little ones. 

She's got the hands-on-hips-walk-sway down!

Singing songs -- she makes life a musical!

The week was mostly relaxing. As I mentioned above, I wasn't able to relax as much simply because a Mom's job never ends. I also discovered that it's a bit more difficult to keep up with routines and be consistent with discipline when we aren't in our own home. Will was more than happy to take Elisabeth to the beach and give me some down time. I was able to finish the book I brought ("The Help" by Kathryn Stockett -- SO good!) which was really nice. I don't get many opportunities to lose myself in a book.

Sunset over the salt marsh behind our house

The sunsets were amazing. Every night was full of vibrant color. We just don't get that kind of color at home! The oranges and pinks took my breath away. Going out and photographing every evening was fabulous. I got a few quiet minutes to simply stand in awe of God's amazing artwork. He does some seriously beautiful work!

Sweet E and the ocean

Uh-oh!

Elisabeth was mostly fearless when it came to the water. She had a hard time with the fact that she isn't 6 feet tall and unable to go jump the big waves with the adults. Pop-Pop made sure to dig holes for the girls to play in - that was one of Elisabeth's most favorite things. Our last morning on the beach was spent looking for shells and Aunt Cecily even found 3 live sea stars! Elisabeth wasn't afraid to touch them, either. We watched them stretch out, walk a bit on the sand and then Elisabeth helped carry them back to the ocean. 

Amazing clouds on a beautiful day!

Love the guy in the middle!

It was a good week. Will enjoyed body surfing, boogie boarding and jumping waves with his siblings and Dad -- when he wasn't busy digging giant holes or splashing in the surf with Elisabeth. We enjoyed the sun and time of fellowship with family. We did leave a day earlier than planned because Hurricane Irene was going to hit and we wanted to be home before that started. Elisabeth was a trooper in the car with all the long travel. I remember swearing I'd never let my kids watch TV in the car... then I had a kid who can't stand to be immobile for more than 45 minutes in the car. That portable DVD player saved our lives, seriously. Will and I are officially sick of "Cinderella," but at least we got home safe with a minimal amount of tears. Also, we are extremely thankful that Chick-fil-A has a kids' play area. That was another life-saver!

Snack time crazies