Another Day in the Sun - Day Five

I woke up again around 8:00 am and surprised Sammy in the living room.  Decided to let Tyler sleep in a bit.  Both kids asked for breakfast in bed... so, of course, we did!

A lady was coming to clean the oven this morning so we decided to run to the store to pick up a few things.  We ran to Kroeger's and then a beach outlet store to look for sand toys.  The kids were very excited to put them to use... so we headed back to get our suits on.

First we headed to the waterpark... it was lots of fun but we didn't stay long.  The water was SO cold!

 

 

We decided to hit the pool / hot tub instead.  While we were there, we ran into Gretchen and Dean who were heading out to go body surfing.  Tyler convinced me to join them and then Sammy decided to tag along too.  Katie stayed up at the pool to work on her tan.

The waves were INCREDIBLE... but terribly strong.  They regularly even knocked me down!  At one point I noticed we had drifted past the lifeguard stand and asked the kids to move back to where we started.  When they couldn't fight the power of the waves, I decided it was likely just too strong for the kids.  So I told them it was time to head in.   Tyler was terribly disappointed but it was the best decision.

We headed back for lunch and some down time.  Tyler played his iPad while Sammy worked on puzzles.

 

Before we went back out to play, we headed over to the Tangor Outlet Mall to pick me up some new sunglasses, since mine previous pair were stolen by the ocean this morning.  While we were there, we brought Sammy to the Disney Store.  To give a bit of explanation... last year, Sammy saw a stuffed animal of the Lots-O-Hugging Bear from Toy Story 3.  Ever since Sammy has been asking if we could come back to Myrtle Beach just to visit the Disney Store for that silly bear (keep in mind, there are plenty of Disney stores closer to home... and even if we went to one, its not a guarantee we'd find that specific toy).  So we walk through the Disney store looking for her toy... didn't find it so she was disappointed but we side-stepped the upset by finding a different toy for her.  So we got in line to check out, waiting our turn, and just as the clerk called us up to the front, Sammy shouted... she had found it!  So she comes running up with this HUGE pink bear that smells like strawberries.  And the clerk, without missing a beat, tells us that Lots-O has been waiting all year for her to return... SO SWEET!

After we changed into our suits again, we headed down to the beach.  But the lifeguard had changed the swim flag so I told the kids we would ONLY be playing in the sand.  We had rented an umbrella and two chairs on the beach this week so we packed light knowing we'd have a place to relax.  When we got down there, we found a woman... asleep... in our chair.  It was so funny!  I felt like the bears who had stumbled on Goldy-Locks.  I asked the lifeguard what to do and he told me to wake her up.  I was NOT ok with that so he agreed to do it... so awkward!  Anyway, Katie and I enjoyed the sun while the kids ran, splashed, built, and slug sand EVERYWHERE!

 

We headed up and ate supper around 6:30 pm.  Sammy worked on puzzles again and did 2 all by herself.  Then the kids disappeared into their individual bedrooms.  Apparently they needed some alone time.

We called Daddy again and did tuck-ins around 9:00 pm.

Another great day!



Highlights
Tyler:
Sammy:
Katie:  Listening to Sammy laugh hysterically while watching clips from the Incredibles
Jen:  Lying on the sand, sunning on the beach


Weather - sunny early, cloudy afternoon.  Air temp 81* Ocean Temp 82* - just perfect!

Some More Golf and Swimming - Day 16

It was super windy overnight so Katie and I both had a hard time falling asleep as the patio furniture banged around against the windows or the railing.  So a coffee was definitely in order this morning.  We all walked over to the Embassy lobby to grab a Starbucks and chocolate milk.  When we got home, I whipped up eggs, bacon and toast for breakfast.

Next we headed out for mini-golf, because, apparently we haven't played enough yet this trip!  So we ventured north to find "that one course with the dinosaurs"... Yup, I knew just the one.  So we played a round of golf with the dinosaurs...  Lucky Miss Katie shot the only hole-in-one!

After a quick stop at Crumb Buns, we set out to find a Chick-Fil-A for lunch... two stops and 21 miles later, we found it!  The chocolate shake alone was totally worth it.  After lunch we stopped by the Tanger Outlet Mall to do some shopping.

Then it was home for another afternoon on the beach.  The waves were even bigger today!  I couldn't even take the kids out as far as yesterday, as the waves there were over my head.  So we stayed in the shallower waters and fought the side currents.  It was so much fun but quite a work out!

Of course, we played on the beach for a little while... running, kicking, throwing, you know the drill!

Then it was the usual pool / hot tub visit.  We ran into the same group of people in the hot tub that we met yesterday and the kids remembered that one of the men was celebrating his 60th birthday today.  So, of course Sammy decided to sing "Happy Birthday"... in a hot tub... to a stranger... and the entire group joined in.  It was actually really sweet!

After showers, we decided to get our schoolwork done for the day and eat a quick meal.  We are trying to use up groceries before we head home, so the meals are getting less impressive.  Katie swears she doesn't mind though!

As the sun started to set, we headed over to the Apache Pier for a walk.  Of course there was lots of fun along the way.

We grabbed some ice cream for the walk back and then watched movies before bed.

It was a fabulous day.  We've heard that the weather at home was miserable... rainy and unseasonably cold.  It made us appreciate our weather a little more knowing that we will be returning to it very soon.  The kids are definitely thinking more and more about home and asking about the time left... it won't be long now.

A Perfect Day In So Many Ways - Day 14

After a lot of minor disappointments... no pan to bake my apple turnovers then finding out WAY too late that they put coffee in my chai (Yuck), my day took a significant turn toward improvement when I found these waiting for me at the front desk.

We had a great lunch at Uncle Rog and Aunt Gretchen.  It was a fabulous recipe!  After we finished, Rog and Gretchen had to get back to work so we headed down to our condo to prep for the beach.  We started off with a great walk.  The kids loved running in the surf again.  Then it was back to our cozy spot with our umbrella and beach chairs.  It wasn't long before we found ourselves in the ocean for a LONG session of body surfing and jumping the waves!  

Next it was time to dig holes... and bury ourselves!  I was so excited to see how well the kids worked together and kept themselves busy.  Katie and I were able to relax and enjoy their giggles.

We did the usual ritual of beach, pool, hot tub, then home for showers.   Even though its been repetitive, it doesn't get old!  Neither does this view.  

We had dinner at home and then prepped for our crab hunt.  Below is a giant one we found... bigger than any we've seen before.  The kids spent some time chasing it down the beach with their flash lights... shrieking as it scooted in their direction and jumping out of the way.

So much fun today!