Tag Archives: murrell

Annual beach trip

Each year we go to the beach with my parents, Doug’s family and Grandmama.  This year was no exception.  Everyone arrived in Murrells Inlet, SC on Saturday morning (except Tom and I, we drove in late Saturday night after working on the house all day). We rented a large house right on the beach, which is necessary due to the number of small children that we have going back and worth from the beach to the house all day. Because the rates are much less expensive in May than they are for the rest of the summer, we pulled the kids out of school and took off for the beach.  Hands down, we had the most beautiful weather this year.

The cousins were so excited to see each other again.  Now that Doug, Jacqueline and the boys live in Maryland, the kids really appreciate the time that they have together.  I could put thirty pictures in the post to show how much fun we all had, but that would be a bit excessive.  I will show the highlights:

The five cousins having a grew time together.  The ocean was fun, but a big hole and pile of dirt was equally as entertaining….

      

Doug had his surf board with him and we rented a paddle board for two days.  The kids learned how to surf and ride the waves.  We all briefly tried paddle boarding.  The water was a bit choppy which made it hard to stand up on the paddle board.  Frankly, I was too afraid of what might be swimming under me to fully enjoy the experience.

  

 

The best part of vacation was that it actually felt like a vacation.  Many times going to the beach is more of a “relocation” than an actual vacation.  This time I sat in a chair more than I stood up. It was awesome!  The kids were finally old enough to play in the water and not need me hovering over them making sure that they didn’t drown.  The sun shirts that we all have on became the unofficial uniform of our vacation – they were on sale at the beach shop so we all bought one.  By the third day I had on a giant floppy hat and a sun shirt….gone are the days of bikinis and laying out to get a tan.

  

Tom and I did get our date night out on the boardwalk.  We deemed it as one of our best dates. :)  As for the other nights, we ate well, drank many margaritas, ate ice cream and watched a comedy on TV with Doug.  I hadn’t laughed that much in a very long time.  It was good to hang out with my brother again.

Vacation at the beach was amazing and unforgettable.  It was hard to go home, but I was very glad that the house was immaculate when I got there. (although no buyers for the house yet).  I have to thank Mom and Dad for starting this beach tradition and for carrying it on each year.  Thank you!!