Sand & Sun

Our annual family vacation this year, snapshot style. The memories and laughter, the food, the fun - family times are one of my favorite times. We are too blessed.
Remember, I warned you I had almost 500 pictures...

Here we go!


Let's go ahead and get the important stuff out of the way. And by important, I mean golf. Because heaven knows this crew wouldn't have a get together without a minimum of four rounds of golf in. They call it golf, I call it obsessed.
And look, they have a new recruit!

Headed out to the course:

I was told Chris had yet another "difficult shot".

Made it all the way to #16 - what a trooper :)

Ready for Round #2!

 We had a golf cart at the house that we would all ride down to the beach or around the neighborhood. Kaelyn got her first taste of driving a golf cart during the trip as well. I'm pretty sure she's planning on asking for one for Christmas.


One of my favorite pictures of Ben and Tay. Watch out for this girl in the LPGA. No joke.

BEACH TIME!

Ok, here's where we had no idea how the trip was going to go. Because until about two months ago, if Kaelyn got dirt or sand anywhere near her feet, she would exclaim "Durty, durty!! Cwean it!". So obviously, walking on the beach would be a bit interesting.

We headed down the boardwalk to the shore. She was very excited, sand castle building tools in tow.  

We took her shoes off, and she stepped into the sand.
Silence.
Then she looked up at me, "I did it!! Yook, Mommy! Sand on my toes!"

She was a total beachaholic from there on out.

(Yes, I swallowed a basketball. )
Alayna also loved the beach - every time I would sit in my chair you could see her just moving back and forth, like she was rocking with the waves. It was crazy and I laughed every time. Jill looked at my stomach one time and her eyes got so wide I about died. When I tell ya'll this baby girl is is ready to bust out of my skin, she can now vouch for me. Moving Mountain.

The sheer joy of a child never ceases to break my heart wide open in happiness.

And then people like this come along and I cue the "Baywatch" theme.



David H.??

(love you guys. :)


Sand castles were a very very big topic during our trip. We still discuss them daily.

Much of the building involved Papaw constructing the castle, with Kaelyn running down and bringing up a bucket of water to dump over the castle. I think she possibly ran over a mile back and forth to the water's edge each day, and loved every second.

Then she had to show Daddy how it was done.

All the running, water, and waves often resulted in a nice long nap. Cuddled up with her cousin Kenzie. There's nothing better than a good beach nap!!

See?

And while some woke up raring to go wild bed head and all, other's were still comatose.

Sometimes the brave would head upstairs for a little air hockey action. (Fact - you play much better air hockey if you have bedhead. Tuck that tidbit  in your back pocket.)



Sometimes we would head back to the beach...

You know, to watch the entertainment....

Several evenings after dinner we headed back out for what turned out to be the loudest and quite possibly most heartpounding and dangerous part of the trip - The Crab Hunt.


You arm yourself with a few nets, flashlights, and a dozen people running after pint-size crab screaming and squealing at the top of their lungs, and you have the time of your life.

Posse.

Kaelyn learned quick that she could attach herself to Dad's shoulder, and then scream at him to "RUN DADDY!! Hurry!!! Catch it!!!!!!!"  I was usually a good 20 feet behind because of either laughing so hard or, let's be honest, just trying to breath.  Belly and deep beach sand make for a really good workout.

She got to hold the flashlight. WAY proud.

And why dangerous, you ask?
We will now and forever more refer to Papaw as The Crab Whisperer. Picked them up and handled them without fear, and without injury.

Of course others tried. After which they screamed and ran off like a girl because their finger got bitten.
Crab whispering traits are, in case you were wondering,  not hereditary.

(You're still my hero, babe. Just don't pick any more crabs. K. Thanks.)


There was also a ton of fun in the kitchen.
(Side note about the kitchen, and well, the entire house. DREAMY. Hard for me to part with the gorgeousness of it all. And the clawfoot tub and three-nozzle shower spa in our bathroom. Lu and Dave definitely outdid themselves with our set up this year!)

The Gaskins brought along a cupcake making set up extrodinaire.

Kenzie & Payton with their mad decorating skills.

 Sometimes some of the stuff actually ended up on the cupcake... sometimes not. :)

Owls!

Sweet Bailey.

There were two things that were fought over  -

 This patriotic trifle that Jill made. I mean fought over to the point that she ended up making two. Recipe will be shared if she let's me! :)

And some jalapeno and cream cheese stuffed bacon wrapped shrimp that I put on the grill. Recipe also to follow soon.

(I have no idea what that face means. Come get it before I eat it all for you? )

And the iPad is poplular with all age groups, lemme tell ya.  I think I almost have Ben convinced about it's necessity...

More bedhead with my girls :)

There's a ton I am leaving out, but a ton of memories packed into these and all of the other pictures we have.

Hope your summer is as sweet as it can be,
xo dae