The Adams Family: Vacation Day 1 and 2

The long-awaited time has finally arrived! WE'RE ON VACATION!! We decided this year to leave a couple of days early. Normally we would leave on Saturday and drive the treacherous 13 hours down to Hilton Head, but this year we decided to leave a couple days early. Laura got out of school on Wednesday, and we left on Thursday morning at 4:40am.

Day1:
So day 1 was mostly driving. It took us about 13 hours to get here, which wasn't our best time but certainly not our worst. The kids did really well this year. We made several stops, but not nearly as many as in the past. AND they really didn't whine and fuss that much....I probably shouldn't jinx myself. They'll probably whine all the way home. Anyway, enough about the drive; everybody knows what its like to travel long distances with small children. And they would all rather not think about it.

The best part about Day 1 was that our dear friend, Chuck, was here waiting for us. And he had everything ready, including hors 'd oeuvres and refreshments. He even walked to our van with a bucket of Coronas. How awesome is that?! It doesn't stop there my friends. He made steaks on the grill for us later that evening with yummy grilled veggies. Now that's a welcome! It was really nice to spend our first night of vacation with him.

Of course, the first evening we had to go watch the sunset at the beach. The kids splashed in the water and squealed with delight. They were as happy as we were to be here - finally.

Day 2:
With the whole week ahead of us, it's like what to do, what to do... first. Well we picked the pool. There are no words to describe the first swim of the season. I wasn't sure how Laura would do. At the end of summer last year she was swimming sans any aids. It must be like riding a bike because she jumped in and went to it right where she left off last year. Hannah wore the arm swimmies that she wore last year, and we got a new life jacket for Emma. It's the kind that wraps around her waste and has the arm swimmies attached. Emma was completely fearless though, not shockingly. We spent a good 2 hours there, swimming and chasing and laughing and playing. I even got a chapter of my book read. I'm reading The Book Thief. Ellen got it for me for my birthday back in November, but it takes me forever to read books these days!

Later after lunch and some relaxing we went shopping, and the kids had a blast. They picked stuff out at Old Navy, Claires, and The Salty Dog outlet. Of course they got more stuffed animals at Claires. Seriously! It never ends. Stuffed animals have become the bane of my existence, but I'll save that for another topic on another day. Anyway, it was a fun time.

Next up was dinner. Now, Matt and I had vowed that the Sea Shack would be our first dinner out, because that place is pure amazing. But Hannah really wanted to go to the Pirate restaurant, a.k.a. The Lands End Tavern. So alas, being the softies that we are, we ate dinner at the Pirate restaurant. And it was yummy - not as yummy as the Sea Shack - but yummy. I had the crab cake sandwich with sweet potato fries and Matt had grilled swordfish with veggies. Still looking forward to the Sea Shack. Maybe tonight.

Stay tuned tomorrow for more beach adventures... Sneak peak: Laura and Hannah wants to go to the shark beach!