Myrtle Beach

In the springtime I decided that I would be driving down to Myrtle Beach myself.  We love to travel so Brian doesn’t have much time off for Myrtle Beach.  I have more time since I only work part time.  I knew the kids would have fun and I felt it was some thing I needed to do. 

I really didn’t know what to expect during the trip down.  As the day approached I was having second thoughts.  But this was something I committed to doing so I had to do it.  I wasn’t supposed to leave until Monday so Brian could spend the weekend with the kids.  It was going to rain during my drive on Monday and Brian has started installing a new tank less water heater (which is a major project requiring reworking of lots of our home's plumbing).  So it seemed better for me just to leave on Sunday.  I really didn’t want to drive in the rain.  Any work Brian could get done would be a bonus. 

So Sunday morning, I woke up at 4:30 am and got the kids in the van.  Brian helped me set everything up.  By 5:15 am we were on the road.  I would lie if I said I wasn’t nervous of all the “what ifs” that could happen. But I am not one to dwell on it.  I needed to just do it.   I was scared the kids would be a nightmare and I would want to lose my mind.  But deep down I knew they could do this, especially Austin.  We stopped at a rest stop in Virginia.  The kids ran around for a little while.  Then we made it to about an hour away and we all needed a potty break again. 

They did fabulous in the car.  They played on their Kindles, Leapfrog games, stickers, books, and Sesame Street audio player from the library.  Austin would help Sydney whenever she needed it.  It was really nice.  I could not have been happier with their behavior in the van going down. My GPS had me going in the back way of Nana’s house.  However the gate was closed.  So she came and got us and showed us the long way around.  The kids were a little hesitant of her at first but Austin warmed up nicely.  Sydney was a little shy but took Austin’s lead.  They had pizza waiting for us when we arrived.  It was nice.  Sydney just ate the pepperoni from the pizza and Austin had a cheese piece of pizza.  That is how they always eat their pizza.  

Melissa, Jonathan, Camden and Graham came over too.  The kids played for a little bit.  Then we went on a golf cart ride to the beach.  Austin and Sydney love the golf cart.  They taught Camden to push his hands out and say stop to cars when the golf cart is crossing.  After the golf cart ride, we had s’mores and got ready for bed. 

On Monday, Nana and Melissa had to work.  I took the kids to the local Myrtle Beach Park.  They had a great time except it got hot fast.  They only played for about 30 minutes.  Then we went grocery shopping so we had food for the week for lunch and everything.  By the time we got back, Nana was home from work. The kids played outside in a little pool and played with bubbles.  Then it was nap time.  After nap we were going to the beach but it started to storm.  The kids were sad about that.  We played inside and then went to Melissa’s for dinner.  Everyone had fun playing there.  Then Melissa and I took the kids for ice cream. After ice cream, I took the kids to Barefoot to walk around and wait for fireworks.  Melissa and Jonathan and the boys joined us for fireworks.  We all enjoyed it. 

On Tuesday, we went to the beach first thing in the morning.  Austin and Sydney were so excited to play at the beach and pool.  We went to the beach first.  They played in the sand and Austin played in the ocean a little bit.  There have been shark attacks in North Carolina (due to our warmer and wetter summer) so we didn’t want him in the water too deep.  He only went to my knees in the water.  They found sea shells too.  After beach time, it was time to play in the pool.  Austin and Sydney

love swimming in the pool.  Camden loved playing with them too.  It was a fun morning at the beach and pool.  After nap, we went to Melissa’s for dinner again.  The kids played in the sprinkler there.  Then Melissa and I tried taking the kids to play putt putt but the lines were too long.  Austin was extremely sad that he couldn’t do it.  He had wanted to play golf so bad before we came down.  But I told him we could do it some other time.  We took the kids to the park and got ice cream.  That made up for it a little bit. 

I was very happy when it was Wednesday because Brian was flying in.  I really needed his help with the kids. It’s very difficult with them especially at someone else’s house.  Wednesday morning we went to the beach and pool again.  We ended up having lunch at the pool this time.  By the time we got back to Nana’s house, it was basically time to pick up Daddy from the airport.  The kids fell asleep in the van on the ride to the airport.  Because they fell asleep, we didn’t go inside the airport.  Austin woke up as soon as Brian got in the van though.  It was great he was back with us again. 

We went to Melissa’s for dinner again.  It was so nice of her to make dinner for us every night.  The kids enjoyed playing at her house.  The made Camden a box house with a light inside of it.  All the kids, loved it.  That is where most of the fights happened because everyone wanted to play in it.  

After dinner we went back to the pool so Brian could see the bouncy water slides at the pool.  They were only set up for that day.  Austin was proud to show Daddy how he can do the water slides.  We made Sydney go down it but she did not like it.  Then we played in the pool for a while.  We went back to Melissa’s for brownies and ice cream. 

On Thursday morning, we went to out to breakfast near the pirate boat ride.  After breakfast we went to the pirate ship.  It was a mess because we didn’t count Graham as a person but he counts in the numbers so Nana stayed back with Graham.  This pirate ship was different from the one in Virginia Beach.  This one was smaller.  The kids sat up front and the adults were in the back of the boat.  Austin and Sydney went right up front with the other kids alone.  They have been more independent and not as shy in these types of situations now.  Camden did not like it.  He went to the back with his mommy and daddy.  Austin and Sydney participated in all the activities. They really had a great time. Hopefully next time Camden will enjoy it too. 

After naptime, we went back to the pool for a while before dinner.  The kids love swimming.  We really got a lot of use out of the pool.  After the pool, we had dinner at the country club at Nana’s house.  It was pasta night.  It was perfect because pasta is the kid’s favorite meal.  They got to pick it out themselves.  Grandpa found some M&M’s with the kids.  He put them in a cup and they had them after dinner.  They were excited about it and didn’t even try to eat any before dinner. 

Friday morning we enjoyed our last beach and pool day.  Again the kids had a great time swimming and playing at the beach.  Austin learned the game of ping pong.  He said that ping pong is even better than basketball.  Austin really likes basketball so that’s impressive.  He played ping pong with Nana for at least 30 minutes.  Austin and Sydney enjoyed playing football in the pool with Jonathan.  He would throw the ball up while they jumped in.  Austin would catch it midair.  Sydney would catch it before coming into the pool.  Everyone had a great time. 

Brian, Melissa, Jonathan, and I went out to dinner that night.  Nana and Grandpa took the kids putt putt golfing.  This was their first time doing it.  They had fun.  Austin keeps asking when we are doing that again.  Then we went to a café for milkshakes with everyone.  It was a nice evening. 

Saturday morning Graham was baptized.  After the baptism we drove home.  Traffic was terrible and it took us over 13 hours to get home.  We were glad when we got home at 1 am.  We were exhausted but the kids enjoyed the trip.