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It’s hard to believe it’s almost been a month since we got home from the beach, so I figured I better get these photos on the blog before I forgot everything we did! I fluctuate between years having excellent photographs or videos and those with mediocre ones. This year definitely falls into the latter category. Tropical Storm Cindy blew in at the halfway point and ruined a few of our best laid plans and with them went any concern for photographic evidence. We just had a great time and whatever I got, is what I got. How about a three part recap starting now?
Our letterboard has been hanging in our camper kitchen for months and Ella was counting down the days until she could share this with you. I’m not sure where it came from other than she sings this song all the time and was probably singing it in the camper one day and we got the giggles and as hard as it was for her to wait — she told me she wanted to post it on our first vacation day for me to share on Instagram. Yes, ma’am. I had good intentions of switching out the quote every day (I even had beachy quotes saved on my phone), but it was more like every three days or so before we remembered. Maybe next time!
The kids had already been at the beach for several days when I got there. The beauty of Josh working from home is that he can just as easily work from the beach (We found a mobile hotspot to be super reliable and we’re thrilled to have the option of working and blogging from Opal). He takes the girls down the day after Ella’s dance recital and I usually follow on Wednesday afternoon. It’s hard for me to be out of the office for two straight weeks — especially since we have another trip planned for next month.
It is rare for us to do much outside of the camper on our first day and with Josh out of commission as our pack mule, we like to start our vacation with an easy day. The kids watched their favorite beach movie — Aquamarine — for the 768th time, while Josh worked from bed and I read alongside him. The view wasn’t too shabby and it was a nice, slow transition into vacation mode.
Once Josh’s day picked up and he scheduled a few conference calls, the girls and I walked to the pool to give him some peace. I continued reading my 1000 page novel (see all of my beach reads here) while the kids ran back and forth from the pool to the splash pad. We are forever grateful for this addition to the State Park — it makes camp days so much more fun!
Sophie wanted in on the letterboard action and since Ella modified song lyrics, she thought she would, too. Welcome to New York might not have been the best choice and she got a significant number of side-eyes from Ella, but she was pretty proud of herself.
Can you tell our beach diet strays a bit from what we’re used to eating at home? Pringles and honey wheat bread for days. Also, that hole in the cabinet underneath the microwave? That’s where the vent hood used to be and I never got around to patching it before we left. Thank goodness for Photoshop, who made it magically go away for the camper reveal photos. It wasn’t until these photos were uploaded that I realized I forgot to digitally patch it this time around. #bloggerfail
By Saturday, Josh could pack his computer away and we were in full vacation mode. Jennifer’s family managed to coordinate their vacation with ours pretty well this year and since they were only staying a short drive away, they met us at the State Park Beach over the weekend. It was far less crowded than I expected and we managed to clock a cool (well, steamy) eight hours in the sand.
This is our setup. It’s a bit ridiculous, no? We’ve learned that carting all of this mess out to the beach makes for a much more pleasant stay, even if it is a lot to carry. In years past, we’ve used canvas beach wagons or upright carts, but had never found the perfect thing to transport a tailgate tent, cooler, four chairs, two body boards and various bags and paraphernalia. I know, ridiculous. This year, Josh vowed he would spare no expense and have the cart of his dreams. Yes, this fishing cart is pricey, but it will make all of your beach carting dreams come true. Trust.
We use this cart, this cooler, a tailgate tent, a collapsible trash can, and a polypropylene mat via 5 Below. You’re welcome.
When I started going through our photos from the beach, I got tickled at Sophie’s faces. She’s always cheesing so hard and her eyes are rarely open. I’m not sure I’ve ever captured a more accurate depiction of her personality. Always happy and smiling as hard as possible!
Ice cream on the beach is a must, even though we know better. Sophie loves ice cream sandwiches (not gluten free), so we make them wait several days between ice cream to make sure she doesn’t have an adverse reaction. We did a decent job of managing her gluten intake, given she wanted all the vacation foods. We talked ahead of time about what she wanted to splurge on and tried our best to space them out. We’ve found that 1-2 servings per week is usually her max, but with her prescription we can stretch it a little more. You know how sometimes you are willing to indulge a tummy ache for your favorite treat? Well, she is, too.
Jennifer and I asked Ella to snap a few photos of us on the beach that day and I knew I should have intervened. She’s not too bad behind the camera, but she thinks it’s hilarious to take as many photos as she can, in the hopes to catch you with some awkward faces. I lost count of how many outtakes we had, but I knew I needed to include at least one. How gorgeous is that face I’m making?!
By this point in our trip, we knew the tropical storm was looming and we had no idea how many beach days we had left. Josh always lets the girls bury him in sand at least once during our trip, so he encouraged them to do it this afternoon since there was potential for rain the following week. He is a much better sport than I am. I’m pretty sure I would have said no!
Of course, the girls had to get a turn, too. Neither of them is afraid of sand in all the places.
Josh and I got very few photos together this trip, so I’ll take the two ridiculous selfies we managed to capture and call it a win. We were supposed to have a family photo session in our finished camper later in the week, but it was hard to coordinate in the rain and then my sister’s family decided to head home a few days early. We were all a little disappointed, but you can’t expect the weather to cooperate every year! I’ll take it as an opportunity to make a few other fun updates this year and we’ll take family photos in the camper next summer instead.
One of the biggest improvements to the State Park since our last visit is an expansion of the trail system. When I was a little girl, the park was heavily wooded and there were shaded walking trails everywhere. After Hurricane Ivan, the landscape changed dramatically and the state has been making constant improvements ever since. There were some boardwalks last summer and new, paved trails, but I’d guess they have doubled in the last year. We loved being able to hike and bike all of the campground and I even clocked a six mile run here one morning. The kids joined us on five bike rides — six miles twice, five miles twice and a really long seven mile ride our very last day. We were super impressed with their stamina and loved getting to see parts of the park we rarely visit.
Be sure to come back and visit next week, we’ve still got two camping updates to share!
