Oak Island - May Beach Trip

Last week the kids and I packed up and headed to the beach with my parents. They rented a house in Oak Island, NC a few weeks throughout the year and last week happened to be one of them. We were sure we'd have high 70's/low 80's and beautiful beach weather.... but... we got low/mid 60's and clouds. Boo. But, one thing is for sure, regardless of the weather, my kids will wear bathing suits and play in the sand, blue lips and all. Thankfully, we did get some sunny moments here and there and I got my fix of sandy toes and umbrella drinks. Daniel was supposed to meet us Thursday and stay through Sunday but since it was so windy and calling for rain, we just headed home to warmer weather and our own beds.

Waterwheel fun.... Best $1.50 I've spent in a long time.

We played on swings and scouted out places in the movie Safe Haven (filmed in Southport next to Oak Island). Sadly, I did not see Josh Duhamel.

We took the ferry to Fort Fisher and went to the NC aquarium. It is beautiful and we really enjoyed our time there.  Funny note about this picture.... my dad is smiling.... at an alligator trying to attack the lady cleaning its habitat and the other lady with a broom trying to keep it away from her. Probably not the safest way to clean glass... just sayin'.

No vacation would be complete without ice cream! Side note.... did that sedan park on the bumper of the SUV?! I just noticed that!

Playing at the park in Southport.

This crazy girl wanted to swim SO badly but the water was breathtakingly cold!

Chasing waves is a super fun game!

I love this iPhone picture of Avery!

A framer for sure!

Just us, some seagulls and a fisherman (from the town daniel grew up in! What are the odds?!)

 

A fisherman near us would call us over every time he caught something so the kids could touch it.

A hammerhead shark! It was pretty cool. I actually touched it and it felt like sand paper.

 

The pictures uploaded in a weird order but we're gonna roll with it. Despite the not so beachy weather, the kids had a wonderful time and I came back relaxed. Oak Island is a bit sleeper than I'm used to (I'm a Hilton Head snob) but I couldn't say nicer things about the residents of Oak Island and Southport. They are geniunely sweet people. It's a safe and clean beach that we look forward to going back to in late June. Fingers crossed for mid- 80's with a slight breeze! :)

If you give a fish a muffin....

Oh man. I feel like I have a lot of time to catch up on but I can sum it up in a few words: Yard work. Dirt. Play Doh. The Great Wall of Wise. Garden. Shark. Time Outs..... yeah that pretty much recaps the last 2 weeks. :)

This post is about to make you think I need to be on ADD meds... maybe you're right.

Like I mentioned above, we've been constructing "The Great Wall of Wise" in our backyard. There is a portion of our yard that just seems to not like grass. Its all like "Hey, I'm rocky red clay, fescue isn't really a good match for me." And Daniel is like "Grow Dammit!" And the sod guy is like "Hey, you need bermuda, but it won't grow there so build a retaining wall." And like Noah listened to God and built an ark... we listened to the Super Sod dude and built a wall... The Great Wall of Wise. It's taken DAYS but we're gonna have a pretty massive and beautiful garden when its done. While Daniel and I work on the wall, the kids have been playing play doh. My poor patio is speckled. It's actually kinda pretty. Thank goodness for pressure washers. Play doh is awfully messy!

While we were at Petsmart buying dog food the other day, Parker saw fish and asked for one. I thought he was probably ready so we picked out a tiny tank and a beta fish that Parker named Shark. We had a long chat about being a good fish daddy and the responsibility that comes with pet ownership. Apparently, I went a little overboard with our talk because he wouldn't leave the poor thing alone. He wanted to take it outside, then on a wagon ride, then to his bed.... he was obsessed. Note I say "was".... This morning, Parker fed Shark a Harris Teeter giant chocolate chip muffin. Shark probably loved it... his poor internal organs, not so much. I'd say "rest in peace, Shark" but that isn't possible because Parker keeps shaking the tank to "help Shark swim." I haven't been able to slip away to Petsmart to replace Shark with an imposter so I left him in the tank. I feel kinda bad about that....

Aquariums were my husband's hobby when he was a kid so he was quite unimpressed with Shark's tight living quarters. We had plans of getting Shark a mansion before his untimely demise but now, since he's in heaven (I presume he was a Christian fish, though I didn't lead him through the salvation prayer, I have peace about his fate), Daniel has decided we need to upgrade our aquarium status from a half gallon, $8 "beta habitat" to a saltwater aquarium with Nemos.... because obviously, a child who can't keep a Beta alive for 48 hours should have a delicate saltwater aquarium. Fortunately, Parker won't be able to reach the lid of this tank or be able to take it scootering down the street like he tried with his last fish tank. Unfortunately, I believe this means I just gained another responsibility and keeping Avery alive on a daily basis is just about as much responsibility as I can handle right now.

Speaking of Avery, she learned to open doors this week. WORST. TRICK. EVER. It takes 3-333 times to get her back in bed each night. I remember when she learned to stand in her crib and she did it for a week straight all night long. It was a long week of her practicing her new trick but thankfully she was still in her crib. This time... not so much. Daniel and I will be watching TV and then she's suddenly on the couch with us. I know you're probably thinking "just get those door knob thingys." Yeah, we have those. They slow her down but she can still open the door.  She's a fiesty little thing but goodness gracias, she's precious!

Tomorrow, we're heading to Asheville to uproot some of my grandfather's blueberry bushes to replant in our garden. I'm SO excited to have a little piece of my grandfather's family land, replanted in my own backyard. Prayers my black thumb greens up quickly!