Beach Trip 2010

For Labor Day weekend we went to the beach with Mom and our friends the Powells. We had an unbelievably good time...at least I did, and I think everyone else did, too. We went to Harbor Island, a little private neighborhood on it's own little private island just across the bridge from Hunting Island, SC. These pictures are a mix of mine and Rob's, and are relatively out of order.

With 5, we don't expect perfection in a family picture. These are not perfect, but not too shabby.

My personal favorite

The girls (the boys were done)

The last night Buck pulled his guitar out to play for the kids. They, of course, loved it.

John loves to show off his underwear

The tide was low during the day and high early morning and evenings while we were there. In later pictures you can see that the beach looked much different during the day. We went out the last evening during high tide so the kids could play in the waves.

Ellie was more interested in the boys wrestling in the background than the camera :)

This trip to the beach Ellie actually enjoyed the water. Well, she wasn't excited by it, but it didn't make her scream, either. It wasn't all that different in temperature than the previous trip. I think she's just a little older now, and maybe the timing was better?

John, Morgan, Eve, and Maddie in the waves. The beach was perfect for the kids because even the biggest waves at high tide were just their size. This was the only time we made the kids wear their life jackets.

Here comes a big one!!!! (well, relatively speaking)

The house had a wagon to tote toys, chairs, etc. The kids enjoyed it almost as much as we did. You can sort of tell in this picture what the beach looked like during the day. It was extremely flat, so when the tide went out just a little, there was a large tidal pool, then a long stretch of beach, then the "big pool" as Eve called it. The beach was more on a sound than the ocean. When the tide was out, the waves were literally a few inches high. I walked out into the ocean probably about 50 yards and didn't get deeper than my belly button. It was so nice to be able to give the kids a few feet of freedom and not have to worry about them.

We found some live sand dollars! We also found tons of hermit crabs and all sorts of things in the tidal pool.

Eve is actually laying down in the ocean here. The water was so warm, in the most shallow parts it was almost hot. Definitely warmer than bath water in parts. BUT, the air was much cooler than earlier in the summer. We couldn't have picked a better weekend weather-wise.

I'm not sure she'll ever grow out of the sand-eating phase.

I took this picture literally seconds after saying "we only have a few minutes before dinner, so let's stay out of the water." She's my beach baby for sure. This was the first time we walked out to the beach at high tide and actually saw waves. I guess I can't blame her.

John really enjoyed playing with everyone, but Morgan especially. They found a hole that some others dug, and worked very hard to dig some more and try to fill it with water.

It was a LONG walk out to the water.

But SO worth the walk

I know I'm completely biased, but John is so photogenic...especially at the beach!

The house was right next to a long (advertised as ~200 yards) boardwalk over the dunes to the beach. It was a long walk, but sure made for some sweet pictures.

The beach was a loggerhead nesting area. This is one nest that was about to hatch. Mom checked each night we were there, but they weren't ready. If you're walking on the beach at night, you can't use a flashlight with white light in case turtles are around. We went out at night the first two nights and saw, not sure of the proper name, but I'll call it bioluminescence in the sand and the water. I've never seen it before, and it was UNBELIEVABLE! Mom's description was best. When we scraped our feet across the sand or splashed in the water, "it looks like Tinkerbell". It was so cool!

I took a few scenic pictures there just to play with my camera...

Maddie (2 weeks older than John) pointed out the pretty colors of the sunset to me one night. I asked her who made all those pretty colors. She said God. I asked her how she thought he did that (not having an answer, myself). She paused a moment and said "I don't know. Maybe glitter." So cute.

Sunday morning I woke John up around 6:30 and we had a date on the beach to watch the sunrise. It's the first time he's watched it. There were clouds, so the colors weren't so amazing, but it was such a special time for the two of us to spend together and talk about how big God is, how cool that he made our little toes in the sand AND the great big ocean, how the sun rises, and transformers. I will always treasure that special time. When I pointed out that the sun was rising John asked "Why did a different sun come up? It isn't round." Cute.

Later Monday morning we headed out to the end of the island to go crabbing. John caught one! Unfortunately I didn't realize we had the camera until all the kids except Eve and Ellie had had enough and headed out with Rob and Suzie to the beach. The end of the island was like a nature reserve. We explored and saw all sorts of things!

Eve really enjoyed the boggy sand/mud. It was almost marsh, and certainly a lot of sloppy fun.

Buck's first catch! It would've been easier to crab off of a dock, and we didn't have the best equipment, but I have a feeling he'll want to go again.

Good thing we had an experienced professional with us!

We finished out with 4. I'm not sure if one is hiding, or if this was before we caught the 4th. Snap! Snap! I love to make them angry :)

Eve enjoyed watching them from a few feet away. The other kids didn't want any part once they could actually see them up close.

They sure looked pretty once they were cooked. Unfortunately we didn't cook them long enough. Bummer. We'll get it right next time.

Then, Monday morning right before we left, Mom found a message in a bottle! I for real one!

The kids (and adults) were excited to unwrap it and find the message.

We really did have a fantastic time! For me, at least, it was one of the best trips ever. Great family, great friends, great weather, and great and relaxing beach...all reminding me of a great God.