Hilton Head

June has proven to be a VERY busy but exciting month.  In this month alone we have gone to the beach, I traveled to Europe with students, Jack and Lucy stayed with my parents for a week, we got NEW FLOORS, and Andy & I got to see David Gray in concert AGAIN.  I'm exhausted and elated and frankly really behind blogging b/c of that so for the sake of my sanity I'm gonna keep the June posts short on text but chockfull of pictures :)

First up, Hilton Head!  We finally managed to make it down to Mimi & Granddaddy's house that they co-own with three other families.  It's a pretty sweet set up and I was so excited because 1) I've never been to Hilton Head so that was gonna be a new experience & 2) we coordinated our visit with Mimi, Granddaddy, Allen, Kerry, Ben, and Eli so it was going to be a real family vacation. :)  The drive went fairly quick if you ask me but as anyone who has road tripped with small children, you know that Jack's shirt is more than fitting.

Of course the first thing we did once we arrived was jump in the pool.

Jack's swim lessons paid off b/c he rocked out the no-swimmers thing and Lucy was fearless - as always.  :)

First night there we went to Harbour Town and I manage to score this very sweet yet borderline headlock hug.  These two - I am going to give them major credit.  We went out to eat every night (um - it's seafood - who can resist???) and these guys rocked it out each night.  Yes there were times when Lucy would destroy an entire basket of rolls or eat containers of butter but for a 5 year old and a 2 year old they were awesome.  Hats off to them.

Can you believe there are 6 Brimers in the picture?  I love it :)

An after dinner stroll...

Right next to the restaurant was this awesome playground that we totally took advantage of.  I love all of these old live oaks.  Makes me miss living in Destin...sort of.  For two minutes.

B/c this is how she prefers to go down the slide...

Jack was willing to help her all the other times.

Cuteness overload.  Sorry folks.

Jack and I have the same face - the "uh this may not be the best idea" face.

Before heading home, we went to put our feet in the water and meet the ocean.  The beach reminds me so much of when I lived in Wilmington, NC but this is much less rocky.  And darn right pleasant. Everyone kept warning me that the Atlantic would be rough and yucky compared to the Gulf.  Water-wise, yes the Gulf is clearer and prettier.  But this water was warm, gentle, and absolutely perfect.  It's like Poseidon knew we were coming and made the ocean ideal just for us.

First day at Hilton Head - seized!

The next morning we woke up bright and early, packed up the car, and headed to the beach!  Now, we went to the beach as a family last year and even though that was an awesome time and I'm grateful for our week at the Gulf, this trip was MUCH easier.  Why?  Two reasons I think - Lucy is older and no longer trying to eat sand nonstop AND we only stayed for three full days.  I think a week would just be too much beach time with small ones.  This was the perfect amount of time and the kids had a blast.  They both loved the water and we couldn't keep Jack, especially, out of the ocean.
***And if I may brag on myself for a second, neither children got sunburned.  Lucy is somehow part-Native American so she turned a lovely golden brown no matter what but I'm happy to report that my red headed alabaster skinned son did not burst into flames.  Score.

One thing I think we need to abandon though with the beach visits is the sand castle building.  Each year we think that it'll be fun to build an awesome castle and each year it turns into Andy building the thing while Jack gets bored and walks off and Lucy actively destroys it.  While it lasts it is pretty impressive :)

And for posterity's sake, I feel it's appropriate to get a shot of Baby 3 enjoying the beach too.  Nothing like a little baby gut to make a bikini look super hot.  :/

That afternoon Allen and Kerry's crew showed up and there was much rejoicing!  We went out to dinner promptly and Lucy made sure to tell Kerry all about our day at the beach and the fun we had.

Jack quickly became obsessed with Eli and Ben all over again and did not leave their side the entire time.  And as always, they were so patient with him.  I think thats the third thing that made this trip easier.  Cousins.  Always bring cousins.  We basically didn't have to watch Jack for 3 days.

The next day we all headed to the beach again - weather was perfect the entire time we were there.  Here's a shot of some brotherly bonding, with a Lucy head popping up in the background :)  She was hanging out in a hole for kicks.

Kerry and Mimi soaking up some rays.

Jack, Ben, and Eli spent tons of time boogie boarding in the surf and Jack was on Cloud 9.  He actually did really well and Andy and I loved this glimpse at what parenting older kids looks like.  You never truly relax but the Mad Eye Moody Constant Vigilance is nowhere near as intense.

Lucy had fun burying her daddy in the sand :)

And remarkably she took a nap at the beach.  I felt like I won the lottery that day.  I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised though considering we were at the ocean and that's basically a built-in sound machine right there.

Another successful dinner out.

Mostly due to the fact that we had lots of adult back up for the Goose.

Cousin obsession at its finest.

Pool fun with Daddy.  You know, I spend probably 5 more times the amount of time in the pool with the kids that Andy does b/c I am home with them way more.  But when that 1/5 of the time is spent doing stuff like this, it's no wonder they always talk about how fun Daddy is compared to Mommy.  I just can't get that kind of air.

Last dinner at Hilton Head (I promise we did more than go to the beach and eat but I failed to document that :)  This was my lobster mac n cheese.  Pretty nuts huh?

Jack liked the lobster head :)

More cousin obsession...

And more Aunt Kerry obsession :)  Lucy was not happy to say goodbye to these people.  We had such a great time at Hilton Head and cannot wait to go back.  The house was so comfortable and the island had so much low country charm.  Spending this time with family was amazing and much, much needed.  Next time we will make sure to do some exploring and check out the local haunts and kid friendly things to do - that is - if I can tear my kids off of the beach :)

The obsession even continued when we got home.  What was the first thing they wanted to do after a 7 hour car ride?  Sandbox :)