Veteran's Day Weekend--Myrtle Beach Trip

For over a decade now, my side of the family has taken an annual fall beach trip. It's something I look forward to each year. We stay in the same hotel, take over the hotel pool, cram into a suite for a spaghetti dinner, and walk the boardwalk together. This year my siblings decided to take a camping trip in the mountains rather than the beach. While I will always prefer the mountains over the beach, we were less than thrilled at the prospect of camping with four kids ages five and under in freezing weather. We don't own any tents, air mattresses, or sleeping bags. The cost of cabin rentals was more than twice the cost of a hotel room at the beach. We made the hard decision to forgo the camping trip and go to the beach on our own.

We were out of school on Friday because of Veteran's Day, which meant we had a nice long weekend to enjoy. I wanted to leave at 4 a.m. on Friday so the kids would sleep the whole way and we could make the most of our time. Unfortunately, we were still in the throes of car rental hell due to the oil change gone wrong. Rather than pay for a car we weren't going to use for three days, we returned it Friday morning. The problem was the rental place didn't open until 8, so we were set back several hours.

The kids were restless along the car ride, but it was tolerable. We stopped halfway for a play/lunch break. There are so many random ghost towns on the way to the beach. I pulled over at a park I saw on the side of the road. It was an eclectic mix of new equipment and old, borderline unsafe equipment. It was a great way to get energy out and enjoy the sunshine. 

We were able to check in as soon as we arrived. We immediately changed into bathing suits and went to the beach. Our cheap Ikea sand toys served us well once again.

Only our toes made it in the water. The ocean was much colder than we were willing to brave. (FYI, it was becoming overcast when we left the beach, but I don't know why this picture is so dark.)

We specifically looked for a hotel that was directly on the beach and had multiple swimming areas. This hotel had a lazy river, waterfall, and multiple swimming pools and hot tubs.

James made it his goal to go under this waterfall as many times as possible. Mind you, he wouldn't go alone, but he loved the water over his head.

After our outdoor adventures, we dried off and went to the grocery store to stock up on food for the weekend. One of my favorite features of the hotel was a washer and dryer in the suite.

Saturday morning was cooler and drizzling. We found a Groupon for the Children's Museum of SC. Our morning plans were made! All four kids were happily entertained for a few hours.

The skies cleared but the temperatures were still too cold to play in our bathing suits. We headed down to the beach wearing bathing suits under our clothes so we could hop in the pools when we grew tired of the sand. I made Jesse take a picture of me showing how many accessories are needed to take the kids to the beach.

I brought a box of Cheerios for our traditional bird circus. There were more pigeons than seagulls.

As we were building sandcastles, a string or horses came by. The kids didn't even flinch, as if it is common place to see a half dozen horses trotting just yards away.

I traced Jackson in the sand. He spent a considerable amount of time decorating his outline with shells and other other treasures.

Our pool time was short due to the cold winds. Jackson was shivering and Maddie refused to get in the water.

We dried off again, ate lunch in the room, then headed out to Broadway at the Beach. The kids had money to spend from their MiMi and next door neighbor. When asked what they wanted to buy, their unanimous response was "candy". This is the only and only blurry picture I took before hands were in the candy buckets. A warehouse sized store filled with hundreds of candy bins at kids' level creates a very stressful environment! The kids left happy and Jesse and I were happy to leave.

The last time we went to Broadway, James was very distressed over the "upside down house".  Without prompting, the sight of the Wonderworks house was once again a cause of concern. James was adamant about fixing the house. He demanded we get a screwdriver and start fixing it.

The girls spent the rest of their money in Claire's. The boys went to a toy store.

We were all tired, hungry, and getting grumpy on the ride back to the hotel. Jesse was trying to navigate to a pizza place but it ended up not existing. Eventually we were back in the hotel, scarfing down dinner.

I had lofty goals of taking a family walk on the beach after dinner. I underestimated how cold the sand would be without the sun shining down. We ended up dipping our toes in the hot tub. Jesse took the trio back upstairs while Jackson and I went on our night adventure.

Jackson began collecting shells. He kept asking, "Where is it? I can't find it." I eventually figured out he was looking for his person that he outlined in the sand and decorated. When I explained that the waves would have washed it away he lost it. Tears turned into inconsolable hysteria. I finally convinced him to walk to the pier with me. I had secretly planned to take him on the giant ferris wheel, but I had taken the money out of my back pocket. Oh well...at least he calmed down.

We returned to traditional Krispy Kreme doughnuts, then went to bed. I should mention that while we had a spacious suite with two queen beds, a couch bed, and a pull out bed from the wall--we all slept horribly. Jesse and I played musical beds, trying to comfort crying children throughout the night.

When we arrived on Friday it was 80 degrees and sunny. Saturday it was 60 degrees and partly cloudy. Sunday morning it was 40 degrees and raining. I didn't get my family picture on the beach. We told the ocean "bye" from the balcony, then left to go home.

The other thing I didn't mention about the hotel was the parking was two blocks away. It was an inconvenience in general, and a major pain while trying to load the van.

The kids acted incredibly silly until we stopped for breakfast, then slept the rest of the ride. I don't think any of us had a good night's sleep.

While it was a fun weekend away, the case of Sunday blues set in hard. We returned to laundry, grocery shopping, and cleaning. I'm sure we'll enjoy a more carefree time when we return this summer.

Trunk or Treat: A Star Wars Halloween

One of my favorite fall traditions is trunk or treat and potluck with my mom friends. Together, we make up an impressive collection of children. It's always fun to see  how their personalities come through with their dress up selection. Our family enjoys (or at least cooperates) with themed costumes. In years past, our family has dressed as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Wizard of Oz. This year we went back and forth between superheroes and Star Wars. Thanks to our elaborate dress up collection, we had several costumes for both themes. We ultimately decided on Star Wars after Jesse found a small Jedi costume at Goodwill for $4. That just left Jesse and I to figure out our costumes. 

In previous years, I began preparing things weeks in advance. This year I was totally overwhelmed with work, report cards, and upcoming parent teacher conferences. We threw everything together in under 48 hours, thanks to Amazon same-day delivery and blog tutorials. 

My costume (aka hat and tank top) was taken from this DIY BB-8 costume tutorial. I took advantage of the free printouts from her website and used adhesive felt. The whole project cost around $8 and took 30 minutes from start to finish.

I really wanted Amelia to be Princess Leia but couldn't find any same day delivery costumes in her size. She was just as happy to be Kylo Ren. James fit in a slightly too-big-for-him Storm Trooper costume. Jackson wore his Darth Vader costume. He colored an old wrapping paper tube red to use as a lightsaber. The only thing we had to buy was a Darth Vader mask and an adult jedi robe for Jesse. We spent a bit more money than I wanted but still had everything under $40. (jedi robe, tank top and hat, 3T jedi costume, Darth Vader mask). 

Here's our tribe--from Ghostbusters to Harry Potter, Phoenix fire birds to maps. I love the variety!

We failed in the actual trunk decorating, but the kids didn't care as long as we had treats. The kids are in prime trick-or-treating age. They definitely understood the concept this year and had so much fun!

After the trunk-or-treat, the families sit down under a picnic shelter and partake in a potluck dinner. Once again, I dropped the ball on the potluck contribution. I had chips and queso...except I left the chips on the kitchen counter and the queso had started to cool and congeal by dinner time. Oops! I clearly can't seem to juggle it all anymore.

The husbands took the kids to the playground while the moms socialized and cleaned up.

It was another great trunk-or-treat event! I just hate that we all had to go home and get ready for another week of school.

Greenville, SC Day Trip - Oct. 8

One of the trips we did not get a chance to take this summer was to Greenville, SC. I planned it as one of our ten summer trips because the science museum had a "Second Saturday" program for the public. We were unable to attend the first program in June and it was nearly 100 degrees the next month. Since we also planned on going to Greenville Zoo, the heat was a major deterrent.

Fast forward to October. The Second Saturday program was superhero themed. Kids were encouraged to dress up, participate in  superhero challenges, and meet superheroes.The weather was much more mild, making it a perfect day trip. We left early for our two hour drive.

When we arrived at the science center, I was annoyed to discover they would not accept our Discovery Place membership. The website lists both museums under the passport for reciprocity. Instead of arguing, I begrudgingly paid the fee.

The first thing we encountered was live animals. Jackson was surprisingly eager to hold a snake. His siblings were less brave.

The soft rabbit was more inviting for everyone.

After observing more animals, we headed to another room for our first challenge. The kids had to design a parachute that would keep their cutout superhero afloat in the wind tunnel.

They could select from a variety of materials, including coffee filters, foil, tissue paper, pipe cleaners, and straws. Amelia's design was the most successful  of the four.

We then explored the Living History Farm. We were too late for "Hawkeye's Archery", but enjoyed making a game from the 1700's out of string and twigs.

We visited with the blacksmith and other artisans. James was especially excited about grinding corn into cornmeal.

As always, we found a nice spot for our picnic lunch.

The science center was very spread out. We had to put the wagon back in the van and take a shuttle to the third area. Jackson was grinning ear to ear when he found these guys.

Another challenge was to design a suit or armor for a tile. It was similar to an egg drop box, where the kids were given tiles instead of eggs. They had to use selected materials to create armor that would prevent the tile from breaking when dropped at a certain height.

We took the shuttle back to the van, then drove to our next destination.

The zoo was completely free with our NC Zoo membership. 

The zoo was very small, which created great views of each of the animals. (Not the best for animal rights, but a bonus with young children.)

The lemurs were especially vocal and scared each of the kids by swinging right to them and wailing.

The highlight of the zoo was the lion exhibit. It was definitely the best close up views I've ever seen of a lion.

My favorite is always the giraffe. The giraffes seemed to have the largest area of any animal.

There's an impressive park adjacent to the zoo. We let the kids play for another half hour before beginning the long drive home.

Along the way we passed the iconic peach outside of Gaffney. The boys laughed at the "giant hiney." We lucked out with the weather since the rain held off until our drive home.

We ate dinner at Cookout and took the kids to bed once home. It was a fun, long day. I'm thankful to be able to take day trips and go on fun adventures, even while working full time.