Isabella at the Beach

Isabella was so excited to go to the beach this year! She wanted to see the crabs and the dolphins. Well, we didn't see either of those, but she had a great time "schwimmin in the ocean". She didn't like being on the shore, where the tide makes walking kind of difficult, but loved either being in the chest deep (to her) breakers, holding both of our hands, or out "in the ocean", which is what she called the deeper water. She also liked playing in the sand. But really, she didn't want us to take her out of the water. But for two tall parents, that is a big strain on the knees and back.

We were down there for a baseball tournament for Nick's work. Which was great, because that meant that most of our stay was paid for, but not so great because the first two days wasn't really a family vacation, as any of you know who have gone with your spouse or parents on a trip just for the free hotel room. Nick did have a lot of free time though, so that was good. And the tournament ended Sunday night, so we still had Monday and Tuesday as a family. We were able to make it to the beach 3 days. The first two days, we were at Wrightsville. The parking was insane (4th of July weekend). And when we were done with the beach and ready to walk to our car, people were stalking us from the second we stepped on the street.

It was the first time Isabella had ever stayed in a hotel room. She did pretty well. We put her in a pack-n-play, since both hotels we stayed in considered a partial wall separating the bed from the couch area as being a "suite". Isabella generally plays and reads for about 45 minutes to an hour before falling asleep at night, so we just contained her in the PnP, which she is actually too big for, but oh well. Poor Bailey Boots had to sleep in an upside down coffee table. Ha ha.

One of the highlights of our trip (besides the beach) was the Wilmington Children's Museum. It was FABULOUS!! If you are ever down that way, you should really take your kids. Isabella loved it, and even a promise of ice cream wouldn't convince her to leave. If you have a membership to the Greensboro Children's Museum (or any children's museum with an ACM accreditation), you can get in for free I think. Unfortunately, our Natural Science Center doesn't count.

Monday, we were fortunate enough to hang out with one of Nick's baseball families. They were staying in an oceanfront house on Ocean Isle, so we got to park in their driveway, use their outdoor shower, nurse Bailey in a rocking chair on their porch, leave our stuff on the beach while we went to get lunch, and leave Bailey napping in the shade with them for a bit while both of us played in the water with Isabella.

We had a great time. Isabella was so worn out that she even napped in the car on the way home. That is significant for two reasons. 1. She hasn't taken a nap since probably January and 2. She hasn't slept in the car in probably 2 years. So imagine our surprise when we looked back and saw her sacked out.