Sharing a bed with an over-excitable 10 year old doesn't work for sleeping in. Shane was up around 6 AM again.
Stu's crew wasn't asleep much longer than that. I slipped out to buy bagels and when I returned around 7 AM, Shane and Cole were trying to understand Far Side comics while the girls inventoried their toys.
When it got noisy enough, Stu kicked the kids out of the room so that Ka could keep resting.
The boys seemed to understand "keep it quiet" in general terms, but had trouble with it in practice.
B slept through the fun for a while, but once he heard it he ran to join.
Everyone was up and moving by 8 AM. That would not have been true when I was a teenager. However, 7 AM seems to be the accepted "Nana's awake, so everyone else can make noise" time of day.
Megan and Sammy were the last ones awake and moving, but since they flew from Ghana to Chicago to Charlotte you really can't blame them. If anything, you have to feel a small bit of awe they can sleep through what they do.
Everyone decided on an early beach trip today. We were out the door before 9 AM.
It was the first time all of the cousins went to the beach together this year.
Matt and Renee (mainly Renee) normally stay at the beach longer than anyone, but this year they've been more sparing.
I took a lot of photos.
A lot.
I guess figured I had to do it now in case my phone got swept away by the tides or broken by a kid.
Also, with so many adults on hand I didn't feel like I had to be "100% on guard."
In none of my photos will you see an adult sunbathing or sleeping.
At the most, Stu would sometimes jog up and down the beach to burn some energy when all the bases were covered.
Otherwise, everyone was on duty and I got to play photographer.
It's great to be part of a family that works and plays together!
The waters were rough, but the shallows continued to stretch out much farther than I'm used to.
It made me feel safer about taking my phone into the water.
I risked the spray to take some video for action screen caps.
The waves were strong enough to buffet me and mess up my centering at times.
Maybe I'll buy a waterproof camera one day. I bet I could get some cool half-in/half-out of the water shots.
A big shout out to Cole. Last year, I remember he couldn't stand getting his face wet and was afraid to swim. This year, he was out in the rough!
B wasn't as concerned about getting splashed last year, but his ability to swim has grown tremendously. There were multiple times he got dunked by a wave and I rushed to pull him up only for him to say he was ok, laugh, and then do it again!
And Shane was the same daredevil as always.
He'd range farther from the group at times. His swimming skills have improved enough I trusted him well out of arm's reach. I stuck to the younger boys for safety coverage when I had to choose.
Shane always came back eventually. He liked to be part of the group too much to stay away for too long!
Early morning, the tide was out. Way out.
It left behind 'lagoons' for the younger kids to play in.
The olders kids joined in during breaks from the waves.
Aiden and Sammy started to show a real shine to each other. If it continues, they'll be best buds every beach trip!
Graham and Aiden used to stick together. This was the first year they ran in separate circles. Renee and Matt tag team and switch off between the boys.
The girls were a pair, as always.
They stuck with Kathleen or Stu. They'd let other cousins join them in the sand, though.
Shane normally won't slow down and play in the sand until it's time to go. Then the sand is a stalling tactic. I helped him build a small castle in a 'lagoon.'
Cole had no trouble relaxing.
The water was warm all week. It had to be 80° F.
Shane noticed air bubbles and went on a nature kick.
He became the proud father of a sand flea.
He stopped castle production and turned the bucket into a habitat.
Everyone was done with the beach and walked back as a group to hose off sand.
But not everyone was done with swimming.
I was. I had a friction burn start (I'll save you from seeing a picture). I went inside to change.
When I came back outside the kids were still in the hot tub.
Everyone else lazed about enjoying the mild weather.
There was some growing tension amongst the boys, so it seemed prudent to have lunch.
The rest of the afternoon was spent lazing about and playing electronics.
Kathleen was still working and would disappear from time to time for Zoom calls.
For the most part, the kids all played really well together. I mostly sat around, listened in, and caught up on the blog. They'd wear on each other more as the week went on, but for now they were all so thrilled to be with each other nothing minor erupted into anything major.
Dinner was the famous "low-country boil" from Renee.
We spread out tablecloths and went at it!
Shane was worried about the shrimp. I was going to make him try one, but he said, "I've had this before. At the beach."
And he was right. So I let him skip the shrimp.
I ate extra to pick up his slack.
There's a lot of picky eaters in the family, so the adults got the kids to eat whatever they could (before they all wanted desserts and snacks!).
Things got a little rowdy at the kid's table with Aiden and Sammy stomping around....but Stu was there and everyone else wanted to focus on eating. Let them be loud!
Which made a good gif opportunity.
While the kids were eating, the rental's handyman came by. Someone, who won't be named (Sammy), put sea shells and other non-billiards related items into the pool table.
The balls got stuck.
On one hand, it was great. The kids really enjoyed making a cacophony of pool balls rolling along the rails for the first day or two before it clogged up.
On the other, it needed to be fixed.
We hid the balls after the repairman left.
Most parents limited snacks and desserts after dinner, because the family had plans.
There was an ice cream store within walking distance.
It was like herding cats getting all the kids out at the same time and going the same direction (with matching shoes on and whatever else they needed!).
There was some confusion about "Why don't we drive?" ("It's good for you. Do you want ice cream or not?").
It was a great plan until we came across six lanes of traffic. The ice cream store was on the other side of the road! There was no light or crosswalk, either. Most of us started to walk the kids down to where we could cross, but a few jaywalkers whose kids were strapped in made a mad dash while the responsible adults backs were turned..
Shane was incensed. He somehow developed leg pains that ailed him oh so badly.
Leg pains that he moped about at first, but disappeared once he figured out he wouldn't have to walk back.
I'll let you judge how serious they must have been.
The wind worked against us with the ice cream.
It accelerated ice cream melt and soon we had a dribbling mess of dairy and sugar, but it was delicious. I ate mine fast enough not to have a problem. Shane went with chocolate mint chip, so I grabbed a chocolate peanut butter chip.
Side note: Whenever you see the twins smiling and laughing it may look innocent, but they're probably making fun of somebody/something.
Or it could have been kid related. A lot of kids were doing goofy things!
Pop dribbled water on B's back. I caught the look of pure shock!
Not that Pop would fess up! B worked to get a confession out of him to no avail.
It didn't stop anyone from being silly in the future, either.
Shane was a little mopey and muted through all of this (leg pain).
But like I said earlier, his mood picked up as he hobbled to the van. We packed all of the kids in and then the adults who couldn't fit walked (Megan, Stu, and me - Matt and Renee walked off earlier with their stroller, if I recall correctly).
Pop was working on his wrestling research project when we got back. Honestly, I could (and probably will someday) write a whole post on what he's been up to. It's helped fill a couple years of his retirement.
The kids were downstairs on electronics.
You'd have thought that the ice cream would've put them into a sugar rush, but the sweet siren's call crushed the simple carbohydrates.
The boys wanted to have a sleepover. They spent a long time not going to sleep, but eventually did after a final warning. I tried to take a picture, but it was too dark. I didn't want to risk waking anyone up.
Ka didn't care! She used her flash. She said Cole was the only one who seemed to register anything before drifting back off. They were worn out!
And so ended another day at the beach. These posts are terribly long! Each one takes the effort of at least three normal posts. I guess, I could take fewer pictures and tell less stories....but there's so much that happens! I'm already cutting things out.
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