It was Riley’s first trip to the beach and even though JB has been to the beach before, he was much younger when we went before and it was just a short time so it felt like a milestone moment for him too. He was at SUCH a good age for this trip because he was old enough to actually enjoy it and his joy over all the things made it just a magical week. We went with my husbands side of the family- his parents as well as his brother and sister in-law. His parents had found us a great house on St. Simons Island, Georgia. The house was in a great spot right by the beach and had a pool which JB was a huge fan of.
The hardest part of the week was absolutely the drive there- whew! It was about a 6 hour drive (but with kids it took 7) and neither of our kiddos was particularly happy during the drive. We did our best to keep everyone happy and entertained but were thrilled to finally arrive and meet up with people at a local brewery to get out of the car and get the vacation started.
I won’t recap every day since most days were very similar and all delightful. Our typical “schedule” for the day was spending the morning at the beach, then heading back to the house for lunch/naps and then doing the pool in the afternoon .This worked out great because the beach wasn’t as hot in the morning, and y’all there is a ton of stuff to haul out there so doing it just once a day was enough. And keeping JB’s nap schedule the same was helpful in keeping anyone from being too crabby.
Both kiddos loved the beach! JB loves to dig and is a big fan of sand so I knew he’d be in heaven and he was. He would have sat there all day if we’d let him. But he also loved the ocean! He liked to swim and splash in the tide pools and loved looking for crabs and fish to catch in his bucket and net. I thought he might not love the waves but he had a blast. Riley enjoyed taking her morning nap at the beach every day and also was able to enjoy the ocean in her little seat we brought but also down at the tide pools too!
The afternoons at the pool were spent mostly with JB bossing everybody around telling them which float to get on and which one he wanted and going from one to another and back again. He also loved learning to jump in and show off some of his swim class skills. Riley loves hanging with whoever in the pool and just relaxing. She hasn’t started swim class yet but I think she’s going to be a fan too.
After our full day of beach and pool we did dinner in most evenings, grilling some fresh seafood and steaks. And then enjoying the porches in the evenings and playing games after the kiddos went to sleep. We also took a few evening beach walks before bed which I always love. JB inevitably would end up wet and sandy but there is something so relaxing to me about a beach in the dusk hours.
We had two days that were out of our usual. One morning we went “into town” to check out the dock, the lighthouse and get lunch at a local restaurant. JB liked seeing the fishermen fishing off the pier and we all enjoyed a yummy seafood lunch. The other special day was spent heading over to Jekyll Island for the morning. It was only about 30 minutes away and we got to visit the Georgia Sea Turtle Center as well as check out Driftwood Beach. Both were excellent experiences! The sea turtle center has lots of rescued sea turtles you can see as well as some other tortoises and local wildlife. We got to see a portion of a sea turtle surgery happening live and a recovering tortoise out for a walk around the property. We also got to see a feeding time for one of the turtles that’s about to be released. Driftwood Beach was not far from there and was so cool! I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting but the reality was definitely more than what I was thinking. It was very interesting to see, though I didn’t get great photos to do it justice. But JB loved climbing all over, looking for crabs and ended up covered in mud.
A few other highlights from the week- JB got to fly a kite! He loved it and wanted it to fly at all times once it was the in the air. Hubby and I got to enjoy a date night thanks to our in-laws which is always a treat and we got to see all kinds of wildlife including a shark (luckily not too close!). And we also got to snag some family photos which will certainly be treasured.
The week simply felt like the epitome of summer joy.
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