It's official - we're a family of beach bums. We got another chance to spend a week at the beach with my family last week (unfortunately Tom was on travel and couldn't come along). We rented a cottage about 100 yards from the beach down on Emerald Isle in NC. Someone had recommended it to mom as a great beach for kids and I'm very familiar with that area as Tom and I honeymooned there and made it our special getaway place each year after that (although we hadn't been back since Erin was born.)
The cottage was adorable with a big porch with rocking chairs, 3 bedrooms, a kitchen and dining/living area. And best of all it was right across the street from the public beach access at the point of Emerald Isle. The beach was wonderful - the water in the 80s. During high tide the waves crashed all the way against the bluffs leaving very little beach but low tide made for a great wide beach with gently rolling waves and the ability to walk out pretty far into the surf if you wanted. Both Erin and Jeff fell in love with the ocean pretty quickly. Jeffrey ran right into it the first he saw it. He made little games out of throwing shells (and buckets and his hat...) into the surf. Erin preferred to stand in the waves with a firm grip on Oma's hand or to sit on the sand and let the waves come up over her lap. Every morning Erin would wake up and ask when we were going to go play in the ocean. We took a special trip one day out to Bear Island and pretty much had the whole beach to ourselves. There were tons of shells that made for great shelling (we even found one 'almost' whole sand dollar).
We did some other things besides playing at the beach. One afternoon the ladies all went mini-golfing. It was Erin's first time mini-golfing and she had an absolute blast. Another day we took a trip to the NC Aquarium on the island. It recently re-opened and is amazing. There are some huge tanks and several touch tanks. Erin sat through a presentation on alligators and even volunteered to help out by pulling a measuring tape to represent how long a crocodile can be. When it was all over she even got to pet a live alligator. After the aquarium we all went to Ft. Macon, a Civil War era fort at the tip of the isle. Jeffrey loved running around the interior of the fort and exploring the cannons and empty rooms. Erin thought it made a great place to play hide-and-seek.
But mostly we spent our days playing in the ocean. Picking up seashells. Digging in the sand. Making dribble castles. Getting pink cheeks and brown backs. And most of all spending time with family (but sad to miss daddy) just having fun.
Turner's Corner - Our Home for the Week
Scooping the Waves
Bucket Brigade
Splash Splash
Sleepy Boy
Hello in There
Mini-Golfing Pro
2 comments:
Hey guys, It sounds like you had a great trip to NC and the beach. The cottage you stayed at looks adorable. Too bad Tom could not be with you, but am glad the rest of you got to spend some quality time in warm weather before it gets too cold. Aunt Katie and Uncle Bill love to go miniature golfing; we will have to do it sometime with you guys. We love you and miss you lots, Aunt Katie and Uncle Bill
Hi Guys,
NC beaches are so nice. I remember going there with Grandma and Grandpa Wallace. It so nice to splash in the water and build sand castles. Maybe we can go to the beach together again soon.
Love Rylie
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