I know we technically have a couple of weeks left in summer, but for the most part, once Labor Day is over, its days are numbered. I, for one, am welcoming the season change. First of all, I'm a fall baby. Second, these 90 plus degree temps are killers. And third, Fall means Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas are right around the corner.
To commemorate the last long weekend of summer, we decided to take the kids to the beach and invited the in-laws to tag along for what was supposed to be a largely stress-free vacation. I had intended to catch up on my reading for school, play (win) some games of Boggle and Scrabble, and relish some alone time on the beach since I would have extra hands and eyes. Hah! It's like I forgot who my own children are.
It all began with the 4 hour trip there. It's normally a 3 hr trip, even with Victoria's mulitple potty stops, but apparently everyone else in Columbia had the same idea as us and decided to take I-77 to I-26 toward Charleston at the exact same time. After we maneuvered past the nightmare traffic on 26 and 95, we stopped in Walterboro for our last chance potty break. Sophie, at this point, was exhausted and done. We made the mistake of taking her out of her car seat, and she refused to get back in. After smushing and forcing her back into place, we were off again. Sophie serenaded us with a high pitched shriek for the next hour, almost the entire rest of the way to the beach house. She didn't stop until about 5 minutes before we pulled up. One thing you have to give her, she's persistent.
The next day the waves were really rough, especially at high tide. Wesley turned around for a second to tell Trevor and Victoria to be extra careful and not to go much further than the edge. No sooner had he turned around when a huge wave came, sucked Sophie under and tumbled her like a washing machine. It was horrifying to say the least, but about 5 minutes after, she was right back in there playing in the surf. She's a tough cookie, to be sure.
Sunday we decided to do something different. Edisto has a natural preserve called Botany Bay, which I've never been to in all my years of going there. We decided to try it out because it's supposed to have beautiful shells. Turns out it does, but as of 1/1/10, you're not allowed to take any of them with you. The place was absolutely beautiful, so of course I took a bunch of pics. I wanted one of the 3 kids, and Wesley picked out a spot near some trees. You'll notice I took a pic of the trees, but the kids aren't in it. That's because on the way to them, Trevor slipped in some muck and sliced the bottom of his foot open on some upturned shells. It's a good 4-5in gash. Wesley had to carry him back to the car, and we left immediately after. No stitches were needed, thank goodness, but I've learned that if anything is going to happen, it will happen to Trev. And before you think I'm a horrible mom who stopped to take pictures as my son was bleeding to death, I took all of the Botany Bay pics before he sliced and diced his foot.
Wesley and I never get the opportunity to walk the beach at night, so we took advantage of his parents' help and took off after they went to bed Sunday night. We initally went just to look at the stars and relax, but we noticed several people carrying red and green lights. My curiosity got the best of me, so I had to ask what they were doing. It turns out that the sea turtles were hatching, and they were helping guide them toward the ocean because they're an endangered species. We were able to help guide 12 baby sea turtles to the ocean that night, so that was really exciting. We weren't able to get the best pictures, but I posted one that he took.
We made it back on the beach one more time before we left today, and even with Trevor's lame foot, I think everyone had a great time. We had another 4 hr journey home, because traffic was just as gnarley come back as it was going, so I am thrilled to finally be here. Incidentally, it was exactly a year ago that I started this site, so props to me for dedication and effort, both of which I'm not sure I've ever exhibited for a year in relation to one particular task.
