Myrtle Beach Vacay: A Picture Post

How has an entire month gone by since returning from vacation without a single post about the awesomeness that was vacation? I'll tell you how. Life. That's how. The past few weeks have a been a whirlwind of crazy...but today, I pause from the crazy to bring you a little recap of our fantastic family vacation to Myrtle Beach.

We drove 17+ hours to get there because we're crazy. And also cheap. I have to admit, I was a tiny bit panicked before we left because, hello...we have two children under five years old.

In a car.

For 17+ hours.

But you know what? My boys surprised me, and were the epitome of perfect little angels for pretty much the entire trip. We strategically planned our drive so they'd be sleeping for at least several hours both ways, and I packed the appropriate distraction tools, i.e. DVDs, oreos, cars, the fridge farm, oreos, I Spy books, coloring pages, and oreos...did I mention the oreos?

We started out at 3:30 AM so we could get several hours of driving in before the boys woke up. Or so I thought. About ten minutes into the ride, I heard Gavin say, "Momma...Bennett's touching me!" and I immediately regretted the decision to drive, but the I'm-excited-to-leave-so-I'm-not-sleeping wore off about an hour later and they were both zonked out for next three hours.

We stayed the night in Nashville on the way there and the way back. The boys got in some roughhousing, and we got to see Ryan's brother, Matthew, and sister-in-law, Brooke in their Nashville home.

Brooke, Matthew, and our overly-excited-been-stuck-in-a-car-too-long boys.

It was a nice break in the long drive, and we even got a pet fish in our hotel for the night. Gavin was enamored, of course.

Our "fish for the night" was deemed "Fred."

We got to Myrtle Beach the next day and the rest of my mom's side of the family joined us shortly after. We rented a house right on the beach (of which I failed to get a picture!), and spent the entire week as a family.

At the Ripley's Aquarium with Uncle Adam and Aunt Jahlynn.

At the beach building sand castles.

Gavin put on "fireworks shows" with building blocks for our pre-breakfast entertainment.

The "old folks" mini-golfing team...and Gavin. Gavin even got a hole-in-one!

Aunt Jahlynn and Uncle Adam taught Gavin to bodyboard. He was quite the little surfer by the end of the trip!

Boys at the beach!

Late-night puzzle fun!

On the Myrtle Beach Skywheel.

The boys' first ride in teacups--they loved it as much as their Momma!

There was so much to love about that week, but the best part? Spending it all together. We got to stay together, eat meals together, do puzzles, go mini-golfing, watch old home movies, go to the beach, and just generally enjoy each other's company. It was awesome to be in such a beautiful place surrounded by people I love. The other plus? There were other people who could entertain our boys besides the two of us, which meant Ryan and I got bits of a parenting vacation as well!

It was a fabulous week with the whole Cohoon side of the family. We can't wait for the next one!

Gavinisms: Vacation Edition

After seeing his Great-Grandfather Cohoon being served a disgusting-looking vitamin drink by his Great-Grandmother Cohoon:
Gavin: "What is that Granddad?"
Granddad: "It's a vegetable drink. Try it. It'll make your hair curl."
Gavin: "I like my hair straight."

Trying to understand the Skywheel on the Myrtle Beach boardwalk:
Me: "It's a ferris wheel with cars that are closed, kind of like a little room just for our family."
Gavin: "I'm wanna take my clothes off on the Skywheel."
Me: "Well, it's glass, buddy, so everybody can see you. It's like a glass room. It's still public."
Gavin: "Oh."

Taking a walk on a beautiful, breezy day:
Gavin, before we left: "I don't want to wear a shirt."
Me: "That's fine, buddy."
Gavin, on the walk: "Momma, you should take your shirt off so you can feel the breeze. It's nice outside."

In our "glass room" on the Skywheel--clothes required.

Deep in the Heart of Texas

Last week, I got to introduce Bennett to his Great-Grandma Green.

My Grandma and Grandpa Green moved to Texas when I was in junior high, and they came back to Kansas City frequently, so I never visited them in their Texas home. When my Grandpa passed away almost three years ago, I remember wishing I would have visited earlier to see them together, in the place they called home for so many years. Silly things kept me from visiting--school and sports commitments when I was younger morphed into work and money excuses as I got older. Before I knew it, I'd started my own family and traveling seemed like more work than it was worth.

But when my dad mentioned he planned to make the trip this fall, I decided to ignore all those excuses and crash his visit...with baby in tow.

I am so glad I did.

It was a fantastic long weekend, full of old memories, popsicles and leisurely walks. It forced me to slow down for a few days and remember that the little things matter. I got to take a nap, and reminisce about eating caramel popcorn and learning to sew as a kid. I got to see how much it meant to my Grandma, and my Dad, that I'd given Bennett the middle name "Green." I got to feel my Grandpa's presence everywhere, and say goodbye to him in a way I hadn't yet done.

I also got a four-generation picture with my baby, who's named after this side of his family.

Four Generations of Greens

My only regret is that Gavin couldn't be there, too. I guess a four-generation picture with both of my boys will have to wait until the next visit. Until then, the individuals will do just fine.

Four generations picture when my Grandma last visited in the Summer of 2010, a few months after Gavin turned one.

First Family Vacation--The Other Stuff

Even though the mosquitos were gargantuan, and Galveston's beach left a little something to be desired, the town itself was lovely.  We went swimming, played miniature golf, ate delicious fresh seafood, snuggled on the couch and pretty much just had an awesome time.  Evidence below:

Ryan and his boys on Father's Day.

Little man all dressed up.

Bennett's first time in the pool.  He enjoyed it for a total of about 2 minutes.

Ben & Jerry's chocolate-faced coma.

Papa & Grandma enjoying a boat ride.  We even got to see some dolphins right next to the boat!

Gavin's first miniature golfing experience.  He beat Daddy!

The IMAX glasses were a bit too big.

Under the sea with Grandma & Papa.

Checking out the river otters at Moody Gardens.  It was their 3rd birthday!

Look closely for the scary alligator.

Swimming with Momma at Moody Gardens.

Staying cool in the shade with Daddy.

Gavin & Papa being silly.

Checking out the animals at Rainforest Cafe.

Aboard Galveston's tall ship, the Elissa.

Captain Gavin at the wheel!

"Look Momma!  A pirate ship!"

On our way home--a stop at the Dallas Aquarium to stretch our legs.

"Why are they orange, Momma?"

First Family Vacation--The Beginning and the Beach

We've been back from vacation a full week now and it's taken me about that long to fully recover. I have to preface this post by saying I had a great time and would go again in a heartbeat, but man...I was so not prepared for how the definition of vacation changes when you have kids.

Before kids, vacations were spontaneous, adventurous and uber-relaxing.  After kids? Well...not as much.  Oh...we had adventure alright.  This is the only vacation that I've ever had to make a stop at the emergency room after all, but that's not exactly the kind of adventure I look for on a vacation.

Let me just start from the beginning.

We chose Galveston, Texas because it's the shortest driving distance to a beach.  With a three year old, a three month old (with bassinet, bouncy chair, car seat, and all the other crap a baby needs) and a tight budget, it seemed that driving was going to be our best bet.  Now...I've been known to say "If it's longer than a four-hour drive, put me on a plane!" so you can imagine how thrilled I was to be driving 13+ hours with two children in tow.  But we planned to start the drive around bedtime to get the longest stretch out of the way while both of them slept.  And the plan worked fabulously until we had to slam on the brakes and a bag flew out of the back and hit Bennett at 4 a.m.  After Ryan and I completely lost our shit (him because he'd packed the car, and me because I was driving), we realized Bennett was completely fine.  He had the tiniest bit of a bloody nose, but we went to the ER anyway, because we're those people.  Better safe than sorry, right?  The good news about the Atoka, Oklahoma ER at 4 a.m.?  No waiting!  Bennett, of course, smiled and cooed and completely charmed the doctors and nurses who confirmed that yes, he was perfectly fine.  Perhaps I can send a video to the insurance company so he can charm our way out of part of the bill, which I'm sure will be a small fortune.

Even with that little nightmare of a detour, we only ended up arriving in Galveston about 2 hours later than we'd predicted.  We met up with my mom and stepdad who joined us for the week and pretty much ensured I'll never go on another family vacation again without the Grandparents in tow.  They were such a great help with the boys, and Ryan and I even got to have a movie date on vacation!

As soon as we arrived, Gavin wanted to head straight to the beach.  We'd been talking about going to the beach on vacation for so long that I think he'd just had enough waiting.  We were here now.  Let's go to the beach!  We headed straight there, and watching him look out into the vastness of the ocean for the first time was one of the highlights of the trip.  He was understandably mesmerized.

So mesmerized, in fact, that the next morning, we went again, this time with suits on so we could play in the water.  Unfortunately, when you're three, waves crashing into you isn't really that appealing...it might even be a little terrifying.  He did get more adventurous as the week went on, though, and terrified me when I turned around in waist-high water to see him wading in after me with no life jacket on.

Though the Galveston beach isn't the prettiest I've seen (sandy water and seaweed galore), Gavin could have cared less, which made the rest of us appreciate it that much more.

Bennett and Daddy snoozing in the tent.

Dancing in the sand.

Family photo time!

Aaaannd...a break from family photos to chase seagulls.  Much more entertaining.

Building sand castles.

Grandma's turn in the tent with Bennett.

Papa found a flag for the sand castle.

Bennett was more entertained with his beach hat than the beach itself.

First Family Vacation Learnings

1.  This self-proclaimed "air travel snob" is capable of traveling by car.
2.  Emergency room visits should be made in the smallest town possible.  No waiting!
3.  Mosquitos are minions of the devil.
4.  The ocean is scary when you're three.
5.  Naps are essential.
6.  Naps on the beach are even better.
7.  Breastfeeding on the beach is a little gritty.
8.  Sand and chubby baby crevices don't mix.
9.  Ryan is the king of sand castle building.
10.  Packing, unpacking, and driving suck.  But watching your kid's face light up when he sees the ocean for the first time makes it all worth it.