This was Nick's first time experiencing the ocean. He loved it and if I let him, he would have spent all day every day playing in the ocean. The only problem was when he was in the ocean, I was in the ocean. I might have been a little over the top but it was his first time in the ocean and yes, even though he's 11, I still didn't take my eyes off of him for a second. There were many times I was close by because he would ride the waves and get a wee bit too far out and I'd call for him to come in closer. Nick bought a boogie board and rode the waves. By the end of the week he had used his board so much, it was broke. In fact it broke the second day, but Nick didn't let that stop him. The salt water and sand didn't agree with Nick's skin and every night he'd have some kind of rash. By morning it was usually cleared up and he would be ready to ride the waves again. Sadly the thunderstorms kept us out of the ocean much of the time. I remember one afternoon it simply rained (so you could still get in the water). I stood out in the ocean with my suit and cover up on and got soaked while Nick rode the waves. A mother's love knows has no bounds - ha!
Nick and I did a good job at compromising. It was obvious his favorite activity was the ocean, but as I mentioned every time we went to the ocean it meant no relaxing for me. We would go the ocean for a few hours and then head back to the pool so I could relax. The picture above is of Kim getting in the water with Nick that first night. Lauren wasn't as fond of the water as Nick. She mostly liked playing in the sand.
Just us girls. Notice there is no sun in this picture. Ha! I loved spending the week with Kim and Lauren. I enjoy spending time with my sister and I got to know Lauren better this week. She is the sweetest, easy to please, little girl. She was good to Nick at times when he wasn't so good to her. The car ride down to Myrtle was BRUTAL, and the ride home wasn't quite as bad but Nick was still meaner than a snake and he saved most of his venom for Lauren. I told her I owe her a pedicure for putting up with Nick's snarkiness!
On our last day my cousin, Kelly, persuaded me to ride a banana boat. I wasn't overly thrilled about it but agreed to it. The picture below is of me after the ride, and although I'm giving a thumbs up, it was really a thumbs down for me. That ride scared me to death! And my unfortunate ankle injury kept playing in my mind as I was on the ride. Ray and I did konk heads but that was the extent of any injury on the ride - thank goodness!
I love this picture. Nick and I truly had a good time together (once we got out of the car!). I think it was nice for Nick, as the little brother, to just have me. He didn't have to compete with Jay for anything and it wasn't that I didn't miss Mike, but it was validating to know I could travel across the country with my son and enjoy a vacation with him and get us both home in one piece. Ha! We have put off getting a cell phone for Nick and this vacation it was clear to me I am doing the right thing by that. He had no distractions on this trip. He was just a boy in love with the ocean!
Nick was so sweet to Jayde and Lauren (again....he was sweet 85% of the time to Lauren too once we were out of the car). The picture above and below is of Nick playing with Jayde in the ocean. Jayde adored the ocean. She's 5 and she is fearless! She even took a banana ride!
The little kids (above) and the big kids (below). Ha! What a crew we had in Myrtle. Nick was in heaven because the two boys (twins) turned 11 on April 28, so they were only 2 days older than him. The perfect fit for Nick! Jayde and Lauren played together a lot so again, it was just a perfect mix!
Kim and I like to joke that we did not get the thin genes from this side of the family! I mean really! My cousin, Michelle (far right) is pregnant and when Kim first saw her in her two piece, Kim says (and Kim doesn't have an inside voice), "Gee Michelle, do you even have a baby in there?" LOL. We shared so many laughs this past week. It was so nice to reconnect with my cousins and get to know Michelle's husband, Matthew, better and also get to know their sweet Jayde. What a memory filled week.
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