Early Morning With The Boys

The Boys

6:15

6:37

Grant In The Morning

It's 6:54 and I have been up since 7:00. I actually beat my brother-in-law, Drew up and made the coffee before going down to the beach to take a photo. Grant, Marlea's good friend, was down there since 5:00 enjoying the early morning sky. It's a good morning already because I got to hold my great-grandson Tommy for a bit. 

The Queen Of The Beach

Grant And Marlena

Marlena

Tommy 

Tom And Rhys

We couldn't have asked for a nicer day than yesterday. From the moment I woke, we had sun and blue skies.  We were out on the beach, canopy set up and chairs up since 9:30 and we came and went the rest of the morning. Either sunning, swimming, body surfing or playing with Rhys, who loves the water, or Tommy. What a great way to spend the morning. Breakfast was bagels, yogurt and granola, whatever we could find. 

Sand Pipers

Zeus And Grandson

Playing At Water's Edge With Rhys

Kicking Back

Vacation Time

For lunch, we made sandwiches, easy and tasty, along with chips. By 1:30, we had a grocery list done so Evie, Nick and I went to Food Lion, about a ten-minute drive across the bridge to the mainland. It was the wrong time to shop because everyone else had the same idea, but we managed between the three of us to find everything we needed. We were home by 2:00, and I napped till 3:00 while everyone else was on the beach or relaxing on the porch. Cocktail hour started around 4:30, although we had been enjoying libations on the beach all afternoon. Drew and I took down the canopy and washed all the sand off the chairs before joining everyone in the house. Beth's son Tyler and girlfriend Renee were arriving from Atlanta early evening so we weren't sure whether to wait dinner for them or not. Finally, we decided to eat so Tom and Drew grilled some chicken and hot dogs. I cut up the chicken thighs, and Jill got out the condiments for making pita sandwiches, starting with tzatziki sauce and veggies. Yum.

What A Great Beach Day

Boys In Their Private Pool

Granny And Hayden

Finally, I Am In A Photo

Tyler and Renee arrived at 7:45 to great fanfare; Renee had just returned from spending three weeks with her parents in Beijing. Beth made them ham and cheese sandwiches for dinner, and we sat out on the front porch while they ate, as Renee filled us in on her stay. They both live in Atlanta, where Tyler is working on his PHD and Renee is finishing up her Residency in Neurology. Most of the adults were in bed by 10:00, leaving the porch to the grandchildren. I joined them at 9:45.

Grant And The Girlies

Evie, Jill And Beth

Tyler And Renee Arrive

Dusk

8:40

What a great first day at Topsail Beach.  

9:15

Topsail Morning With The Gang

6:16

6:16

6:26

6:26

Up at 6:00, I walked out on the beach and took some photos, then got my coffee and sat outside with Drew, watching the sky lighten. Right now it's 7:15, and most of the adults are up, along with Tommy, our nine-month-old, happy and full, followed a half hour later by Rhys. 

Welcome To Tacky South Carolina Beach Towns

Our drive yesterday was a nightmare, mostly on I-95, where we stopped and started for much of the way because traffic was so heavy. It ended up taking an hour longer than usual, and we stopped three times — twice at rest areas, once at McDonald's, and once for gas. We finally arrived around 4:30, and Drew and Jill beat us there even though we'd left before them. Over the next hour, Tom and his family arrived — his son Nick and his wife, Audraya, with their two kids — along with a friend of Halle's who drove in from Richmond. Finally, around 6:00, Beth arrived from Dallas, her flight delayed by an hour. Beth's son, Tyler, and his girlfriend, Renee, will be arriving sometime today, bringing us to 17.

Tom And Mary And Nick's Family

Rhys First Time Walking In Sand

5:03 PM: First Photo Of Beach

Rhys With Tommy

Beth Arrives From Dallas

It took a while to get unpacked, put things away, and finally open the wine and beer. We sat around, both inside and out on the porch, catching up — whatever that means when everyone's talking at once — and being entertained by two-year-old Rhys and Tommy. I couldn't resist going for a swim and tried, with no success, to bodysurf. 

Tommy And Tommy

Halle And Friend, Natalia

Nick And Drew

Jill With Mary And Tom

Drew, Jill, Mary And Tom

Beach Time

Fortunately, Evie had brought two pans of pastitsio for dinner, so all we had to do was heat them up. We ate in the living room and planned our first excursion to Food Lion this morning, along with the rest of our days here. Jill and Evie were the first to bed, around 8:15, followed by most of the rest of us — except the kids — around 9:30. Three of them were still in the hot tub when I turned in, and I have no idea when the six of them finally surfaced. I don't expect to see them until late this morning.

Mary And Rhys

Dusk

 Marlena And Friend, Grant

8:24 PM

9:30

Seven Hours To Topsail, North Carolina

Drew And Jill

Backyard

All Is Green

Well, it's 6:45, and I have been up since 6:00. I am in familiar digs, my daughter Jill's home in Bristow, Virginia. Her husband, Drew, just arrived home yesterday from two weeks of work in Kazakhstan. Right now, he's busy packing the car for our drive today. It's 66º in Bristow, overcast, and it rained overnight. Looks like we'll be having rain for much of our drive south, as well as in Topsail. We hope to be on the road by 9:00 and are not looking forward to the traffic on 95 South.

All Packed!!

Typical View On #99

Yesterday was the usual drive to our daughter Jill's house. We left at 8:00 and arrived just after 3:00 — a seven-hour drive. It would have been more pleasant if both of us weren't so tired. I was up at 5:00, and Evie not much later. We had our usual stop in Warren, PA at McDonald's, then two hours later, at Gio's gas station and barbecue, we traded places, and Evie drove the next couple of hours to Shawnee Springs Market in Virginia, where we always stop for gas and, this time, lunch. We'd actually planned to stop at the McDonald's in Berkeley Springs, WV, but it was so crowded we drove on.

Halle And Granny

Hayden And Pickle

Pickle

Trimming Emmy's Nails

Jill was in the garage and welcomed us sometime after 3:00. She had just gotten back from a big shopping day at Costco and Trader Joe's. Our granddaughter Hayden was there too, working from home for Culman, a defense contractor. Around 4:30, Drew walked in after flying in from Kazakhstan by way of Frankfurt — fortunately, all his flights were on time. Halle, their youngest, was getting some Spanish tutoring and didn't get home till 5:00, when we all settled onto their great screened porch to enjoy wine and catch up on what was going on in everyone's lives. Jill ordered takeout from an Asian restaurant, and the girls went to pick it up. We gorged on various dishes until we couldn't manage another bite. I helped Drew with a few things as we got the car ready for the trip — the carrier went up on the roof, another one on the back. By 8:30, all of us were exhausted and ready for bed.