Another Fine Topsail Morning

6:26

6:26

6:26

It's 6:35, the sun has risen, both boys are up, and Drew and I are sitting on the front porch with our feet up, talking about the Middle East — Saudi Arabia has just bombed Iraq, widening the conflict. At least we can relax, since Trump is in charge! We must have gotten some rain last night, because the steps and part of the porch are wet.

Enjoying Mc D's

Wilmington

Grant And Marlena In Wilmington

Reading To The Boys

Tuesday wasn't much fun for me, and none of us — except a few of the Gen Zers — took full advantage of the day. I was up as usual at 6:00 and had the blog written by 8:30, when Evie woke and read and published it. Around 9:30, Tommy returned with two dozen donuts, quickly devoured by the gang. Both boys were up, of course, and by 10:00 the whole troop was up. That's when Beth and I drove for 25 minutes to the Urgent Care in Surf City because I had a strange red patch on both feet. The PA diagnosed it as a skin infection and sent me off with a prescription for Bactrim from CVS. Beth and I killed time waiting for the prescription at McDonald's, where we both had Cokes and burgers. Yum. Marlena, Audraya, and Grant decided to go explore Wilmington and were gone for a few hours. 

Rhys Making Bracelets With Marlena

A Busy Day At The Beach

Jilly Bean

Halle And Natalia

Busy Boys

We were back just after 12:00, and most of the beach crew had come in for lunch. I know there was leftover macaroni salad and sandwiches, but that was about it — we're running low on food. The rest of the afternoon we hung out in the house, on the porch, or outside under overcast skies. I took a nap, of course, and spent much of the day with my feet up, trying to keep the blood from rushing down and worsening the infection.

At Hidden Chips 

Tom And Mary

Tyler And Renee

Jill And Beth

Stayed Home And Helped Take Care of Tommy

Around 4:00, a group drove to Hidden Chips Distillery in Surf City and enjoyed various libations — Old Fashioneds, Painkillers, Espresso Martinis, French 75s. I stayed home with the boys and kept them occupied until the gang returned around 6:00 with a couple of pounds of shrimp and two or three fillets each of grouper and red snapper for dinner. 

Getting Ready To Make Dinner

Dancing To The Music With Rhys

Dancing Dancing

Grant Steps Out

The Gals And Grant And Rhys

We got busy prepping, and I helped by slicing tuna into small squares for poke bowls — tuna marinated in sauce, served with rice and cucumbers. Evie made all the sauces: cocktail, tartar sauce and the poke marinade.  Yum. Jill boiled the shrimp, which we ate tail-on with cocktail sauce, while Drew and Tom grilled the fish to round things out. While all this was going on, Rhys and the girls were dancing to disco music. By 7:00, I checked, everything was eaten: the poke bowls, shrimp, and fish. 

After Dinner

The Dad's

Dusk

Enjoying Sunset 

After dinner, the wind picked up and the waves turned ferocious, so Tom and Drew went out to try catching them, but the shape was poor and they ended up drifting fifty yards down the beach. Most of us were out enjoying dusk, walking the beach and watching the guys chase waves. Around 9:00, with maybe six of us still up, we realized the air conditioning wasn't working. We called the office, and an hour later they brought in three or four standing units. I was already in bed but heard the guys dragging them up the stairs.

Da Moon At 8:29

Another good day.

Sun Days At Topsail

6:28

6:48

6:49

Well, it's 6:45, and I was up at 6:00. Tom was already up with Tommy, our nine-month-old great-grandson, and now Rhys, Mary, and Drew are up, as we start another day. I went out to the beach around 6:45 and took a few photos of the sun rising. 

Evie And Rhys

Beach Weather

Our Spot On the Beach

So far we've been lucky with the weather, with sun most of the day. Today, though, looks overcast — we may get some sun, but clouds too. Monday was another great beach day, with a group of us out in the morning, mostly the adults and great-grandchildren, and then the GenZers taking over the afternoon, soaking up the sun. A couple of hours in the sun is enough for Evie and me — enough for most of us, really. It got up into the high 80s in the afternoon, not so warm in the morning hours. I managed a good swim and a few attempts at body surfing.

a

Aloha Boy

Tyler And Renee

Mary And Rhys, Ready To Hit The Bar

Nick And Audraya's Family

Tommy

It's hard to keep track of what everyone's doing. The Gen Zers sleep in; the old farts are up at dawn. Breakfast and lunch have become whatever we can scrounge up: bagels yesterday, sandwiches again for lunch. We're going to have to make a run to Food Lion today because we're running low on both. Fortunately, Tom's headed out this morning for donuts — a nice healthy breakfast to go with my yogurt.

Natalie's Earrings

The Girls

Tyler And Renee And Rhys

Mom Overwhelmed

Pooped

After lunch, I took another good nap, while Evie and the adults either sat around on their devices, hung out on the deck, or played with Rhys or Tommy. Basically, we waited until 3:30, when most of the group headed off to a bar on the beach in Surf City. 

Renee And Tommy Hitting The Bars

Halle Facetimes Her Cousin, Marisa

Tommy And Mom

Enjoying Outdoor Bar

Beth and I stayed behind—I had a strange rash on my feet and didn't feel like going. They were back around 6:00 with sashimi, a couple of cases of beer, and other goodies for dinner. While they were out, Beth put together a macaroni and mayo salad. Around 6:30, Drew and Tom grilled burgers and hot dogs, and along with the macaroni salad, baked beans, and sashimi as an appetizer, we had a fine dinner.

The boys usually go to bed around 7:00, so it's quiet time for the adults while the kids play games out on the porch—until 8:00, when it rained for a good half hour. Most of us went to bed around 9:30, leaving the grandkids to keep playing. Another good day.

Stormy Weather

7:56

8:43