Well hello there summer! And hello there July! In fact, we're quickly nearing the end of our summer, as our older kiddos now go back to school on August 5th. While this seems early, after the past 18 months of interrupted school I am totally supportive of an early return.
Though it seems like months ago now, our big "event" (thus far!) has been our annual Saint Simons Vacation.
We had a blast! And also found the right time to hit SSI (early June) - not so hot, not so crowded, and also very few mosquitos. We did all our favorite things, plus a few new activities.
We started off the trip that day after arrival by getting our toenails painted - a necessity for the beach. Ms. Therlon, Maryn and I felt very pampered (and colorful)
Of course we hit up the Turtle Hospital! The kiddos were so upset when we couldn't visit over Spring Break, so we made sure to head over there early.
The kiddos selected "turtle doctor kits" as their souvenir and this provided endless entertainment back at the beach house. Not only did the turtles get frequent check ups, but the adults were all subject to lots of vaccines as well. :)
We headed over to the water park one morning and spent a good amount of time until a dark storm rolled in. Wesley enjoyed the slide...and then quickly moved through all the snacks. That's his favorite part of vacation, for sure! Def my kid...
Speaking of eating, we did lots of it. Of course we hit up Crab Trap, then James and I enjoyed a nice dinner out with good friends who invited us over to Sea Island. We also had a date night at a good Argentinian restaurant, plus cooked some good meals at home.
Then let's not forget the daily trips to get Fro Yo. We never missed a day, the WHOLE WEEK.
We visited the park several times, then also went to the beach a couple of days. Because the house had a pool we certainly had to insist on the beach (but the kiddos were always so happy once we got there - just hard to get them out of a pool!)
We took a couple of fishing trips with a local guide, once just James and JB then the second time they let me join the fun. JB is quite the little fisherman and caught some amazing trout. I wrestled with a very large shark on my trip.
Our NEW adventure this trip: Putt Putt! The kids had been asking to play so we braved it one night and took them. The older ones actually did great, and Wesley just did his best to interrupt everyone's miniature golf game by jumping on the green and whamming the approaching ball with his firetruck or plastic club. :)
I took our annual beach pictures one night, and then also our annual group picture from the yogurt place. Of course everyone complained but I have to get the traditional photos!
It's wonderful to look back on all these pictures over the years and see how much the kids have grown and remember all the happy memories (lots of new ones from this year.) I treasure these summer vacations to SSI, and can't wait to go back!
