We were fortunate enough to get a little more beach time this summer. In a grand attempt at welcoming my newest nephew into the family, my parents, brother’s family and my family descended upon North Carolina like a plague. In visualizing which plague, I’d have to say we would be the swarm of locusts.  Loud.  And everywhere.

All in all, we had a great week. There were the usual hiccups. And some unusual hiccups.

Whoever said that “half the fun is getting there” didn’t have 13 straight hours of requests for more drinks, snacks, movies, tech time, less shade, more shade, cooler temp, warmer temp, and on and on…..

Here are a few things I learned on vacation, as well as some random thoughts. And let’s be honest, most of my thoughts are random.

1. You’re more likely to have success getting shampoo out of your hair if someone is spitting at you than with a low flow shower head from 1982. Or maybe 1882.
2. Some people’s opinion of ‘comfortable and clean’ differs from mine. Especially the clean part. And many of you know I’m not exceptionally tidy…..
3. Do not ever, under any circumstance, let your sister-in-law convince you to try on a beach shop swimsuit. Unless it comes with a matching turtleneck and knee length skirt.
4. Skim boarding is not for people over 15. Unless you have a doctor on speed dial who can instruct you on how to heal the various tears. Just ask Matt.
5. I really want to be a vegetarian but cheeseburgers keep standing in the way. Along with bacon.
6. Some rental unit pillows should come with bio hazard stickers. See #2.
7. A wild woman running up the beach screaming “SHARK!!!!” will get your attention every time. Every. Time. Especially when you are vacationing at the location where the most recent shark attack occurred in North Carolina.
8. I really want to reduce my processed sugar intake but Little Debbie is a flashy little temptress.
9. Sand remains. Even after showering, sand remains. In unlikely and uncomfortable places, sand remains. See #1.
10. I really need to get in shape. I was cleared to exercise on July 13th. Of 2014. A month after the baby’s birth. So….. I should probably get on that. See #8.
11. When your 33-going-on-13 year old brother chooses to ‘fight the waves’ wearing a GoPro, the end result might be a missing GoPro, as this device doesn’t necessarily float. You can frantically search a huge stretch of beach and water and never find it. BUT, our super awesome, ‘slow and steady’ dad might quietly go walking and find it 300+ yards down the beach. Slow and steady wins the race.
12. I am afraid of deer running in front of our vehicle. I am irrationally afraid so concerned about this that Matt believes I am truly convinced there are catapults on the side of the road where people just spring-load deer into oncoming traffic. He is right.
13. My 3 year old now asks people to ‘cheers’ her chocolate milk. Is she Irish? Still unsure where she picked up this habit.
14. Kids find more pleasure in digging/enjoying a 3×3 foot sand castle and mote than the fifty gajillion square miles of ocean and sand in front of them.
15. Children will all fight over the same, half-broken sand shovel when there are four new ones a foot away.
16. Travel frustrations and family tension all fades when you get to meet the newest addition to this crazy crew. Check out this cutie! 

I’ll take the travel hiccups and sandy scalps and unrelenting road trip requests. In the words of my sister-in-law Katie, these are my people. They are worth the chaos.

 And they feed me cheeseburgers.  

With bacon.

E

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