Garden City

Addie Kate, Tommy, and I got to go to the beach for another little vacation the other week. My parents had gotten a house at Garden City and we stayed with them. I have never vacationed much at Myrtle Beach and am not a fan of the traffic or touristy/retail junk that overwhelms that place. Well, Garden City was completely different. It was so similar to Edisto, which I love, but with more to do, which Tommy loves! When we were out on the beach (granted, it was morning and late afternoon - thank heavens Addie Kate naps during the hottest part of the day!) there were very few people out there. I love that! We could just do our own thing, and let Addie Kate roam without many worries. I might have found a new favorite place to be!


We got down there on Saturday afternoon and began to figure out who went where. It was a precious, typical, "old school" beach house. Two bedrooms, two baths. Addie Kate does not sleep with Tommy and me, unless there is a major issue. Not even in the same room with us. So, bless her sweet heart, her little pack-n-play fit nicely in the master bath, and that, is where she slept, happily. I'd be surprised if she fits in the pack-n-play next year, so we will definitely need somewhere bigger. But for this year, it was perfect!


Addie Kate loved, loved, loved the ocean. As we were getting in the car to go home a week later, she just pointed to it and begged to go. So sweet. She loved jumping the waves, especially with her daddy. I guess he's the strongest of all of us, and the most fearless, so he let her jump the "big ones!" She'd just say over and over again, "Big One! Big One!"


We would typically end up on the beach anywhere between 9:30 and 10:30. We kept trying to get out there earlier, but greasing up the whole family, especially a toddler, with sunscreen, making sure we have every, single toy (because if we forgot one, that'd be the one she begged for!), beach chairs, extra sunscreen, sippy cup, towels, etc., took a lot of time! She would, no matter what though, end up getting tired after a couple of hours though. I guess the sun and water would just wear her out. Mostly, she got cranky. One day, however, she fell asleep, in the ocean! It was when Paul and Susan had come down for the last half of the week, and Paul was the chosen one (by Mommy and Daddy - we needed a break) to jump the "big ones" with Addie. We noticed that she had her head down in his chest and was hiding her eyes. He brought her in and she continued to keep her head down on his chest. Turns out, she was asleep! Paul passed her over to my mom, and she continued to sleep. Tommy and I cleaned up most of our mess. Tommy headed up to the house, and I took the sleeping baby, wrapped in a beach towel, wet and nasty, through the thick, thick sand, and followed him. She didn't wake up, not even when her little head rolled off of my arm (she is getting heavy for the "baby" hold!). Tommy was waiting for us at the outside shower, but she was still asleep. We just figured we'd go lay her down in the house and see what happens. That baby slept for an hour and a half like that! That is not our child, never has been. We have the daughter that gets wilder as the night rolls on. Apparently not at the beach. So sweet! The rest of the week we learned that when she was putting her head into our chest, it wasn't to cover her face from the waves, it was to nap!

She loved to dig in the sand and enjoyed crushing her daddy's and her Gorga's masterpiece sand castles! She loved to get buckets of water and just play in them and the sand at the same time. As soon as we'd get her a few, she'd need more! There was little just sitting on the beach for us - we were always moving! She was precious when she'd try to bring her own buckets of water up to the sand for her to play in. It'd end up with very little still in it, but she'd be so proud!

She did alright on the out-to-eat dinners. It was much easier to eat at home, which we hate being surrounded by all those great restaurants. However, we did go to the seafood market almost every night that we cooked! We let Addie Kate try shrimp for the first time and she wasn't much of a fan. We are sure she will be soon though, as much as we like seafood in our family! (We didn't get to see our friend Nicole, even though we went to her restaurant, because she had just given birth to twin boys and was at MUSC! The boys are now home and doing great!)


We took her to the waterpark one afternoon as well. I absolutely love waterparks, just like a little kid. Tommy does too, and Paul and Sue came along as well. My parents came, so that they could take Addie back after a little while, and we "adults" could enjoy the park. Well, bless her heart, as soon as we got in, I knew something was wrong. Apparently, Water Babies is not sweat/tear free. She had either sweat sunscreen into her eyes, or rubbed it in. They were so red and she just kept them closed. My eyes are extremely sensitive to sunscreen as well, so I immediately knew that's what it was for her. Unfortunately, the only thing that cures it for me is to wash my face and hands completely, and we weren't able to do that with her. So, I sent her back earlier than I wanted (I just know she would have had a lot of fun) with my parents. She did get to go down a baby slide into a pool a couple of times, and took a trip around the lazy river with us. We'll try again next year! Meanwhile, the rest of us had an absolute blast! Possibly my most favorite part of the trip!


One of my oldest friends was at the beach with her family that week also! Cammie and I met in 5th grade. She is one of the sweetest girls I know, with such a good heart. Now she has a baby girl too! I was SO excited to both see Cammie again and meet sweet Maya. She is a beautiful and happy baby and I am SO happy for Cammie! Addie Kate loved Maya and remembers her when she looks at pictures. She just did not understand the whole "being gentle" thing. To be as mothering and caring as she is, she just doesn't realize that you can't tug on real babies the way you can baby dolls!


Our friends Hope, Stuart, and their tiny new baby, and Blake and Mary Jane were also down there for the week. Hope's sister just moved to Surfside. We enjoyed several afternoons with them as well!

It was a fun-filled, busy, but very relaxing week. How vacation can be busy is beyond me! Thanks for the week Mimi and Gorga! We absolutely loved it!



Our first morning. We had to bring Addie's princess toys and castle:

First morning on the beach:

Daddy wiping the salt water and sand from her eyes:

Getting ready to jump some waves:

(Sorry for the angle - I was trying to not lose my camera in the water!)

Another day on the beach:

She loved filling her buckets (or having us fill them for her - they were heavy for her to carry!) with water and playing in them and the sand. She would wig out when the waves carried them away! Luckily we didn't lose any!

My precious little water baby:

Little shoe-fix - thank goodness we had these!

Utter happiness, the way life should be!

Whoa!

And she's ticked...

Mimi fixed it! (She hated the sand being all over her, yet she loved playing in it???)

Naptime!

Another day...

Cracks me up how she would just splash so happily in these buckets!

A rare picture - first, Mommy is actually in a picture, and second, one of Mommy and Daddy together without Addie Kate!

Addie Kate just got sick of where we were one day and decided to haul it offf the beach:

The daily grease-up of sunscreen. Bless her heart. She also decided to quit wearing sun hats, much to my dismay - they are so darn cute on her! Because of that, we had to sunscreen her hair as well because her hair is still so thin:

Yep, it looked like this, every day!

Having a ball:

Sweet, beautiful baby Maya. Addie just adored her. She is the cutest, funniest, most beautiful baby I have seen since my Addie!

Giving her a hug and kiss! Thank goodness Addie had been illness-free for a while!

All four of us - man, I wish we lived closer together!

This is Addie Kate on the day that she passed out on the beach. She never, ever just falls asleep somewhere, so this blew us away!

Addie watching the sand castle construction:

PLaying with the seaweed - ew! I love it - she says, "Ew, yucky!" but still touches it!

Some serious "prin-press" playing:

Fell asleep in the ocean on Uncle Paul:

Happiness!

Our little family!

At the waterpark:

And, the ice cream at the beach comes from a truck! We loved this! (We also went to a different ice cream parlor every single night that we were there - mmmm!)

More serious "prin-press" playing:

And breaking up the happy couple! Paul and Sue decided to sleep on a blow-up mattress instead of the pull-out couch. Addie loved it. She thought it was there for her own personal bouncey-house pleasure!

Eating a snack, on Paul and Sue's bed! And probably watching some Noggin - we don't get that at home, so she was loving life!