Myrtle Beach!

For the long 4th weekend, we packed up and headed to Myrtle Beach, SC. Kyle had Friday thru Monday off, so we hit the road on Thursday afternoon when he got home from work.

Prepping for a 4+ day trip for the 4 (well, 5 - Lexie went with us) of us took me all day on Wednesday. Seriously, that's all I did. I packed 6 outfits for each kid (plus they each have an extra in the diaper bag), and 5 for each Kyle and me. I updated my first aid kit that I keep in the diaper bag (because you know that when you travel unprepared is when things go wrong), got some travel sized toiletries, new netflix movie in the dvd player, and washed all the clothes. We had one large suitcase, holding clothes and shoes for Kyle and me, and our toiletries (including hair dryer, diabetic supplies, and a flattening iron - to include a list of larger items). Vivi and Bryton each had a smallish bag housing their clothes. Then, I had a toiletry bag for the kids. Packed in it were diapers, wipes, pull-ups, hair bows, baby washcloths, disposable changing pads, baby wash, hair bows, and Vivi's shampoo. Keeping count? That's 4 bags so far. Then there's my camera bag (had my fully charged SLR and video camera plus accessories...because you know that when you don't pack the battery charger is when you are hours from home and one of your kids does something even more spectacular than normal), Bryton's bouncy seat, play mat, bathtub, DVD player bag, Pack-N-Play, and boppy pillow. Oh yeah - there was also a large zip lock bag holding Lexie's leash, collar and small Tupperware dish filled with kibbles.

I had put all of the above items in the car (did this on Thursday...Kyle was able to get off around 2pm) and had everyone fed and pottied and cleaned when Kyle got home. He had flown that morning and needed a quick shower before getting in the car. As we are walking to the car, he said something that reminded me that I had forgotten to put his golf clubs in the car. So, he rearranged my fabulous neatly stacked car packing and put his clubs in. Then we were off to Myrtle Beach.

Why Myrtle Beach? The Davises.

Kyle met Willard and Carol Davis shortly after becoming a midshipman at USNA. They had lived in the Annapolis area for several years and had signed up to be a sponsor family for a midshipman Kyle's first year there. They were assigned Kyle, and little did they know what they'd be in for! They were such a great supportive 'home away from home' while Kyle was in school. They graciously let me stay with them every time I went to visit Kyle. We enjoyed taking Willard's Cadillac out for dinner, or just driving around town. About 4 years ago (maybe 5), they moved from Annapolis to Myrtle Beach, SC to take advantage of the wonderful golfing community. Anyway, fast-forward 12 years later, and here we are. Married, two kids, and a dog - headed to drop some craziness into their lives.

We arrived on Thursday night. It's about a 3 hour trip. The kids did great - the both slept most of the way. After arriving, we ate dinner, talked, and Vivi went for a ride in Willard's golf cart before heading to bed.

On Friday, Kyle and Willard played golf...so that left Carol and the kids and I to go shopping! New Bern, NC (our current local) isn't exactly known for it's wonderful shopping venues, so it was so nice to be in a city with about every retail chain store imaginable. We went to the Tanger Outlet center. It was pretty crowded, but we had a good time. I can't remember all of the stores we stopped at, but a huge Carter's was among them. It was packed with clothes...and shoppers too - kind of hard to maneuver around.

After returning from the shopping trip, Kyle and Willard had finished their golf. Kyle hasn't played in a long time and really enjoyed being on the course again.

That night, we had steak, fresh locally grown tomatoes, and potatoes. It was a great dinner. Afterwards, we went to the pool in their community. Vivi and Kyle splashed around in the pool. She still can't swim, but is getting more comfortable in the water.

On Saturday (the 4th), we went to Freestyle Music Park. In honor of the 4th of July, military members and their dependants got in free! So, Kyle, Carol, Vivi, Bryton and me went and enjoyed the day there. We got there right when they opened, and rode several rides with virtually no line. We enjoyed lunch there for $17.76 - 4 hot dogs, 4 sides, and 4 drinks. Great for an amusement park! After lunch we rode several more rides - Vivi really enjoyed them. When she first got on a ride, she was scared...but by the time it was over, she was saying, "Let's do it again!" Around 4:00, we left the park - it was getting pretty crowded by this point, and we were pretty tired.

For dinner that night, Willard grilled some chicken legs. We also had corn, tomatoes, and hm...I don't remember what else.

That brings us to Sunday! Kyle took Vivi to Ripley's Aquarium at Broadway at the Beach. She had a fantastic time looking at all of the sharks and other fish. While he was there, Carol and Bryton and I hit up the Tanger Outlets again. This time, we stopped at Osh Kosh, Hartstrings, and Ann Taylor Loft. I would have really really enjoyed going to Ann Taylor and Banana Republic (all outlet store at the Tanger Outlet center), but we ran out of time! For dinner Sunday night, we went to Islamarada Seafood Company (something like that). The food was good, but the waiter was fishing without bait. Nice, but a little clueless. Willard and I had shrimp for dinner, and I also stole a bit of Kyle's dragon roll - sushi with avocado, cream cheese, and crab. It was very good. Carol had a fried chicken salad, without the fried chicken (the waiter got the order wrong and then forgot it). Kyle enjoyed calamari and Vivi had macaroni and cheese, applesauce, and a bite of Kyle's calamari. She didn't spit it out, but she did only have the one bite.

Sunday night, we played the card game Kings Row. It's a lot of fun, but takes a while. For the first time in 4 years, the men beat the women. We'll get them next time, Carol.

On Monday, we packed and loaded the car; but during the process, Kyle noticed that we had a screw in a tire. So, he went and got that fixed, and Vivi, Carol and I went to the driving range and I hit part of a bucket of golf balls. It started to rain on us, so we drove around in the golf cart for a little bit - just looking at the neighborhood. After Kyle returned with the patched tire, we finished loading the car and stopped at a local sports bar for a late lunch before hitting the road.

We had a great weekend and really enjoyed our time with the Davises.

Sorry to wrap up this post so abruptly, but a little boy is fussing! More next time. See pics on our picture site!