This summer just flew by and we never made it to the beach- yikes! Asher and Annalise thought "the beach" was Holisters- which has a large screen of the rolling beach waves.... We looked at our calendar and found a weekend that we could scoot to the beach for a day! On Wednesday we decided to go, and Thursday Al looked, and he could score a FREE hotel room, overlooking the ocean! Those who know us know we are not typically spontaneous, but this time we were! He booked the room and we surprised the kids with this news- they were SO excited!! Friday, as soon as we got home from school, we swapped our sneakers for flip-flops and headed to the beach!! We are so thankful for a beach that is a close drive away!
It was dark when we arrived, but we still jumped in our suits and headed to the beach! We enjoyed jumping in the wave for 30min and followed that by a dip in the hotel pool! All 4 kids were tucked in their hotel beds and snoring away by 9pm!
This was Asher and Annalises' first experience with the beach and a hotel- and they both did great! Asher is obsessed with water, and this was the first experience that he had that he wasn't crazy excited about! When we walked into the beach, he wouldn't let go of my hand, and after he got his feet wet, he decided he needed to hold Daddy's hand- smart boy knows Daddy is far stronger than Mommy!
Saturday they all slept till 7am and then enjoyed the hotel breakfast- how much fun to have yogurt, waffles, Fruit Loops, eggs, toast, to choose from! It was a little overcast and super windy so Al and I tried to keep the kids in the hotel for as long as possible- which was until 9am... We hit the beach- and literally had it to ourselves! The water was nice but it sure was chilly when you got out! Al, Addie and Alden did a great job boogie-boarding, Annalise and I jumped a bunch of waves, and Asher wanted nothing to do with it! He was happy building in the sand!
We played in the hotel pool again, showered and took a nice long walk along the beach collecting bits and pieces of shells. Lunch was in the hotel room (love late check-outs!), and eventually we ended up allowing the kids to spend their allowance at a local store.
Alden picked a metal replica of the Blue Angles- they were flying in Virginia Beach that day! As we walked out of the store, there were the Blue Angles pilots taking pictures with people! We walked up to one and told him Alden had just bought one of their planes- and it turned out to be THE pilot of the plane Alden had just bought- #5!! He was such a nice and gracious man, and he posed for a quick photo before he had to jump into his car and zip off for the air show!! It was an amazing experience- one I am sure Alden will never forget! What are the chances that we could not only meet a pilot, but THE pilot of the plane he just bought?!?
We did head out to see the airshow- but from a parking lot nearby. We did see several big airplanes fly over, but when it was time for the Blue Angles, a small storm was brewing and we never saw them fly. That was disappointing, but at least we actually MET a pilot!!
The kids did great and had a great time! I am so thankful for a husband willing to plan a spur of the moment trip- he had to leave at 4am Sunday for a week-long business trip to CA. We were able to create happy family memories!
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| 2 thumbs-up, 1 crayon and 1 pointer finger! |
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| In the elevator! |
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| First look at the ocean from our balcony! |
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| Ready for a night-time dip in the ocean and pool! |
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| SUCH fun! |
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| Pool fun! |
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| Little kids in the bedroom and big kids on the pull-out! |
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| Good morning!! |
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| Ready to play in the waves! |
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| Addie and Alden catching some waves |
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| It was a bit windy... |
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| Fun times! |
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| Fun in the sand! |
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| Daddy and Daughter |
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| My 2 little ladies! |
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| Surf-time with Daddy |
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| The Blue Angles Pilot! |
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| Iconic VA Beach! |
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| Proof I was there, too! |
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| Icecream while we wait for the airshow! |
