Beach Collage 2014

Here are a few last pictures from our beach vacation.  We had a great time and are already counting down until next year.

The Pier

This was definitely the year of the pier.  The kids have never shown more than a moderate interest in fishing before.  That has changed.  The kids really took to fishing- much to the delight of their dad.  There were several nights where the kids stayed out on the pier until after 11 o'clock.  They caught lots of fish.  Actually, the fishing overall seemed to be good this year.  The boys hooked several rays and sharks.  One shark that they hooked and fought (but were unable to bring up) was about 7 ft. long.  Yikes!

The Pool

 We spent a lot of time in the pool while we were at the beach last week.  All of the older girls have gotten pretty good with their swimming.  Us adults are now at the point where we can sit beside the pool and monitor them (as opposed to actually having to get into the pool ourselves).  The girls spent some time working on perfecting their diving skills.  They especially liked going after the diving rings that were thrown onto the floor of the deep end.

Cassie and Quincy brought their beaus to the beach- and we loved having them.

Melanie and her niece had a condo in the same building this year, so we saw lots of them.  Owen was especially glad that Emory was around- he likes having another boy to play with.

We had hoped to have Owen swimming by the end of the week, but it did not happen.  He has one tube remaining in his ear, and that continues to be an issue.  Hopefully this will be resolved soon.  It's getting to the point where he is too old to be wearing water wings.

The Beach

We have just returned from our yearly beach vacation to Fernandina Beach, Fl.  I have quite a few pictures that I'm planning to post, so I'm going to split them up. These first few were my favorite pictures taken on the beach or in the ocean.

Beach games like cornhole and ladder ball are always a big hit with adults and kids alike.

 Boogie boarding continues to be the kids' favorite beach activity.  The news was reporting the possibility of rip currents due to the previous week's tropical storm, so we made the kids wear water wings when they went into the ocean.

Brian decided to show the kids his boarding skills.

Fireworks

We celebrated the Fourth this year by eating hamburgers and boiled peanuts.  Later in the evening, the kids went to see the fireworks with their daddy.  I didn't go because we were leaving the next morning for the beach (and I was tired from packing).  Everyone reported that they had a great time and that the fireworks were good this year.  There was a family parked near Brian that had a little boy and girl. Olivia and Owen enjoyed playing with these kids while waiting for the fireworks to begin.

Mary Poppins

This year's kid-friendly show presented by the Peach State Summer Theater Series was the play "Mary Poppins".  As usual, we attended with Granny Mel.  Julianna was old enough to go this year, and Natalie and Audrey also joined us.  Prior to the show we had a delicious meal at Cheddar's.  The kids all loved the show and have been singing the songs from it ever since. We are always so impressed by the performance, and we love spending this time with Granny Mel.