Tag Archives: ocean

Outer Banks Vacation: An Early Lull

Day three of our Outer Banks Vacation found us with zero plans for the day. No sights to see or activities to do, just sand, water, and waves at our disposal.

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Exactly as we planned…..to have no plans.

Before leaving, I spoke with some neighbor friends who just returned from the beach with their two toddlers and they mentioned regretting spending so much time trying to do and see things. As they were leaving to come back home, they asked their kids what they enjoyed the most, and they just replied “the beach.” After going places, spending money on sightseeing and activities, toddlers still appreciate the free things in life the most.

outer banks vacation, family, travel, ocean, beach, fun

What our friends said made sense, and sticking with doing what you do on a beach vacation, go to the beach, Avery confirmed we made the best choice. Thank you, neighbors, for such an obviously simple tip when traveling with tots. We’ll have plenty of time when she’s older and wants to do things that require effort (and money), so why rush it?

I woke up earlier than the girls to go for a walk. After climbing down from my top bunk sleeping quarters, my two beautiful girls looked too precious to wake. Instead, I snapped a pic and left for a walk to let them sleep. Ahhh, having no plans/deadlines is great!

outer banks vacation, family, travel, ocean, beach, fun

Upon returning, I prepared breakfast using the jumbo lump crab from our meal the night before.

Fresh seafood never gets old, and I would argue it’s perfect for any meal of the day. This helped fuel are day of no plans.

Now don’t mistake having no plans as just lounging around. We kept active riding the waves, teaching Avery how to boogie board (aka we hold her on top and let her float), and searching for seashells in the sand. Oh, and flying over the water with Daddy.

outer banks, vacation, family, north carolina, beach, ocean

Taking Beach 101 made that Monday, our third vacation day, zoom by. We had lots of fun under a partially covered sun, which I’m sure Uncle Preston appreciated after his neapolitan burn the prior day.

I'm not blushing........
I’m not blushing……..

When you’re having fun, sometimes thinking of food goes by the wayside. Our stomachs finally cried out in protest which brought us home for lunch. After cooking a quick lunch of sweet potatoes, broccoli, and goat cheese (staples in and away from home), Avery took a nap while Going Mom and I went for a walk together.

The walking during naptime became something we’d do almost every day as G-Ma happily stayed to keep watch. An added bonus of this is that Avery always wakes up much happier when G-Ma greets her.

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With most of the day over, we spent the remainder of the day at the beach house. Avery kept everyone entertained as she ran around singing and getting into everything. We tried to scold her, but she would simply turn on her best defenses for which are powers were no match.

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Damn cute kid! Before turning in for good and having dinner, we made one last trip to the beach to take a quick dip in the mineral rich waters and walk barefoot in the sand to look for more seashells. Avery would do some form of dancing yoga to celebrate when she found a shell.

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Not sure where she gets it, but it sure does make us smile. Then it was back to the beach house for more smiles with G-Ma before turning in for the night.

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The next day had more in store, including ocean kayaking and long family walks on the beach, so getting a good night’s rest was essential. Day three was a lull, but far from lacking by any means.

Ocean Jubilation: #MySundayPhoto

We returned from a family beach vacation in Corolla, NC a week ago. It was Avery’s first time to see the ocean, and everyone’s first time in the Outer Banks. I’m sharing our trip via posts one day at time. As I write this, I only have up to day two written, but the biggest takeaway has already been established; Avery loves the ocean!

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From the first day to the last, our sweetheart relished her time on the beach. This picture, taken by my wife, captures her jubilation perfectly.

Spending time together in the salty water and sandy shores had us bonding as a family with experiences. No big plans to manage, just pure fun enjoying life’s simple pleasures together.

If you care, you may follow along in more details as I share each day of our trip. Check out our first day of just getting there and our second day soaking up all the ocean has to offer. Make sure to check back for the rest of the days. Not sure how long it will be, but the entire trip will hopefully be re-lived soon enough.

A big thanks to Darren and his never dull #MySundayPhoto linkup. Check out his blog full of beautiful pics and join in on the#MySundayPhoto action!

Photalife

Outer Banks Vacation: My Neapolitan Brother

With our first day mostly spent travelling to our Outer Banks beach house destination, everyone was eager to spend the second day on the beach soaking up the sun. And that’s exactly what we did. More so for some, like my brother, than others, as he turned into a human form of Neapolitan ice cream.

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Not so much chocolate as strawberry and vanilla, but I’d make the argument he’s neapolitan-ish. All of us were like….

Popcorn Sunburn Joke Meme

But hey, you live you learn burn, right? He was in obvious pain almost the rest of the trip, but he handled it quite well. I’m sure his best friends Bud and Jack helped.

Going Mom, Avery, and I made sure to cover up with our skin-safe Badger Sunscreen and enjoyed our beach experience with only minimal burn. Not bad considering how long we spent digging in the sand and playing in the waves. The calm ocean waves made for a perfect first beach experience for Avery.

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Not a lot of people out there, but more came as the time passed. No crazy crowds though, which made it perfect for a family-friendly vacation. My top two goals for Avery’s first trip to the beach were to dig a big hole in the sand and play in the waves with her. Both were accomplished on the first day.

Playing in sand on beach with mommy and daddy
Taking a break after digging a family-sized hole

Even G-Ma got in on the hole digging action.

We’re digging to China! #beach #obx #outerbanks #funinthesun #familyfun #firsts

A photo posted by RC Liley (@going_dad) on

We were so close to China! I swear I could hear labors working hard on cheap plastic products to ship to the U.S. That’s when we decided to stop and make use of the abundant water resource (aka ocean) to wash off the sand and sweat.

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Avery took a few surfing lessons with good form.

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After riding the waves, Avery seemed to have a newfound pride/confidence exuding from within. What do you think?

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Yeah, I’m awesome

Our first day on the beach was a blast, and our daughter’s love of the ocean was confirmed.

A photo posted by RC Liley (@going_dad) on


From all of the family fun we had on day one, there’s no question we’ll make another trip to the ocean for a future family vacation. One of my other priorities while by the sea was to take advantage of the fresh, local seafood every day. For the first night, the seafood du jour was jumbo lump crab with chunks of avocado and a generous serving of veggies.

A photo posted by RC Liley (@going_dad) on

Kelley and Avery loved the crab. It was Avery’s first crab experience, and she was anything but crabby about it. Yeah yeah, I know, I’m corny. I was surprised that my wife, not the biggest fan of seafood, even enjoyed the meal. The three of us ate different meals than everyone else most of the time, but we did get to sit down together a few times.

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Not a very clear picture, but I think it adds to the excitement felt by all. From left to right, that’s my cousin Aaron, grandma at the end of the table, and G-Ma, Avery, and my wife/Kelley/Going Mom. Avery could hardly sit still during dinner ever, but luckily G-Ma acted as a human restraint for the restless tot.

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To top off the fun-filled day full of all play, no work (the exact opposite of The Shining for good reason), we watched the sun set behind a bushel of fluffy storm clouds emitting thunder and lightning.

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A thunderstorm rolled by that night, but didn’t last long. Good thing, because we had more plans for family fun on the beach ahead!