(We returned from our vacation several days ago, but I have been so sick and couldn’t stand the thought of getting out of bed, much less updating this blog! I am still in bed, but I am finally well enough to post about our vacation)
We had such a blast! Since we live 13 hours away from our destination, we drove to Virginia and stayed overnight in a hotel. Ethan loved being in a new place and spent the whole time walking around exploring.
The next day, we finished the long drive to South Carolina and hit Tropical Storm Cristobal. Leave it to us to head towards a huge storm on our vacation! It was okay, though…it forced us to go to bed early that first night!
Since it was raining our first full day there, we decided to head to Ripley’s Aquarium. So cool! Most of the pictures we took didn’t turn out because of the lighting. Here are a few!
We were fortunate enough to be able to stay with relatives! Garrett’s Aunt Brenda and Uncle Mike were so gracious and opened up their beautiful house to us. They live there full-time (lucky ducks!) and are only a block from the beach. One of our favorite parts of the whole trip was driving their golf cart around town! Normally, I am a huge stickler for Ethan sitting safely in a car seat, but I let go of my neuroses for the golf cart rides. He loved it and cried when we would stop. Our next goal is to buy a golf cart of our own:)
Ethan’s first walk on the beach was so much better than we thought it would be. He really took to it and wanted to walk everywhere!
Here are some pictures of our first “real” day at the beach. We brought along a little baby pool for Ethan to sit in and we were so thankful that we did. He loved it! He probably would have spent all day in that thing if we let him.
On our last full day on vacation, we took Ethan to a place called Leaps N Bounce. It was basically a huge warehouse full of bouncy houses. It was great! We also got to meet two of Ethan’s cousins, Kelsey and Meghan. Everyone had a great time.
We had to stop at a place called “South of the Border” on our journey back home. For anyone who hasn’t heard of it or hasn’t been there, it is the strangest place on earth. It is a place all its own. Located off of Route 95 somewhere between the border or North and South Carolina, South of the Border was built to resemble a Mexican City. It has a hotel “resort”, a small amusement park, gift shops, weird statues, and food stands. We only stayed for a short while because my stomach couldn’t handle the yuckiness of it all, but I am glad we stopped in. Interesting, to say the least:)
On our way home, we had to make several stops to get Ethan out of the car and burn off energy. My favorite stop was at some random mall in Maryland. We had so much fun watching Ethan in the little play area. He loved riding on all the cars.
Even though we had such a good time, it was so great to get back home. I think we learned our lesson though… no more long drives with a one-year old. Ethan was a trooper, but it definitely took its toll on all of us. I think next year we will vacation much closer to home.
Hayley
Hayley Crouse is a wife, mother and multifaceted designer. Her love of sewing, crafting, cooking and interior design infuses her daily life and naturally spills over into her online presence. She pushes the envelope of her creativity and hopes that others will be inspired to do the same. She currently authors the Welcome to the Mouse House Blog, is the pattern designer behind Mouse House Creations and is a collaborative designer with Willow & Co. Patterns.
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Awesome!!! Now I have to go back and read all of the other stuff I’ve missed (bad blogger Pauline).
I just love the beach pictures. It does sound like you had a great time. And be aware as soon as the kids can talk it goes, I have to go potty, are we there you, I am hungry, I need a drink, I am bored, are we there yet (again and again) as soon as you left the drive way. LOL
Looks like it was a fun trip, minus the getting sick. I love, love, love the picture of Garrett and Ethan at the beach.
I loved seeing your vacation photos! I hope you are feeling better soon.
Good stuff. Glad you had fun!
Next time you drive down you can stay with us or at least stop by for a break!
I cannot believe you made that long car trip with a 1 year-old. I am glad you had a good time, but I hope you feel better soon. I hope going to South of the Border isn’t what made you sick. I love the picture of the back of Garrett and Ethan. It is so sweet!
What fun! Too bad you got sick though! Hope you are feeling better!
Looks like you had a great time. I really love the photo of Ethan & Garrett standing on the beach facing the ocean. It’s an adorable picture. (Adam thinks so too.) 😉
I’m also very familiar with South of the Border. We never stopped in, but as a kid, my family drove to Florida several times. We would always pass it & you could just tell from the outside that it was quite an interesting place!
I love the picture of Garrett and Ethan facing the ocean too. It looks like it’s out of a magazine or something. I would seriously blow that thing up and hang it in the living room. You take great pics Hayley!