Sigh....

It's Saturday night and we're all ready (physically, not emotionally) to leave the beach house tomorrow morning.  We had a dinner of especially good left-overs (scampi, grilled chicken) and salad.  Anne and I emptied out the refrigerator and cabinets of all that we can't leave behind.  The last load is in the dishwasher.  Beach towels are in the dryer.  It won't take much for any of us to pull our things together tomorrow and be on our way.  We had our last beach day today, a few hours under a cloudy but friendly sky.  The waves were strong and quick, and I was tossed but landed on my feet.  I didn't stay too long in the waves.  There was quality time to enjoy under the canopy.  We could see the rain coming in from the sea, a sheet of gray transparency approaching from a distance, and it arrived too soon, sending most beach-goers packing, and quickly.   It was a good beach week -- we were able to spend a good amount of time there every day -- and the rain was polite enough to wait until we had all had a good time.

After the beach, Anne, Kristin, and I stopped at a local shopping center.  I wanted to find a little something for Henry, and an even littler something for his October-arriving baby brother.  Last year I found Henry little Crocs that he wore until they were just too small.  This year, I found a navy blue zip-up hoodie with "Emerald Isle" embroidered on the front.  New baby gets a onesie with a lobster on the front that says "got butter?".  Cute.

Anne and Will are playing checkers right now, and she just triple-jumped him.  There was whooping and holloring that could be heard a mile away!  Now they're back into the game, contemplating the next move, and the move after that.  I can feel the tension!  Checkers is a wonderful game, and we always play it at the beach house.  I seem to never play it anywhere else. 

To wrap up this wonderful week, here are some pictures that will provide me happy memories for a long time to come.

Beach House Entry

John Peeling Shrimp

Seashells Against a Dune Fence

Nightstand Books

Patrick and Frisbee

Will being Creative

Midnight Golf Cart Ride (who knew we had no headlights?!)

Bishop Boys Stargazing

(They saw a bunch of shooting stars!)

Row of Beach Houses

So long, Captain's Quarters!  Good-bye Emerald Isle. 

Thanks for a GREAT vacation.

You will be missed!

Photos:  by me