My Summer Vacation

Things I Loved About My Summer Vacation in the Outer Banks

by Sara Justice

The excitement of the trip that we planned months ago with my parents and my sister's family.

Going to the Outer Banks for the first time, I love new vacation spots!

Duck, NC - such a FUN little area. One day we took Campbell and Taylor to the playground there and to walk out these tremendously long decks over the sound. (The playground didn't last long because Taylor's "legs didn't work" she said, but we had fun anyway).

The beach house. It was big enough to hold us all very comfortably and well-furnished. We were skeptical of a pet friendly beach house we found online, but it turned out great!

Taking Lexi on vacation. She was an angel!

The story from the last day when Lexi ate my Mom's turkey sandwich on the deck, walked inside, and ate my Dad's hot dog off the kitchen counter! HA! She deserved a big lunch after being soooo good all week.

Hanging out with my family for a full week. Priceless.

Twelve adult hands. Everything is easier when there are more babysitters around!

The Hangover. And going to the movies in general! Travis and I hadn't done that since Campbell was born, so it was great to get out and see a hilarious movie with my husband!

"Baby Campbell is a really nice girl." Taylor must have told me this a thousand times and I thought it was adorable each time she said it.

Learning firsthand where the phrase "terrible two's" came from. There's nothing terrible about my niece, don't take that the wrong way. I love her to pieces and was glad to finally witness one of these silly tantrums I've been hearing about for months. As Jen and Leif like to put it, she is really embracing this whole two year old thing. :)

GrandDeb and a rocking chair. My mom had a gift for rocking my baby to sleep on the porch at the beach house, which was much appreciated!

Having a pool in the backyard.

Having a hot tub on the deck.

Drinking champagne before noon and not feeling guilty about it.

Taking our precious daughter to the beach for the first time!

Walking on the beach with my husband. Sounds cheesy, but it really is one of my favorite things to do.

Campbell's ability to hold her own bottle is now mastered (if she's in the mood)!

Winning at the family Scattergories tournament. Making fun of my mom's whacky answers and teasing my dad when he left answers blank.

Learning how to play Texas Hold 'Em. I know you will find this shocking, but I do NOT have a good pokerface.

Matching outfits for Campbell and her cousin, Taylor. Courtesy of GrandDeb and GrandDad.

Campbell making CRAZY progress in the crawling arena. She went from being nowhere close to being very close in one week! We had no exersaucers or chairs or anything, so she spent most of her time sitting on the floor. I think that's why she figured out so many new tricks in a week! She can now lean from a sitting position over to her hands and knees, and scoots around a little bit. She's almost mobile!! (this picture was actually taken when we got home)

Matching pajamas. By total coincidence, Taylor and Campbell had on the same pj's the first night. Too cute!

Seafood.

Drumroll...watching my sister's belly grow. Not because she ate too much seafood. Because Baby H2 will be joining us around Valentine's Day of 2010! Campbell is very excited to have a new cousin on the way. I can't wait to be an aunt again!

Things I Was Disappointed In:

The water temperature of the ocean. It was absolutely freezing! Hardly anyone was in the water. It was ridiculously cold - no frolicking in the subzero waves for me! :(

The spider incident. On our last day, I was in the pool and felt something on my forehead. I thought I shewed away a bug, until a minute later when my mom saw a gigantic spider on my head. HUGE, people, this spider was BIG, ask anyone who was there. When she flicked it off my head, it had babies. Like hundreds of them. So then I was covered in tiny spiders. Yeah, freaked out. In fact, I still feel like they are crawling all over me. :(

The long drive to get there and back.

Stupid rules that dogs aren't allowed on the beach between Memorial Day and Labor Day. I was so excited to walk Lexi in the surf and we never got too. Oh well...

My picture taking. I don't have any pictures of Travis and I together with Campbell. None of the whole family. None of my mom for some reason. And not nearly enough down at the beach because I forgot my camera one day!

The fact that vacation has to end.