Ocean Isle 2009

Well, we're back from our very first family vacation. We went to Ocean Isle Beach for our anniversary over Labor Day weekend. It was not only Brianna's first vacation, but the first time we'd all three be sleeping in such close quarters in many, many weeks. We weren't sure how that was going to go over. We had ordered a Pack 'N' Play for our room for Brianna to sleep in, but I didn't think that was going to work. She doesn't like staying in our Pack 'N' Play for any extended amount of time. We ended up having two queen beds in our room, so she slept in one and we slept in one.

Saturday, the first day we were there, was pretty uneventful. We got there in the afternoon, so by the time we ate lunch and fed Brianna and unpacked, it was almost time to meet the Kirbys over in Calabash for dinner! So we lounged a bit, watching TV and vegging out. That night we met Matt, Jenn, and Claire at Dockside for some AWESOME seafood! It was really good, and nice to get out and venture around to see what was near us. Unfortunately, we happened upon a multitude of thrift shops - all closed or getting ready to be - and the only day we were going to have for shopping was Sunday! Darn! Anyway, dinner that night was so much fun, even when Brianna threw a hissy fit. Brianna has really become grabby lately, and she used that technique when faced with Claire. So they got to know each other really well!

Saturday we did go down to the beach pretty early. We wanted to buy an umbrella from our hotel for the day, so Bri wouldn't be stuck out in the sun. Unfortunately, it was really overcast - the water was FREEZING - and the wind was insane. We stuck it out for probably 45 minutes or an hour, but you could tell Bri just wasn't happy with the wind, and it was really too cool to lay out or swim anyway. We opted to go back to our room and hang out until lunchtime.








At lunchtime, we got sandwiches from Subway and headed off to a local vineyard - Silver Coast Winery. We knew they had a picnic area, so we skipped the tour and wine tasting and went straight for the food! Afterwards, we walked through the vineyard. They have a thing at this particular vineyard where you can pick your own muscadine grapes (which just happen to be my very favorite!) for just $1.00 a pound! They gave us a box to fill. I definitely overestimated my picking abilities, because by the time I was done we barely had a pound. The guy told us to fill our box with however much we wanted, but I didn't want to be greedy because I'm the only one in the house who will eat them. Yummylicious!!





That evening, we went back to the beach because it had stormed earlier (bye bye umbrella from the hotel) so everything was much calmer. This time, I had the Bjorn in tow, which made Brianna very happy. We walked in one direction for about 45 minutes, and then Stephen went back to the hotel to get the camera while Bri and I picked up seashells for Nenah. We also watched a little turtle struggle in the sand until I got too depressed watching him. I hope he made it back to the ocean but I'm not sure - he might have become a dog's snack before making it back. That night we went to a local pizzeria for dinner - Joey O's - and it was very much like Bob's Pizza here in Southern Pines!





Sunday morning we headed back home. We were home by lunchtime and started getting things together to have a cookout. It was delicious, except that Brianna fussed all night long. I thought it was because she hadn't napped since noon and it was 7:30pm, but Stephen thought her stomach was bothering her. Well, we never bothered to buy gas drops for her, so we went out on an adventure, thinking if nothing else, riding around town would soothe her. NOT. She cried the whole way to Food Lion, who we found does not carry infant gas drops. (What???) She cried to Rite Aid, who carries gas drops but was out of stock. And then she cried to Walgreens where we found an abundance of brands of gas drops - thank you Lord!! I rode home with her in the back seat, where I gave her one dose just in case it was her stomach that hurt. But as soon as I started holding her hand and singing "Michelle" by the Beatles (replace "Michelle" with "Bri-bell") she quieted down immediately. She was then quiet throughout the rest of the ride, her bath with Stephen, her bottle, and nursing. Then she slept for ten hours, ate for 30 minutes, and slept another two hours, ate another 30 minutes or so, and slept another 1 1/2 hours. Unfortunately that last nap took place in my arms, so I got nothing done except I watched a movie. But nothing around here is really that important anyway. I just wanted her to get caught up on sleep, bless her heart!!

Making soup now while she's in the Johnny Jump-Up so I better go before she gets fussy!!