Last Day at the Beach and To the Train Museum

Our condo was a 1 bedroom (where Lewis slept) with a pull-out queen couch bed (where Kevin and I slept) and a twin bed built into the hallway. That was a nice nap spot, and it was also the best spot to get wi-fi, so we spent a lot of time in there. Lewis liked to snuggle up there, and he asked Kevin to take our picture Friday morning:

Friday was our last full day of vacation, so we spent the morning at the beach/pool, and then we decided to go into Wilmington to the train museum (because there was a chance of afternoon storms). In hindsight, Kevin and I would have enjoyed the day more just lazing around, but Lewis seemed to like the museum and ice cream afterwards.

Here are our last pics from the beach: 

 Catch me if you can, wave! 

Look, Mom! A tiny, tiny shell!

I was glad that he actually got into looking for shells--he'd run up and show me when he found one he liked. We collected some to bring home with us--his favorites were the hinged ones that were still attached because they looked like butterflies. 

We hit up the pool one last time, ate lunch, and then headed on our way. We decided to skip nap since he'd been napping 2 or even 3 hours in the afternoon all week (and the museum closed at 5pm). Of course just 15-20 minutes from the museum (it was in Wilmington), he fell asleep. We let him sleep a little in the car before waking him to go into the museum--he was instantly excited again, despite not getting enough sleep:

 Parked at the museum, waiting

His favorite part was probably the big train out front (that I took his and Kevin's picture in front of). He was bummed that it didn't move, but he liked the sounds that they played inside that made it SEEM like we might possibly be moving. :) 

And then we discovered that we could ring the bell. :)

  It was very hot, especially inside the train. :)

Afterwards, we went to get some ice cream, followed by dinner:

Eating ice cream on a street corner in Wilmington

Cone first, of course, as he likes to do. :)

After dinner, we headed back to get Lewis to bed, pack up, and load the car. As I walked outside with some bags, I noticed that the sky was a very ominous shade of black, and it started to thunder and lightning. We ended up getting everything loaded up just before the storm reached us--I've never seen such crazy rain! We could barely see off of our patio, and I felt the building shake for a few seconds. I checked to see if we were under a severe threat, but there was nothing except a flooding advisory. I guess their storms are just different from our storms. It was crazy!

 The apocalypse

So that was our trip! We had a great week and are already thinking of next year. The drive home was a little longer than we'd planned, due to hitting traffic a few times--we left Surf City at 8:15am and got home at 9:45pm. By 7pm, Kevin and I were defeated and ready to be home. Lewis only napped for an hour all day and was still up when we got home, but he was still pretty good in the car. We'd split the drive up on the way down, so the all day drive was a bit much, but we made it!

And while we were away, our yard/gardens/weeds went crazy, so I'll be spending the next week trying to get things under control again.

Pool Time and The Belly at the Beach

Thursday we switched things up and went to the pool in the morning instead of the beach. Such rebels, I know. :) It was really nice to slow down and only have to make a few decisions a day...beach or pool, lunch out or dinner out, nap or no nap, etc.

Lewis' favorite spot all week was the pool--he loved playing with the other kids, mostly. Some weren't interested in playing with him, while others were very sweet. There was a particularly sweet brother-sister who spent a long while asking him every question under the sun, all age-appropriate (favorite color, food, drink, best friend, etc.). He happily answered them while Kevin and I eavesdropped and giggled at his answers.

There were some sweet sisters who invited him to play a game (fetching rings in the water) with them the last day, too, which he enjoyed. He also told anyone who would listen that he had gone to the battleship and on a boat ride (and later in the week, the train museum). He was happy as could be, floating around and chatting people up. It made me happy to see him so happy. :)

 The pool had a nice shallow entry, so we were able to sit in the water (to stay cool) and sun ourselves while Lewis swam around. 

 Snack Time

:)

After nap that day, we headed down to the beach to try to get some belly pictures. We'd taken some at 16 weeks at the Pacific Ocean (on our trip to L.A.), so I wanted to get one of this one at 22 weeks at the Atlantic.

16 weeks in Malibu

22 Weeks in Surf City

'twas just a little bit windy!

 Water collection is serious business.

We planned to play at the beach some that evening, but the wind was blowing so hard, sand was pelting us. :( We hit up the pool, instead.

Lewis was pretty tired by the end of the day, so Kevin carried him back to the condo:

 My sweet boy and his dad. :)

Building an Ocean and Visiting the Playground and Pier

Wednesday morning, we were met at the beach with low tide and got to experience the tide coming in. We had to move our chairs and umbrella three different times because it came in much more quickly than we expected. We moved everything 'definitely far enough back' (I think those my words) and took a walk to look for shells, and when we got back, the waves had totally come in and gotten our stuff (camera, included!), wet. (It looked like just a wave or two made it far enough up to reach our stuff, but still.) Thankfully everything dried out and nothing was ruined.

Another family had dug a huge hole in the sand, so Lewis wanted us to try something similar. As the tide came in, it filled with water and became his ocean. He was so cute, showing us his ocean like a little tour guide (complete with Vanna White arm motions). 'Look at my ocean.' 'This is my ocean.'

 Mama, LOOK!

Splashing in his ocean

Eventually the real ocean swallowed up Lewis' ocean, and the fun was over. :)

 Snack/Water Break in the shade

That afternoon/evening, we headed into town (just up the road) to the playground and pier.

  He got to that point (with some assistance) and said, 'All done!'

 These docks and walkways were surrounding the sound/waterway that you cross to get to the island.

 Heading to the pier--it was very windy!

The pier itself was very long and high above the water, and the wind made us feel like Lew might just get blown over (thankfully that didn't happen). :) We got to see a lot of fishermen/women up there, as well as random bits of shrimp and fish that were bait or catches or something.

 Drink Upland :)

Another lovely day.