Our Happy Place - OBX 2015

We just returned from 10 days at the Outer Banks.  This is the longest trip we have taken down there and the extension was well worth the money.  10 days of relaxing, playing on the beach, in the pool and just having good family time.  It's our happy place.

We arrived on Thursday (but not before stopping at the best BBQ place in the world and gorging ourselves plus getting some to go) and checked into the Best Western Hotel.  Little Man has started referring to it as the Not-So-Best Western - but while it wasn't the Ritz, it was clean and it was the beach.  Usually we are all so excited when we arrive that everyone heads straight to the water and get right in without changing clothes.  But this year, knowing we couldn't check into the hotel yet and we didn't have a beach house to change in, we changed into our suits in the car and then hit the water.  It was perfect and the boys were jumping in the waves within minutes.  Peanut was having a ton of fun in the water this year and had no fear of the coming waves and Little Man was thrilled to have a playmate out in the deeper water with him.


After two days in the hotel and a few forts on the luggage cart, we headed to our friend's beach house for the day until we could check into our house.  This year we stayed in Southern Shores instead of South Nags Head.  We liked the location change but will likely end up back in South Nags Head next year.

We traded beach front for a private pool with a semi-beach front property.  This was a good exchange but I missed the relaxation of a beach front property for my morning coffee.  We do think that the private pool is worth the location exchange though. 

Every day was beautiful and we spent a lot of time at the beach and in the pool in the backyard.  When we needed a break from the sun, we went go-carting, mini-golfing, bumper cars, laser tagging and ate and ate and ate.

Highlights:
1. Watching Peanut take on the waves like he was born in the ocean
2. Taking walks on the beach with the kids.  We went on two different walks and it was when I had some of the best conversations with the kids including talking to them about their worries with school starting back up and their favorite parts of summer.
3.  Playing games especially Tenzi's with the kids for hours
4.  Watching Sweet Pea spin and smile in the bumper cars
5.  Playing pool games with all of the kids.

Next year, we want to figure out how to go for two weeks.  It's our happy place.  Sweet Pea woke up in tears this morning because she wished she was waking up at the beach.