Tomorrow is the first day I have to go back to work. No more sleeping in (okay, the latest I can sleep anymore is 7 but no alarms woke me up for 2 weeks), no more spending the day on nursery projects, no more napping in the middle of the day, no more staying up late with Logan. Alas.
And to make matters worse, no more beach walking, which is what we did last week. We took a vacation down to Hilton Head Island and loved every minute of the ocean waves, sunshine, and amazing food. Not that we can say it was terribly warm, but still warmer than central Indiana! And did I mention the ocean?
The 13+ hour drive was a bit of an adventure though.
The problem was Kentucky. Or rather, Kentucky’s awful weather–a combination of light snow, iced over roads, and blowing winds made driving conditions horrible. We stopped for a 30 car pileup that happened 4 hours before, traffic slowed down to barely moving because the foothills of the mountains were so icy, and my poor husband was stuck doing all the driving himself. I’m no help in weather like that–the best thing I could do was distract myself so I didn’t gasp, clench my hands, or being completely obnoxiously anxious while he was getting through it! Needless to say, we stopped for the night much sooner than we had wanted.
Day 2 of driving was much less dramatic. We got to HH around 5:30 and checked into a cute little condo. And promptly started figuring out where to eat. We ended up at Guiseppie’s Pizza, which was a fabulous choice! Logan asked our waitress for some other good places to try , so we were ready for the next few days. (He started the conversation with, “We’re tourists”, to which she probably thought, “Well, duh!” in her cute SC accent!). The rest of the night was pretty much spent relaxing, because we were pretty exhausted from the drive. The baby did kick Logan in the head when he was laying down watching tv, which I found hilarious. Her first scolding from daddy 🙂
Village at Palmetto Dunes
Our two full days in Hilton Head were pretty similar–sleep late, walk on the beach, eat lunch, more driving/walking around, nap, eat dinner, relax. Really, what more could you ask for on a vacation?
The beach was a 5-minute walk from where we were staying. It was pretty chilly in the mornings when we went, but it is winter. There’s just something so relaxing about hearing the waves roll in, crunching little shells under your shoes (it almost sounded like bubble wrap), and seeing the sun reflect off the water. Ahh, happy sigh.
The afternoon of the first day we spent in Sea Pines Resort, which has lots of little shops, condos, restaurants, and a marina. This is a great area to rent bikes and ride through all of the amazing condos and houses, but at 30 weeks pregnant, my balance isn’t good enough for me to try it (my balance is pretty bad even without a gigantic baby bump). So, we spent most of our time there by the edge of the water. There were two dolphins playing, which was a new sight for me. The pelicans were good for a laugh as they dove down to try and catch a fish–Logan did see one that was successful! And the boats! At one part of the marina, there were a bunch of red rocking chairs so you could just sit and watch the boats. We must have sat there, warming in the sun, for over an hour, just watching the boats bob in the water and figure out how we could one day retire to the ocean (we decided it would take a huge overhaul in both of our careers… or the lottery).
We spent most of our day at the beach on Thursday. The weather was much warmer and the sun shines all the time at HH! Love! We even took off our shoes and ventured into the water. And by ventured, I mean we got close enough to the waves that they washed over our feet. So COLD! But can you really go to the ocean and not put your feet in the water… even in winter? I think not! Then it was like an addiction, and every couple of minutes, we’d head back into the water. Once we let the water come up over our ankles! I really felt like we were little kids again, such fun!
One last beautiful walk on the beach Friday, and we had to go. But we got to see a dolphin before we left our little spot of happiness.
And the food! Oh my, we’re definitely going to have to change our diet when we get home, because we’re drowning in amazing food! Wednesday lunch was at the British Open Pub where we had amazing fish and chips. And Bavarian pretzels. Yum! Then for dinner, we went to Skull Creek Boathouse, which is where our waitress from the night before recommended. She was right! We started out with sushi–spicy tuna for Logan and tempera shrimp for me. All fresh, caught from local waters, recently. Amazing. For dinner it was pecan ginger crushed mahi mahi and stuffed flounder. With notes on the bottom of the menu that said “Today’s fresh catch was swimming yesterday.” I love seafood anyway, but there’s something so wonderful about eating such fresh fish at a marina! Thursday we went to Fuddruckers for lunch. Amazing burgers and a chocolate shake. Then for dinner, we got a chance to meet up with some neighbors of Logan’s when he was a kid. I love hearing stories of him and his family! Friday morning before we left, we stopped at the Island Bagel Company for fresh made bagel sandwiches and great coffee.
The drive home was wonderfully uneventful. Logan drove all the way through, and we made it home to collapse into our own bed. As much as I love vacationing… and the beach… I do love coming back home. The harsh reality will come tomorrow morning when the alarm goes off at 6:00, and I have to make it through a whole day of work. Ugh.
a project at a time 
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