This is our fifth year in this borrowed beach house, but only the second time E has been able to come. Technically he was there for 24 hours last year, but I did the 2 day drive by myself so that doesn’t count as being there. He drove this year, the whole way, and I got to sleep and hand stuff to the kids in the back which is the perfect start to vacation. It turns out Linc is an amazing road tripper and his presence barely slowed us down, so the driving was well worth the end result.

Kiawah is amazing. It’s an incredible vacation just because of the setting, but the key to a true dream vacation is to have more bathrooms than you have adults. Never having to wait for a bathroom or use a bathroom on the same floor where everyone is eating or worry someone is hearing you in the bathroom or having to take a cold shower because everyone else used up the hot water is an amazing luxury. It’s why rich people are so much happier than regular people. Bathrooms.

Bathrooms are especially key when the main sources of beach house entertainment are eating and drinking and drinking. We’ve gotten pretty good at our menu and consolidating our shopping down to two big trips and then only a few smaller trips for emergency supplies (like limes, and another 5 pound bag of sugar since we managed to use the first one up in less than 36 hours). There was cake and more cake and an apple crisp and Lowcountry Boil, which is seafood and corn and sausage, and Bo Ssam, which is huge plates of pork with rice and lettuce and ginger sauce, and one thousand cocktails, which is the appropriate number of cocktails on vacation. We ate until we could barely move and then we played cards, because even though we were on vacation we are all responsible adults now and can’t get falling down drunk at 2 pm. I like cards better than throwing up anyway.

I took thousands and thousands of pictures, culled and edited them down to several hundred, and I uploaded exactly 100 photos for this post. I know that’s a ridiculous number and I ought to feel bad about my self-indulgence, especially because even though there were 7 adults and 6 kids at the beach house 99% of my pictures of just of my children. But I don’t. While we were in the kitchen, trying to remember specifics from previous years, one of my friends pulled up pictures from a previous year. I was surprised she still had them on her laptop, but she said actually she didn’t, she just looked at them on my blog. So it’s my duty to document this glorious vacation for posterity. Or at least so I can show the kids in a couple months and remind them that they are some very lucky children.

Previous years: 2011 2012 2013 2014

There is a hair in my lens. It makes that shadow in the top right and the line just left and below center. If I print anything I will take the time to clone it out, but for now I don’t care enough. It ONLY shows when I photograph landscapes/sky at 28mm.

Vacation is over as of bedtime tonight, so back to regular life we go. But if ever my children say we never did anything fun with them, I have tons of photographic proof their childhoods were MAGICAL.

Sunday:

Linc felt he needed a snack JUST as the tide started coming in.

Boogie boarding

The Russian judge only gave them a 8.7

Monday:

It’s Pims O’Clock – time for Pims Cups and cards

He likes the beach house

I love the beach house

Tuesday:

Good bye bunk room

Good bye pluff mud

HELLO LAKE HOUSE

Wednesday:

Topless at Walmart, because we’re super classy

Drinking and boating (when you’re 4.5)

Drinking and boating (when you’re 1)

Thursday:

Water fun

Bucket head

Poor baby has no idea he isn’t a big kid who can kayak

Friday:

Linc loves the ugly couch

On your anniversary you don’t have to split a dessert

Happy 11 years to us

Saturday:

How many guys does it take to deflate an air mattress?

It’s a good thing he was wrapped or he would have climbed right onto that horse

Evening cruising and tubing and water skiing and kneeboarding

Want to hear something crazy? Even though we’ve been on vacation almost 2 weeks when we get home we get to have a staycation for a few days. We plan to alternate between doing all the things and doing nothing (preferably at the lake) so we can enjoy the last days of summer before school starts. I’m not ready for school. This year I have two lunches to pack every day and there is nothing I hate more than packing lunches.

Oh, the beach house. Why can’t real life be like the beach house?

If you haven’t been reading for years, the beach house belongs to the uncle of one of my friends. He allows us to borrow it once a year for a long weekend. It has 6 bedrooms, each with their own private bath, a huge kitchen, 3 wine fridges, a fully stocked (with alcohol) butler’s pantry, every TV channel ever, a deck and private pool, and beach access to an always deserted private beach. Everything about the beach house is nicer than my own house, including the dishes and beds and beach toys. There is a planter full of herbs that grows on the deck, so if you need fresh basil for dinner it’s right there. The towels and sheets are color coded to the bedrooms, so the cleaning service can put them all back in the right place when we leave. I imagine the beach house is what life is like for celebrities every day.

This year we went from three kids at the beach house to SIX kids at the beach house, ranging in age from 2 months (Linc!) to five years (Evan!). The number of adults actually fell. The weather wasn’t very good and I only made it down to the actual beach once and I drove alone for two days each way to get there AND my car broke down 10 miles from Kiawah…but it was still an amazing vacation.

The beach house is lucky. It turned out my car just had a dead battery, the baby slept through the night, and my often-missing husband even made it to the house for a very brief visit. It was so great to see my friends and talk about life and jobs and changes and babies. We’re already planning for next year’s trip (and saving up for a nanny, since we’ll have 6 actual kids, rather than 3 and 3 babies). I can’t wait.

Having kids at the same time as your friends works out well.

The pool was pretty cold. They did not care.

We try to buy a gift for the owners every year. This year we bought a huge crab pot, so next year I can fit all the lowcountry boil in it.

So much foooood.

There’s an old fashioned pharmacy/soda fountain in the shopping center on Kiawah

The beach was a little bleak without the sun, but it wasn’t too cold for the kids.

He really wants to learn how to surf

He was really good at boogie boarding though!

Linc likes the beach for about 5 minutes.

The “O” has a sad face in it, because Princess Sadface had a meltdown about…something. We still aren’t sure what.

Then she cheered up.

Couch naps, not just for babies!

Caramel apple pie. Recipe coming soon.

Caroline LOVED that there were lots of people who let her help in the kitchen.

Eating cake in her jammies. It was both early for cake and late for jammies. Vacation!!

He’s not actually that grumpy, he just makes that face.

Helping with important work. Or maybe playing games.

Reading to Baby Jesus.

The appropriate way to eat chocolate ice cream.

Linc is almost exactly the same size as his 4 month and 6 month old baby friends. FAT BABY, OLD MAN FACE.

Last morning at the pool

Goodbye beach house! See you next year!

This week (the one we’re in, not the one in the photos) is International Babywearing Week. In the last 2 months I’ve been totally brainwashed by those sneaky babywearers, who got me with their pretty patterns and fabric geekery and adorable selfies. I promise I’ll take pictures of other stuff one of these days, but since THIS week is IBW, I can’t promise it will happen soon.

Sunday:

He’s a jumper, not a toe-dipper. He does not get it from me.

Pretty in Pink

Vacation baby sleeps on the couch

Monday:

I don’t think this qualifies as “baby” wearing

He’s frowning because this is NOT the pool with the gorgeous view. He still loves the actual floaty.

That’s my kid hugging my best friend’s kid. FEELINGS.

Tuesday:

We were supposed to leave at 7 am. Oops.

So of course this is what happened on I-95. More than an hour parked…

…which lead to some car nursing. PARKED. WE WERE PARKED.

Wednesday:

Vacation recovery day. I just stared at this for 12 hours.

FOXES. I’m not sure I’m going to keep this one, but it’s so adorable

A sea monster to eat your baby!

Thursday:

My baby bump is still there. It’s just tied on to the outside.

She thinks she’s “sneaking” apples for a snack. OH NO DON’T EAT THE APPLES.

Floor nap success!

Friday:

Sweater weather

This one is called Ahoi and Caroline says it’s her’s.

They would walk for hours if the sun didn’t set so early

Saturday:

Great Grandma brings the best presents

Caroline thought Brutus needed to be put to bed

I’m not keeping this one, even though Linc seems to like it.

It’s officially fall here in Connecticut, although I am resisting turning on the heat for at least a couple more days. It’s gorgeous and my photography is getting busy again and there are way too many fun things to do. We also got (what I’m calling tentative) confirmation we’re going to be staying in Connecticut for at least a little while longer, so I can just enjoy my friends and my life and not worry about starting over somewhere new. Although Hawaii is going to start looking pretty good when they come fill the oil tank.

One of the things I love about my iPhone is the ability to buy and ready instant eBooks. I read myself to sleep at night, sometimes for 2 minutes, sometimes for an hour.  I like long books or series so I don’t have to keep remembering new characters (which is hard, when I fall asleep in the middle of every chapter). I read all the Anne of Green Gables books (free!) and all the Sherlock Holmes books (also free!) plus all the Game of Thrones books and all the Stephanie Plum novels and a bunch of young adult appocolyptic end of the world type stuff. I don’t really have a TYPE, just a general rule that I don’t read anything that requires more than 10% of my brain at any given time.

This week I finished my end-of-the-world-secret-Nazi-plot-wormhole-through-time-and-space book (it was called The Atlantis Gene, it wasn’t terrible but the rest of the series isn’t written yet so no real ending) and I started skimming the Kindle lists for a new book. I stumbled across a book called Lowcountry Boil, and since a) lowcountry boil is delicious and b) it was 99 cents I bought it. I like books set in the south and the description said it was a mystery which is one of the genres I almost always enjoy.

So I started reading the book. I can’t spoil it for you, because I am only a couple chapters into it, but I NEED TO TELL YOU ABOUT WHY IT IS FREAKING ME OUT.

It started with normal coincidence stuff. The main character is 31 years old and I am 31 years old! (Unimpressive, lots of people are 31 years old.)

The main character’s childhood best friend – who returns as a ghost – is named Colleen and MY childhood best friend is named Colleen! (Still not impressed, since it’s a fairly common name and also real-life Colleen is very much alive and I think even reads here sometimes so maybe she can confirm she really existed.)

The main character starts in Greenville, South Carolina but goes home to an island off Charleston and visits lots of Charleston places. I went to college in Charleston and recognize a lot of her locations! (Eh, lots of people like Charleston. And I bought the book knowing “lowcountry” was in the title, so I shouldn’t be surprised.)

The main character is named Elizabeth (which is not my name) but her middle name is Suzanne (which IS my name). OK, that was the point where I messaged Amy and said “THIS BOOK WAS MEANT FOR ME! IT’S BOOK FATE!”

And then I read one more chapter, in which the Elizabeth Suzanne (who is a private investigator) starts investigating things. She’s looking into the town council and the mayor, who is named Lincoln. Lincoln is my grandfather’s name! Not a super common name, but not unheard of. AND THEN she mentions the mayor’s wife is named Mildred. Which is my grandmother’s name. The one married to Lincoln, in my real actual life. Those are my real actual grandparents, Lincoln and Mildred and also two of her supporting characters in a book about a 31-year old named (Liz) Suzanne in South Carolina with a childhood best friend named Colleen.

TOO MUCH! I mean, no, it isn’t. It’s not like ANY of the story applies to my life in any way. It’s just the framework is full of random coincidences that makes me feel like this book ending up on my kindle IS fate.

I Googled the author and she went to my college (at this point, I’m not surprised) but not at the same time as I did. I think I’m going to social media stalk her a little, just out of curiosity. Maybe she’s somehow related to me on my mother’s side? Or we rode on an airplane together?? I’m going to keep reading, since it’s a really good book so far, but at this point I have to stop looking for MORE similarities. OMG, the main character likes coffee and I like coffee! She finds the ocean relaxing and I find the ocean relaxing!!!! She walks on two feet and I walk on two feet!!!!!!!!

I’ll definitely let you know if she ends up married to a guy named Evan and with two ginger children. Then I might get suspicious.

(This random is brought to you by not enough sleep and way too much Halloween candy.)