Hilton Head

Last week was spent on the beach, by the pool, eating dinner out (all but 2 nights), playing around the house and sleeping in! We traveled to Hilton Head to spend a week of vacation with Spencer's family. We go on vacation together each year and always have a blast together. It is a trip I always look forward to! Ella-Ann had been counting down the days on her calendar for months! Ella-Ann and Rane couldn't wait to see Carter, Seth and Ethan. They arrived shortly after us and I don't think they were quiet all week long unless they were sleeping! They ran all over the house we rented all week and, unfortunately, the first floor of the house had sliding glass doors with a wrap around deck so trying to keep Ethan and Rane from exiting the house and falling in the pool was not fun! The kids played so well together and had a ball playing at the beach each morning and at the pool the rest of the afternoon. Gayla, Mandy and I would read books and magazines while the men entertained the kids and played with them. It was great! Pierson was a sweet little thing and was cuddled a lot, that is when she wasn't sleeping all day! Zach and Spencer took Carter, Seth and Ella-Ann to see "Kung Fu Panda" one afternoon while Rane and Ethan took a nap. Carter and Seth had been to the movies several times but this was Ella-Ann's first time going to the movies. It's not like I hadn't thought about taking her, it's just that she is really afraid of "normal" movies so going to see a new movie, in the dark, on a huge screen with lots of loud noises was probably not going to go over well with her....and it did not! Mandy had to go pick up Spencer and Ella-Ann halfway through the movie. Spencer said she wasn't that afraid, she just wasn't too interested in watching it and wanted to go home to swim in the pool. The kids were swimming like little fish by the time the end of the week rolled around! Zach also took the big kids to play put-put one evening as well. They loved that!

We ate lots of good seafood at night and the kids were really good at every restaurant. Please remember we were taking 6 kids to a restaurant....all at the same table and sitting close to one another! I don't think Ella-Ann and Rane have ever had so much sugar in the lives thus far! They enjoyed donuts, "candy" cereal, lots of candy courtesy of Uncle Craig, strawberry milkshakes at night, popsicles by the pool and brownies. That's what vacations are for, right? Detox is not so fun, though!

I took a lot of pictures so click HERE to see all of them.

Hitting the beach our first morning in Hilton Head.

He was so proud of the crumb of a seashell he found!

Pierson is always, always incredibly happy. In this picture she is wearing Ella-Ann's sun hat and my outfit from when I was a baby.

The kids, and Craig and Spencer, enjoyed sitting in the hot tub all afternoon!

Watching cartoons together one morning.

Papa and Nana with all their grandchildren.