Changing Background

I had a note on my blog today that cutestblogontheblock.com is closing and my blog background will be no longer available.  So, things may look a little crazy for a few days until I remember how (and have the time) to make all the changes needed to have things coordinated again.

Miniature Golf

Our last day in Myrtle Beach we decided to take the kids to play Miniature Golf before our final trip to the Beach.  There are a ton of really elaborate mini golf courses in Myrtle Beach so it was hard to chose one but we finally decided on a really outrageous one called Mount Atlanticus Minotaur Goff.  The course wound up and down stairs, among waterfalls, rivers and ponds, and beautiful flowers.


Vicki ended up getting 4 holes-in-one (with a little help from Daddy).  Each time she finished a hole she would throw her arms in the air, jump up and down and scream “I did it!!”.  There were a couple of teenage boys playing behind us (and usually waiting for us to finish).  Vicki told them all about it…”I did it boys, I got the ball in the hole, I won!!”
Georgie’s style resembled hockey more than golf.  He would drag the club along the ground and into the ball.   He explained to me that it was all about leverage and when I tried to help him (and it didn’t go well) he was upset with me.  “Mom, you messed up my leverage!!”.

His style was interesting but actually pretty effective.

We could see the ocean from the top of the course.

  It ended up being a fun way to spend an hour or so.    The most important thing was to not pay any attention to the score.
 

Ripley's Aquarium - Myrtle Beach

While Stephanie hung out at the Convention Center and supported her fellow dancers, Daddy and I took the younger kids to the Ripley's Aquarium.  They have always been big fans of aquariums so we thought this would be a lot of fun for them.

The current exhibit in the New Exhibits Hall was called Lethal Weapons and was about the most deadly sea creatures.  The hall had a lot of interactive exhibits that the kids loved seeing what they would do.

They were fascinated by the extremely venomous Scorpian fish and how they looked just like rocks.

There was a giant model of a Portuguese Man-of-War that Vicki had a good time playing in the tentacles, although Georgie didn't want to go near it.

Looking at the jellies.

Vicki also really liked the Moray eels.  We saw a variety of different ones in various areas of the aquarium.

Georgie's favorite area of the aquarium was the Discovery Area.  There was a touch tank with Horseshoe Crabs.  Neither kid stood still long enough to actually touch them although Vicki did dip her hands in the water.

There was a replica of a shipwrecked pirate ship that both kids liked climbing around.

The Dangerous Reef tunnel was a lot of fun with the sharks and rays swimming all around, including over our heads.

The Saw-toothed shark was very interesting looking.

Another type of Moray eel.

And a Sandbar Shark.

Vicki was excited to see Nemo (clown fish)....

and Dory (blue tang).

Georgie was able to get a close up look at an octopus.

The sea dragons were very bizarre looking.

The Ray Bay was fascinating especially when they swam up the glass for a good view of their underside.

Our last stop was at the ray touch tank.  A diver lead a ray around close to the edge so it was easy to reach in and touch them.

The Ripley's aquarium was a lot of fun to visit.  There was room for the kids to run around and explore (important with these two) as well as lots of educational opportunities.

Splashing in the Ocean at Myrtle Beach

We spent this morning waiting for the truck to be fixed.  It ended up being some valve that locked up and needed to be replaced but it was done before lunch time.  So Daddy and I took the kids to the beach for a little while, while Stephanie went to a water park with a dance friend who is staying in the same hotel we are.

The biggest surprise (to me anyway) was that Georgie - who usually hates even a drop of water on his face and has never been very adventurous - LOVED the ocean.   He splashed right in to the surf and had a great time jumping waves.

Vicki ended up getting completely drenched right away and wasn't too happy about it....

so she sat out for a while making sand castles.

Meanwhile, Daddy took Georgie out body surfing.

Vicki did eventually get back in to the water...

while Georgie sat out for a while practicing his letters in the sand.

Stephanie is dancing her two production routines tonight at 8:30 so we headed back to the hotel to relax.  I think we're going to be spending a lot of time at the beach this trip.  :-)

Traveling to Myrtle Beach

We spent the weekend traveling down to Myrtle Beach for Stephanie's Dance Nationals.  Saturday wasn't so bad since we only went as far as Maryland (about 4 hours) and spent the night at an old friend's house.  I didn't fall asleep until about 4am and was up by 6am.  Since Daddy is always an early riser we decided to get a jump on Sunday's drive and carry the kids out so they could continue sleeping.

This picture makes me realize why so many people ask me if these guys are twins.  They really do look alike.

The drive wasn't too bad until we were about half way through North Carolina.  It was a beautiful, sunny, 95 degree day.....and the air conditioning on the truck stopped working. :-(   We ended up making the rest of the drive with the windows open to at least keep the hot air moving a little bit.   But, we all made it and tomorrow is a new day.

Captain Vicki here - Ahoy Mateys!

We went on another camping trip over the Fourth of July weekend, this time in Egg Harbor.  On Saturday we all went out fishing by Absecon Bay.  Unfortunately I forgot my camera since there was lots of picture-worthy fun.
 
Vicki had a great time playing Pirate and pretending to drive the boat.  "Captain Vicki here, Ahoy Mateys.  Yo Ho Yo Ho, a Pirate's life for me.  We are mighty Pirates."  Whenever Daddy had to take over steering the boat (anytime we were actually moving), she'd say "Aye, Aye Captain Daddy".

Vicki caught her first (and second and third) fish.  All three were flounder that were too small to keep, they were the first catches of the day and all three were caught within 10 minutes.  She reeled them in all by herself.

Shortly after, Georgie caught a Sea Robin - also not a fish we keep.  Daddy ended up catching the only keepers - two fish that were absolutely yummy cooked in Zesty Italian dressing since we didn't bring any garlic, onion or olive oil camping.

Mommy caught the last fish, another little flounder that was too small to keep.

Back at the campground, we cooled off by swimming in the lake.  It was a very hot weekend (hitting the 90's here which is pretty unusual) so being in the cool water was wonderful.

Another first for the weekend - Georgie stepped on a bee and was stung.  At first we thought he picked up a splinter - both kids were running around the campsite barefoot - but it swelled up pretty quickly.  He was not a happy little camper for a little while.  Although he seemed to enjoy making Daddy carry him from the picnic table to the chairs around the fire and back again (a few times).   My poor little guy, doesn't he look pitiful?

Later that night, after some ice cream helped his foot feel better (along with Benedryl cream), we went over to the beach to watch the fireworks.  This is the first time the kids have seen fireworks since we are usually away from home and don't know where to go to see any.  Georgie is also very sensitive to noise so we weren't sure how he would take it.  He did okay for most of the show.  When they started going off all at once, he didn't want to stay anymore and went back to the campsite with Daddy.

Daddy is always telling me that getting dirty is all part of the fun of camping.  Evidently Vicki agrees with him wholeheartedly.

This is our last camping trip for a while.   We're heading down to Myrtle Beach soon for Stephanie's dance Nationals, then we have our Annual Pool Party/BBQ.  We are considering a trip up to Mystic Connecticut for Labor Day weekend.