Nanagra's Rainbow

This is our third annual OBX trip with my parents (aka Baby and Pop Pop) and our good friends, the Harrisons, from back home.  We rent my sister-in-law's mom's beach house.  It is located in Corolla and two houses away from the beach.  We return to the same house each year and it is a wonderful feeling to have our kids feel at home away from home.  

Below are just a few of our many memories from our trip.  The week was perfect down there.  Not one rainy day!  I think someone up above was making up for last year when we got evacuated due to the hurricane.

Nanagra's Rainbow

Morris's Farm Market on the way down there.  Great samples to eat and the cleanest bathrooms.

Great friends.

Our annual picture with Baby and Pop Pop.  This year the boys wanted to be in it too!

Our morning ritual, coloring on the screened in porch until breakfast was ready.

We discovered Duck Donuts this year thanks to my friend Julie!  The best donuts....even better than the apple donuts at Carter's Mountain!

My friend Julie and her girls were down in Nagshead the same week we were there.  They came to see us and hang out one day.  Mason was one of my first graders when I first moved down to Richmond and now she is going into sixth grade.  Her sister, "Big" Campbell, was our inspiration for naming our little girl Campbell.

This was the weather every day!  Can you get better than that?

We would go nightly to the beach after dinner to fly kites, walk around, let Kaylee swim, and just be together.

Some other random shots.

I LOVE this picture of all four kids!  Notice Jack and Campbell holding hands.  They did it all on their own.

These kids napped well!  I went down to check on Campbell one afternoon and this is what I found.

Addisan FINALLY learned how to petal and steer her bike (with training wheels) at the same time while at the beach.  I am thankful for even the smallest miracles.  I thought this was never going to happen.

Addisan walked up with Tommy all the way to the top of the lighthouse for the first time!  He said she was very quiet while walking and concentrating really hard.

This was taken after going to race cars on the track.  Addisan did not want to go at first, but decided at the last minute to.  I told her I would go as slow as she wanted me to.  Nicole described this experience as me driving Ms. Daisy.  On the other hand, Campbell LOVED it and wanted to go as fast as possible.

You gotta love some ribs!

I love the simple things about the Outterbanks.  Family, friends, and everything the sandy beach has to hold.

Knowing that more special memories will be made there next year makes me smile!

Sea World...Here We Come!

Here we are waiting for our shuttle bus to take us to Sea World. We were the first ones down in the hotel lobby raring to go.  I felt a little silly once we got to Sea World and realized the main entrance was literally across the street from our hotel.  We got a great deal on passes.  If you have a certain tier of Busch Gardens Season Passes (the one that includes free parking), you get 50% off your admission to Sea World and Campbell was free since she is only 2 years old.

When we first entered the park, we got a double stroller again.  The best investment at amusement parks.  They steer better than any of the double strollers I ever had.  Once we got rollin', the sting rays were first.  The girls saw others feeding them and wanted to try.  So I bought some fish to feed them.  Once they saw the food close up, they were not interested.   I fed the sting rays two of the fish and gave the other two away to some other kids who were willing to touch them.

Sting Ray food

The first show that we saw was the Dolphin Show.  It was fabulous.  It had classical musical playing and told a fairy tale kind of story...one with love verses evil.  They had gymnast on ropes and high wires, live birds flying around during parts, and of course these beautiful creatures below.

Next stop, the manatees.  We were able to go underwater observatories not only for the dolphins, but the manatees as well.

This was and will always be one of my favorite spots in Sea World.  I could watch the penguins play all day!

We then went to see the Shamu Show.  The girls enjoyed it, but did not love it like the dolphin show.  I think the element of dance and classical music in the dolphin show was more to Addisan's liking.

This was MY favorite show, Clyde and Seamore.  It was a cute little skit about pirates who get marooned on a desert island and how the sea otters and sea lions help them out.  We had a rain delay in the middle of the show, but they resumed after about 15 minutes.  

After this show, we walked back in the rain to the hotel where we took a short nap and had dinner in the hotel.  Kids ate free at the hotel restaurant!  Later on that night, we went back to see Shamu Rocks which was the whale show with fancy lights and classic rock songs. It was great!  Campbell loved just standing up and dancing to the music. 

With one day admission to Sea World, you are able to go back for another day within that week. So we woke up early the next day and went to see the Elmo Show.  It was at the same theater where we saw the Pets Galore Show the day before.  This was another great show where they take rescue animals...dogs, cats, birds, potbelly pigs, and even a skunk to perform the skit!

Due to the rain, we only went to this show.  It was the only one we did not get to the day prior.  I was hoping to go back and visit our favorite things again, but the weather was not on our side.

These girls were rock stars all day long!  Being with such great little travelers makes me smile.

A Vacation in a Vacation

Nothin' like a vacation in a vacation!  I took the girls to Sea World for two nights and they had a blast.  I still have not gone through all of the Sea World pictures yet...but, here is the start of our mini getaway.

We had the best hotel experience at the Renaissance Marriott across the street from Sea World.  Our room was very inexpensive and had a lot to offer.


When we arrived, they gave us sparkling cider.  When I asked the girls to raise their glasses for us to do "cheers," the lady who checked us in came right around the counter and took a picture for us.

They had great amenities in the hotel.  The girls loved the waterfall on the way to Starbucks, which was located inside the hotel, that we ate at each morning.  I am currently addicted to ice chi tea lattes and birthday cake pops.    

The pools here were amazing.  The size of the main pool was equivalent to the few resorts I have stayed at.  There was a bar and great music playing.

We were pleasantly surprised when we arrived to see not just one, but TWO water parks for toddlers and younger kids.  It was awesome!  Honestly, the kids could have spent all day here.  Campbell could even do some of the water slides.  I liked this place even better than the Busch Gardens Sesame Street water area because there was more room to run around without sharp corners for the kids to slip and hit their heads on.

In the evening, we just vegged and watched movies.

In the morning, we would eat something light before tackling the awful August Florida heat.

I hope to sort through the Sea World pictures this week and post them soon.  Getting caught up with our summer travels on our family blog will make me smile.