The boys got back from the pirate cruise about an hour and a half later. Elijah got to drive the boat, if they only knew how much trouble this little guy can get into! lol During their hunt for treasure, they encounter the bad pirate "Stinky Pete", who approaches on a little boat. They get to spray him with water cannons and he goes overboard, Noah loved that! Then they discover the treasure chest, which was actually under the water out in the ocean, how cool! The boys got to pick out their treasure to keep. Noah had 5 gold pirate coins and some sea creatures. He was really excited to tell me all about it. Jason was very impressed with the operation and said the guys running the show were great with the kids.
Since it was so hot and everyone was ready for lunch, we braved the eating out world again and had great success this round. YAY!! We ate at a place called The Crazy Crab, very neat little restaurant and good food. The boys played at the playground for a few minutes while I fed Ava and we headed back to the condo for nap time. By this time, my allergy/cold issue was really making me feel yucky, so I laid down myself and slept the rest of the afternoon with Ava.
After Eli woke up, Jason and the boys headed to the beach for some fun. They got to be 100% boys without Mama bird in sight. Jason got some great exercise since they went pretty far down the beach with the bike. They got all yucky and wild. lol I am so glad that they got to spend this precious time with their Dad. He is such an awesome father and I feel so blessed to have him.
Ava and I woke up around 8 p.m.! Since it was past dinner time, we went the pizza route again to make things easier. After baths and popcorn, the boys fell asleep with Jason. I watched a movie, ate a big bowl of fruit, and laid in bed until I fell asleep again, praying I'd wake up feeling much better.
Jason got up early and took some nature and sunrise photos.
I didn't sleep that great, but I was really excited that it was my spa day! I got up, ate some more fruit, and headed off to my appointment. It started with a really awesome facial. It was about a 45 minute ordeal with a shoulder and arm massage. I could have laid there all day, it was so relaxing and my skin felt great. Then I got a pedicure with a reflexology session. This was kind of a step up from the normal pedicures I've gotten before. Super nice massage chair, relaxing music on my headphones, and a very professional nice lady pampering me. Reflexology was very neat, I enjoyed it a lot. It does really trigger a state of relaxation, and that felt really nice. I actually broke away from wondering if the baby was okay for about 30 minutes, and that is not easy to do with a three month old.
Jason did great back at the condo with the kiddos. Ava was ready to eat for sure when I got back! She giggled when she saw me and it was so sweet, even if she was glad her food source had returned. We loaded up and headed out to the Hilton Head Brewery, per Jason's request. He has been brewing his own beer for the past year and wanted to check out the local beers. The food was really good too, and it was again a fairly successful experience. We learned to order fast and give Elijah the table "breaks" he needs. We still have to eat really quick, but that's part of it for now. :)
We were planning on going back to Harbour Town to see a local children's musician do a show, but my annoying allergy issue was in full effect and we headed back to the condo to get some rest. Jason took the boys swimming at the pool for a while and I spent some time working on the blog in bed with sleeping Ava. I was really bummed that we didn't get a chance to get beach pictures, but hoped to do that Friday evening.
Friday morning, I awoke feeling a lot better, praise God! I was so glad that I was going to be able to enjoy my last day of vacation. Jason got up early again and brought back breakfast from Signey's. We loved this place on our last visit, the blueberry and blackberry french toast casserole is amazing. It is a hidden little place, but was featured on Rachel Ray's $40 A Day show and we happened to see it before our last trip here. After breakfast, we all got ready and headed to The Sandbox Children's Museum. I think this was definitely a huge highlight of our trip. It is the neatest little place for children. Jason and I had a blast too. :) It is set up to be very interactive and the boys had so much fun. Noah's favorite part was the train table and Thomas Cards, of course. Elijah LOVED the airplane set up, we may have a future pilot on our hands. Ava looked cute having a tea party. We played for over 2 hours there and had it not been lunch time and nap time, I would have stayed a lot longer! Noah was very pouty because he made a friend and was having so much fun with her. She had the best imagination and he was following her every move. So cute! I wish this place was accessible all the time, it was so neat.
We had lunch at Panera Bread via the drive-thru, so we could eat at the condo. Elijah had already fallen asleep by this point. We ate our lunch and while little man slept, then Noah and I headed for a bike ride to the beach. I was really excited to spend time with him, he is such an amazing little boy. Unfortunately, the rain had other plans. We made it to the beach and it got really dark and started thundering. :-( We played in the ocean for about 5 minutes and rode the bike back. We were so bummed, but it was still fun taking a solo bike ride with my little buddy.
We showered and waited for the storm to settle a bit. I realized that beach pictures were not happening tonight, guess we'll be working on those back home. It was still raining on and off, but we decided to see if the children's music show was going on. We saw this guy last time and he was awesome, so we were really hoping to catch his show again since it is a nightly event in Harbour Town. Unfortunately, he had to cancel the show due to lightening. Another rain bummer. :( But we decided to do what we do best, and brave the dining out experience again. Another good experience, woo hoo! We ate at Wild Wings Cafe since Jason loves wings. Pretty good food but pretty loud atmosphere so thankfully they were fairly quick with our order before Elijah and Ava got too overstimulated. Noah is always an angel, my little sweetheart is such a good boy. All of them are good, but age makes all the difference in their patience meter! lol
We headed back to the condo and started packing for our morning departure. My crazy husband suggested just taking off that night, but the more sensible side of our relationship, me, knew that would be certain chaos. Gotta love his spontaneous spirit, but my spirit of discernment trumped this crazy idea! lol So we got most everything packed and went to bed. I think we all fell asleep in about 5 minutes. I slept really good and was thankful I didn't go along with Jason's crazy idea!
There were some patches of rain here and there, but the sky was absolutely gorgeous. I took a few pictures from the inside of the van, but these pictures do no justice for the view we experienced. Truly stunning skies.
The ride for the kids was pretty good up until the last leg of the trip. Ava and Elijah were over being in the car and whined pretty much the whole last 2 hours. Shew, that is always the longest part of the trip. I was wishing I knew how to teleport them to the house, because nothing was helping at this point.
The boys were really wanting to go see Pa and Nanny, but Elijah had fallen asleep about 20 minutes before we got home, so we decided to wait until today to reunite with the beloved grandparents. These grandkids are so blessed, they are so loved, and love their Pa and Nanny so much. They asked several times daily to go see them, and I know it makes my Daddy and Mama smile to feel so loved. :)
So we learned a lot of lessons on this wonderful family vacation. Jason learned that life with three young kids sun up to sun down is sometimes challenging, my reply was "welcome to my world honey." lol We learned that eating out is a "bonus" to life right now, sometimes a good one, sometimes not so good. We learned that this season of life is so precious, these babies are teaching us so many good things. Getting away from the distractions of life helps put things into perspective. This trip was a bit crazy at times, went by way too fast, but was much needed for all of us. I am so happy to share all of these memories with you. I feel refreshed, reconnected, and excited about life. Vacations seem to be a little piece of heaven here on earth. Hope you get to go on one real soon.
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