Beach Vacation

Wow, what a wonderful break!  We just got back from the Outer Banks and I admit I've been a little grumpy pants.  After a week of amazing weather, the skies poured down on us on the way home and I was exhausted because the babe decided that she no longer wished to sleep through the night during vacation.  Last night she woke up at 2 AM, 4 AM and 6 AM this morning and I was bone tired.  It's a quick drive (just over 4 hours), but it was tiresome for this sleep deprived momma!  I had to mentally fight the mind numbing. repetitive sound made by the windshield wipers.  I couldn't wait to be home at that point.

Other than sleep, our little vacation was great.  We didn't get so much as a drop of rain (except as mentioned before, on our way home.) The ocean was literally just 10 or so feet from our window and the sounds of the waves lulled me to sleep the quickest in years...  We were so close to the water, it felt like we were on a boat.

 

the view from our window.

The house wasn't level and the cottage was cozy.  It didn't matter.  It was perfect and the best part is that the dog got to go with us.  We spent our days at the beach, making sandcastles, floating in the ocean, and just hanging out.  We laid out a little kiddie pool for the big kids and they were occupied pretty much the entire day....  envision Greeneyes with a freezer pop in one hand and toy in another here.  Good times.

We grilled out every single night except for the night we went out.  IT. WAS. AWESOME.  Grilling meant there were less dishes for me and it wasn't on me to slave by the stove either...  there is something much more appealing about grilling out on a deck with the wind in your hair and the ocean and waves crashing just feet away. 

For our lunches I made a giant batch of pork BBQ before we left and brought a large batch of deli meat for sandwhiches along with some sides.  Between that and the leftovers from dinner we were pretty much covered for the week.  Easy, peasy, good.

This was our nightly menu plan:

Sunday - homemade pizza (I brought homemade whole wheat thin crust pizza dough and fixins, took minutes and beats delivery!)

Monday - shrimp, potato, squash, and grilled peaches for desert

Tuesday - steak, potato, fresh veggies

Wednesday - went out

Thursday - split chicken breast, veggies, bbq beans, ice cream

Friday - lean turkey burgers, potato, grilled squash

Saturday - grilled brats and hotdogs, chips (it was our last day) and smores

What a yummy week!  Honestly, the night we went out for seafood I thought we did a better job preparing our seafood than they did...  I guess I'm picky.  Next time I think I'll pass on the fancy restaurant and make our own again.

the babe did sleep through the night the first night and I woke at 5AM.... hence these pics.

our sandcastle

We did do some other excursions, including flying kites on the dunes, visitng the Roanoke History Museum, visiting downtown Manteo and the pier...

but the best part was definitely the beach!