home again {& poor grammar}

Tonight we returned from our North Carolina trip. There's a thin layer of sand on everything, the washer's whirring, and I'm trying to sort the discs of the 3 audio books we listened to in the car. Oy.

What a great adventure to wrap up the summer. Thanks for letting us crash your party, Grammy A! 

I looooooove the beach...everything about it...the smell, the seaweed, the barking sound of dry sand as I walk to the boardwalk...the warm, salty water, at least until my throat aches for fresh water. {Pardon my tangent: my favorite beach is Arecibo, Puerto Rico...beautiful sand with shallow blue water with the extra bonus of a freshwater stream carving a path to the sea.}

This trip was to Caswell Beach...just south of Wrightsville Beach, where I lived for a bit. Mostly we beached ~ morning walks on the soft sand, midday swims and digging, evening crab hunts. There was a little thrifting and eating in Southport {a fun town down the beach.} Even a bit of hanging out with new family. Bean had a bit of pink around her eyes {seems to be where she always gets sunburn} but the rest of us left without any significant sun damage...success.

And in the spirit of The Adventures of Billy and JJ,  here is the kids' version of the trip:

Bean: I liked the dogs {Opa and Grammy A's,} that we got to see them and I got to pet them. I like *Grammy A* at the beach and I like the beach that we went boogey-boarding and that it was her birthday and your birthday and that we gave her presents and got to see her open them and she gave you some presents and we got to see you open them. {Wowza~ grammar's gonna be a blast with her, no?}

Bug: At the beach, I loved boogey-boarding, looking for crabs and periwinkles, trying to free Bean from the sand pile {Opa buried her up to her head.}

It was a perfect last hurrah to this gypsy adventure. Big news: it's almost over...this wandering life. Sweet Man has taken a job back here in the close-to-home office, beginning next month. Back to a normal schedule...with all of us in the same place most of our days. It's time...we need to be together, in one place. But it's bittersweet because we had so much fun traveling.

He'll have two weeks off before he starts. Better start school soon because I know I'll want to play hooky when he does. 

{It has been two years today since Mom died.}

Sweet Man just pulled in the driveway for a long weekend home. 17 days since we parted.

I'm gonna go get me a hug.