working my way backwards...

The Beach...

Our beach trip was a lot of fun! Ryan decided we needed a little get-away after our absurdly busy summer... he booked a house & made plans. Makayla & Abby joined us from UT. Tressa was heading to Philly after the reunion with Jeanie. Ryan called them up & asked if they'd like to meet us at the beach in August. They checked how long the drive would be... a very doable 7 hours. Our drive was a bit on the cold side. Casey, while giving service, ended up with a HORRID case of poison... something! His face was completely red & swollen.

believe me when I say, "this doesn't even come close to doing his face justice... it was HORRIBLE!"

The only relief came from sitting in front of the air conditioner, blowing right on him. Needless to say, we froze all the way to NC. Once arriving, we found the water to be as cold as the car... 65*. In the past 11 years, possibly more, the water had never been this cold. However, Sunday we spent fasting & praying for a miracle. Casey was so miserable. We just wanted him to enjoy the week at the beach. The water temp. I'm sure relieved a bit of the sting warm salt water could have caused. Monday morning we found him even more swollen. While playing on the beach I'd catch a glimpse of him & think, "he looks like he has some weird disease!" It was amazing he was able to enjoy himself the way he did. With the cold water came millions of little jelly things! If it's not little white fish... then jellies! The kids combed the beach finding really big ones to make a jelly castle...

The water was full of teeny tiny ones... that ended up IN our suits. Rebekah & I both ended up getting stung. The waves were great... everyone enjoyed boogie boarding. Especially Casey & Sam, they were rarely out of the water.

They chased snow crabs one night... capturing 7. However, in the morning there were only 5... I guess they eat each other.

Porter wanted to take a break from the water...

Sam, always thinking of fun photos for the blog asked if we needed a new picture for the blog... hence the photo change! By the end of the week the water started warming up & Casey's face was on the mend... his arms & legs were another story! At least the drive home was a comfortable one.