Our second Hilton Head vacation was in July. We were so spoiled with two trips this year! We enjoyed a fun week at the beach with Mike’s mom and sister. His sister’s boyfriend joined for the first half of the week and her best friend joined for the second half. L.J. was delighted with the extra guests! It’s a good thing they both enjoy children because L.J. followed them around like a puppy.
The week consisted mostly of pool, beach, rinse and repeat. We had a first-floor condo this year, which was ultra-convenient for getting to the pool or beach. L.J. liked both better this year than last year, though still had a relatively limited attention span for each.
Overall, he liked the pool more than the beach. He practiced jumping off the side and learned a brand-new skill with daddy: going under water. He did this over and over again, all week long! “Hold my nose, Daddy!” he’d exclaim. Under they’d go and back up they’d come, L.J. laughing in delight. He was so proud of his new skill.
Another highlight of his pool time was being tossed in the air by daddy and caught by Aunt Ashley. He thought this was great fun! Our little cannonball gave the adults quite the splash each time he landed.
The pool/beach time spans worked out well. We’d go out in the morning, come back for lunch and then while L.J. napped Mike went to the beach and I relaxed in the condo. It was extremely hot all week, so my pregnant self was keener on air-conditioning than baking in the sun.
One morning, Ashley’s friend Casey got down in the sand to play with L.J. He thought this was just the coolest thing, and happily played in the sand for close to an hour. They dug holes, built tunnels and even buried L.J. in the sand. Mommy joined in on the fun, which meant mommy got to take a turn getting “buried” too. I don’t think I enjoyed it quite as much as L.J. did…
A few other fun trip memories:
On Wednesday, while Mike was at the ESPYs, L.J. and I went to visit my friend Julie and her kids. They live outside Savannah, so about an hour drive. We had such a fun day spending time with them! L.J. and Julie’s son David were equally enamored with each other and played together for several hours. It was such a nice break for Julie and me – the boys were upstairs playing (we could hear/monitor them from the open landing) so the girls got to sit downstairs and catch up. It was wonderful!
Really, it was L.J.’s first “big kid” moment for me where we went to visit someone and he happily played independently for an extended period of time. He’s typically pretty insistent on staying close to Mike or me when he’s not someplace that’s familiar. He and David got along so well together, helped no doubt by their mutual love of all things transportation related.
L.J. was so worn out by the fun that he fell asleep before we even left their neighborhood.
Of course, a trip to Hilton Head would not be complete without stopping by Lawton Stables to see “Charley.” We bought an apple to give to him early in our trip, and L.J. reminded us each day that we were going to see Charley and bring him an apple.
The famous "Charley":
And, finally, we enjoyed dinner at one of our favorite Hilton Head restaurants to wrap up our trip. Hudson’s on the Dock has delicious food and gorgeous views! L.J. consumed a half-dozen hush puppies and a whole plate of popcorn shrimp. It’s a wonder he didn’t get sick that night.
(A toddler who gives grilled chicken the side eye, yet who will happily down shrimp. I have yet to decipher the weird eating habits at this age.)
What a fun week we had in Hilton Head!
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