Saturday - Beach and Birthdays

On Saturday, we went back to the beach one last time. Ian and Brady had so much fun in the sand.

Our silly little boys:

Here's Ian chilling out by the pool:

That evening, Nana and Granddad kept the boys so that Jeremy and I could have a date night to celebrate our birthdays. We ate dinner at Alexander's, which is probably our favorite Hilton Head restaurant - they make the best crab-stuffed flounder I've ever tasted!

Friday - The Beach and The Salty Dog Cafe

We spent Friday morning on the beach. The boys enjoyed digging in the sand.
This time, they ventured into the water.

Hey, this is pretty fun!

About this time, Ian started running... and running... and running some more!

Brady was a little more cautious.

We saw a Coast Guard helicopter flying by.

Here, Brady informed us that he was Tiger Woods:

That afternoon, we played in the pool and fountains. For dinner, Jeremy and I took Brady and Ian to The Salty Dog Cafe, which is right on the waterfront at the South Beach Marina. They advertised that a clown and a dog would be performing for kids, so we thought it would be a good place to take the boys. It turned out that the clown was only doing face-painting and the dog didn't show up, so we were a little disappointed and looked at the boats in the marina instead.

Thursday evening - Fountains and Truffles

After the boys' nap, we headed to the pool area so that Ian and Brady could splash in the fountains.

Ian was so excited that he ran right for the fountains.
In no time, both boys were soaked and having a blast!

Here's a video clip of the boys playing in the fountains:

They even ventured into the pool for a few minutes. Look at those blue eyes!

We ate dinner at Truffles. Any restaurant that serves gourmet chocolate truffles is right up my alley! After dinner, the boys got to sit on this alligator:

A view of the courtyard where the restaurant is located:

Thursday morning - The Sandbox

We spent Thursday morning at The Sandbox, a hands-on museum for children. The boys would have stayed for hours if we had let them! There were so many fun things to do.

Brady and Ian got to fly an airplane (this is the cockpit of an actual plane)...

...shopped for groceries and prepared a meal in the kitchen...

...climbed on a replica of a ship...

...worked on a construction site...

...built towers with giant legos...

...played in a sandbox...

...watched themselves on TV...

...tended to animals at the veterinary clinic...

...and so much more! The boys also got to make their own artwork, play musical instruments, look at books, play with trains... too much to list! We had a great time and we look forward to going back next time we're at the beach.

Wednesday - The Beach!

The boys finally got to play in the sand on Wednesday. They had a great time! Ian and Brady were so excited to get to use their buckets and shovels.
King of the castle!

Apparently the largest castles reminded the boys of cantaloupes. They picked up sticks and said "cut melon" while they sliced the castles. Nana had to make several new castles so that more melons could be sliced.

That evening, we had dinner at Carrabba's, where the boys devoured a huge piece of lasagna! The restaurant is next to a mini golf course and we stopped to take a look:

Maybe next year! These boys will be golfers if Daddy and Granddad have their way... this will complete their foursome!

Tuesday - Shopping and more

While Jeremy and my Dad played golf on Tuesday, my Mom and I went to the outlet mall with the boys. There is not a lot for little boys to do at outlet malls, but they were good sports! They were very patient in their stroller, only getting out once to ride a couple of rides.

75 cents for a 30-second ride in a school bus... kind of a rip-off, but they had fun. They also had fun sitting in some of the other rides:
Brady driving the ice cream truck:

We found lots of cute summer clothes for the boys, and even found the same sandals they had last summer. They loved their sandals last year so we were so excited to find them in a bigger size this year. The boys have gone from a size 7 to a size 8 1/2!

After a big nap, we headed back to the ocean in the hopes of letting the boys dig. Unfortunately, it was high tide and the breeze was very chilly. We decided to go back to the playground instead.

One of the highlights of the trip for Brady and Ian was getting to ride in golf carts. We got to ride in a cart each time we went to the ocean and they loved it! Here, Brady wanted to "drive" the cart:

Monkey see, monkey do!

We had another yummy dinner on the grill then finally got to play in the sand on Wednesday!

Monday - The Mall and Harbour Town

On Monday, the forecast called for rain, so we spent the morning at the mall. The mall in Hilton Head is even smaller than our mall at home so there wasn't a lot to see and do. However, the boys were thrilled to play in the kids' play area - they got to climb all over turtles, whales, and boats.

We spent the evening in Harbour Town. This is a really neat area of the island that is home to a PGA golf course (the big PGA tournament ended the day before we were there), the Harbour Town Lighthouse, and more. We ate dinner at The Crazy Crab then showed the boys around. The area is very picturesque, with lots of small shops:
Of course, there are lots of boats to see.

We enjoyed a beautiful sunset:

We walked along the pier and enjoyed seeing this dolphin swimming. About 25 people were following him from one side of the pier to the other as he swam. Several of us had cameras, trying to capture the dolphin as surfaced.

The gorgeous sunset from the pier with the Harbour Town Lighthouse in the background:

Rocking in the chairs in front of the shops:

First day of vacation

We just returned from a week in beautiful Hilton Head, SC. I took so many pictures and I hope to get them posted over the next few days, so stay tuned!

We arrived on Sunday afternoon, quickly set our luggage down, and went outside to show the boys around. The first thing we saw was this lizard. Brady and Ian were very excited to see a lizard - thankfully he stayed still for a few seconds before running from us!

We walked to the ocean and had to stop and pick a flower.

The boys have seen the ocean before, but they truly enjoyed it this time around.

Every time Ian saw a seagull, he wanted to chase it.

We stopped at the playground on the way back from the ocean. Here, the boys are swinging on the rail above the slide.

We grilled burgers for dinner and called it a night.