All Good Things Must Come to an End...

...and this vacation has certainly been a good thing. We have enjoyed bike rides, spotting deer and alligators, dinner out, family meals together, sunny days on the beach, craft (coloring and play dough) time, and so much more. Mostly we have enjoyed each other's company without interruption from outside responsibilities. Thomas and Julie, thanks for making the long drive and staying the whole week.  We loved spending time with you and getting to know our grandchildren better.  Faith and Ethan, thanks for having fun with us and helping out with the little ones. Seth, thanks for going a little out of your way on your way back to Boston from Taiwan.  I know you are tired, but you were a trooper, and you really added to our vacation fun.

I will leave you with one last photo.  Here is Mercy going all out and enjoying her first Drumstick with gusto!

Thursday

It has been another fun day here at Kiawah Island.  Here are some high lights:

1. Seth has been able to manage his jet lag pretty well. Wilson made sure that he didn't sleep too long this morning.
2. The rain stopped around 11:00 A.M., and we enjoyed a bright sunny day after that.
3. Ethan's sunburn could be worse. We are thankful for aloe.
4. Mercy finally did say, "Please," and was able to have her cookie after our Taco Thursday lunch.
5. The boat was great fun.
6. Wilson made a couple of awesome drip castles.
7. We survived the family photo shoot, but just barely.  Photo evidence below.
8. Walter, Marcia, Ethan, Faith, and Seth enjoyed a yummy dinner at Chez Fish which is just 10 minutes up the road. We will definitely be planning a return visit on our next Kiawah vacation.

Bravo!

The recital was so impressive and beautiful! Well done, Thomas! And now vacation begins in earnest for Thomas and Julie.

We had a lot of rain this morning, so Ethan and Faith had to stay in the villa with Mercy and Wilson all morning.  But they had a great time coloring and playing with play dough.  By late afternoon the skies had cleared and some of us headed for the beach while others took a nap.  Mercy still doesn't like for her feet to touch the sand, but she is certainly not opposed to riding in the wagon, especially with a red solo cup of party mix.

Wilson and Papa built some really creative sand castles and tunnel systems today.  They also flew the kite and played in the waves.

Now we are all very tired, but we are waiting for Seth's flight to get in. I am so glad that Seth will be here to help us make memories.

The rain this morning made it a good morning to play with Grammy's Kindle.

Vacation Limericks

We are all having a blast, and we have so much to be thankful for.  Here are some of Today's highlights:

• Sand castles
• Boogie boarding
• Sea gull feeding
• Kite flying
• Rickshaw rides (although Mercy was not a fan)
• Deer and a snake
• Ice cream

They all bare their skin oh so fair,

Except for the one with dark hair;

They slather on lotion

With so much commotion,

And sit on a rented beach chair.

On manicured lawns filled with deer,

They are pretty tame; have no fear;

Young Wilson does walk,

And Mercy does squawk,

When those silly seagulls are near.

They're Here!

Faith and Ethan arrived around 1:30. We ate lunch and then headed for the beach.  It was a nearly perfect afternoon. Sunshine, but not too hot. A nice breeze, too. Those two even agreed to go on a bike ride to the marsh tower,

Thomas and Julie and the kids arrived around 8:00. So much excitement! We filled their  hungry tummies with BBQ and then watched some deer on the gulf course and went for a moonlight walk on the beach.  We didn't need to worry about strolling in the darkness.  W and M had flashlights! Everyone except M is not ready for bed.  Papa is working on that.

Tomorrow promises to be a fun day of beech activities and mandatory craft time.  I can't wait!

A Lovely Sunday

It really has been a lovely Sunday. Mr. Russell and I started our day with a bike ride on the beach.  After a leisurely breakfast and a cup of coffee or two, we heard God's Word preached via Kevin DeYoung and YouTube. Then we had to go and make sure the beach chairs and umbrella were right where the nice people said they would be.  We found 'em.  Thanks, Thomas!

Our afternoon included a short nap.  I think we were exhausted from pumping up the air mattresses for Mercy and Wilson. (They are coming tomorrow!)

We headed back to the beach, and this time we actually got in the ocean with the boogie boards.

We ended our afternoon with a another bike ride to see if there were any basketball games going on at Night Heron Park.  Sorry, Ethan.  There were no takers for the scheduled pick-up games.  We are going to try again on Tuesday. I just know that Team Russell will dominate.

When we arrived back at our Villa and turned off the path, Walter came to a very abrupt stop. I skidded to a stop just in time.  There was a female deer enjoying a leisurely dinner right next to our Villa.  See the video below.

Now it is time for our dinner. We had better rest up.  Tomorrow is a big day.

Saturday

My true love and I arrived on the Island around 4:15 this afternoon. After checking in and grabbing a free bottle of water, we headed to our Villa. We then walked to the beach so that we could tell the beach chair guys which boardwalk we wanted Thomas's chairs set up at.

Next we returned to the Villa to unpack and put dinner in the crock pot. Then we went for a long walk on the beach.  We immediately came upon a family of deer. We took a selfie so we could prove to our children that we really had arrived. It was such a beautiful late afternoon.  There was even a cool breeze.

After enjoying a dinner of Bucky's BBQ, baked beans, and coleslaw, we hopped on our bikes to find a lagoon.  After less than two minutes of riding, we found one.  We also found a gator - no kidding!  We decided to ride bit further and we came out right in front of the house that my parents used to own a share of.

Sitting on our back deck, we could hear the ocean.  We listened to the night sounds and made plans for tomorrow.

We can't wait for our children and grandchildren to arrive, but I am not going to lie - it is pretty great to have a couple of days just to ourselves. We are truly blessed!

Kiawah Island, Here We Come!

Vacation 2015 is almost upon us.  Once again as most of our clan will gather at Kiawah Island, SC for a week of fun and relaxation.  Whereas most years we go in August or even early September, this year we are going the very first week of June, and for a very good reason.  Thomas is giving a recital as part of Piccolo Spoleto. The music promises to be fantastic, and his mother couldn't be any prouder.

But it gets even better.  Thomas and Julie will be staying at Kiawah with us along with their THREE children.  A lot has changed since 2012.

Faith and Ethan will be joining us on Monday, and Seth will drop by Wednesday evening after a long flight from Taiwan. I hope that he will  have enough energy for Mandatory Craft Time on Thursday.


I have prepared and frozen meals, and I have shopped and shopped and shopped.  My wonderful husband promises me that we will be able to fit everything in the trusty Suburban.

And did I mention that the very same wonderful husband and I will be in the villa by ourselves until Monday afternoon. Wow!  That hasn't happened since 1982.

The bikes have been ordered, the beach chairs reserved, and half of our household belongings are stacked by the door.

Let's go make some memories!