We just returned from a fabulous vacation / family reunion at Myrtle Beach. It was a great trip, and we are thinking it may be the first real vacation since we were married almost 7 years ago. Sad huh? Anyway, it was awesome. Here are a few highlights from the trip...
We were able to get a direct flight (that's right, Peorians) from Springfield to Myrtle Beach for Thursday night. But our week-long reservations with the family were Friday to Friday, so we stayed in a so-so hotel for Thursday evening. Collin had woken up screaming early (2am) on Thursday with a raging fever, and after a quick look-over by a good friend in the ward doing his residency here, we headed to the airport with Amoxicillin, (just in case) ibuprofen, and Tylenol. We've actually decided that a fever is a great thing on an airplane: Collin slept curled up in Ry's lap the WHOLE 2-hour flight. It was awesome. He also zonked out in the double bed - shared with Daddy - without a peep, after another dose of Tylenol, of course.
To our joy, Collin awoke Friday morning only a little out of it and definitely feeling much better. We had a few hours to ourselves - before the rest of the family got in and picked us up - so we headed to IHOP for breakfast (how's that for sampling the local culture?) and putt-putt at the hotel. It was CRAZY hot and humid, but we also went and got our feet wet in in the waves. Collin was pretty hesitant this first day. Don't worry; that wore off quickly!
By that afternoon, almost everyone had arrived, and we had been rescued from our so-so hotel and whisked off to our fancy condos in North Myrtle. My parents had gotten us two side-by-side condos, one with 2 rooms and the other with 3: each with its own kitchen, living room, double master suites, jacuzzi tubs, washer & dryer, etc. They were awesome!
A typical day went something like this - Collin would wake us up, and Ryan would get his breakfast. Ryan would leave for his morning run, and I would get Collin and I down to the beach. We'd spend 2-3 hours playing in the sand and splashing in the waves. Then we'd head up to the Lazy River and float around for 30-minutes or so. Then we'd headed back to the room, between 11 and 1pm, and eat lunch and put Collin (and sometimes me) down for a nap. Sometimes we'd do things independently while he slept (paraffin wax treatment, yippee!) or together (ping pong, bocce ball, ice cream), and other times we'd relax in the room or on the balcony. When Collin woke up, we'd head to whatever evening activity was planned.
Saturday evening we had my nephew's first birthday party. My brother and his wife made this awesome ice cream cake roll with fudge on top. Delicious! Julian got some fun gifts, but Collin ended up playing with them most of the time. And my sister and mom didn't want Collin to feel left out about Julian getting all the gifts, so they got him a Thomas the Train and a recorder. He was in heaven! 
Sunday evening we met our photographer at an alternate location to avoid rain, and then got poured on for about an hour. It was very disappointing, and we were all at our wit's end. Luckily, he was willing to reschedule. Before he and the rain arrived, Ryan was able to snap a couple great pics of the kids.
Monday evening we headed to an amusement park / street fair for Family Home Evening. Ryan enjoyed the bumper cars (not recommended for pregnant women, bummer) and the Flying Bobs. Collin and I enjoyed the Thomas the Train ride, and Ryan and Collin enjoyed the Carousel. After each of his rides, Collin fiercely gripped whatever he could and whined for "more." He really did enjoy the lights and music. 
Tuesday evening we went out to dinner, where the more daring of the bunch enjoyed sushi and raw oysters. I got popcorn shrimp, ha ha. Collin loved it! Then we headed to play miniature golf at a dinosaur course. Collin loved the roaring and moving T-Rex. 
Wednesday evening we were able to reschedule our photo shoot at a beautiful state park to the south of town. It was a long haul but totally worth the drive. It was beautiful and completely untouched by all the commercialism. I have much higher hopes from this shoot. The sunset was remarkable, and the gentle breeze was perfect. Fingers crossed we look nice in the pics. Here are a few Ry snapped.
Thursday afternoon we headed back to the airport. I was so sad our trip had come to an end. We had been looking forward to this since last Thanksgiving. Collin, in full health, was much more rambunctious in flight, and we were glad it was just a short 2-hour jaunt. Whatever are we going to do on our two four-hour flights each way to Washington!? Yuck.It was a wonderful trip, but we are definitely still catching up on sleep. Collin went down late most nights, and since he was on an air mattress next to our bed, he woke up and started climbing up and poking us at his usual time each morning. I didn't want to waste my vacation napping, or sleeping at all for that matter, so pregnant-me could use some shut-eye too.
It was great to be all together with my family, who hadn't been together in one place since my sister's wedding six years ago. Thanks, Mom & Dad, for a GREAT reunion.
This is how Ryan wanted to be remembered for all posterity. Does that look like a weekend warrior or what? 
I LOVE the pasty, white chest. I think this picture also tells a good story about the skill levels of the athletes - Some guys were really into it. A guy from my parents' ward is actually doing the Iron Man in September. He got second place in his age division. But then there were many people like the man on the right of the picture - old, overweight, untrained, and competing just to finish. I was soooo proud of all them. Remember, I was the one on the sidelines.
Here's Ry in the first event - the swim. The swim was 1/4 mile and was in their Olympic-sized pool. Most triathlon swims are in open water, so that is another neat feature of this race.
And the last part was the run. It was an additional 2 laps (for a total of 4 miles). He says if he were going to improve his time for another race, this is where he thinks he could gain some minutes. 
