Surfside Beach!

We took a family vacation to Surfside Beach Texas back in the middle of August. 

WE LOVED IT!!!

I want to go back every year.  We stayed right on the beach.  It was a great beach... not overpopulated and very clean.  It was a short walk down the boardwalk to the water. 

Here are some pictures of the week at the beach.

3 boys waiting to eat on the deck... overlooking the water.

This cute little monkey LOVED the sand... she loved to get messy and eat it too.

Ready to surf the waves!

There she goes~  She was always on the move.  The water didn't stop her either.  We had to keep a close eye on Brooklyn

Brooklyn loved to play with the seaweed.

The water was so warm!  It was like bath water.   This is a HUGE change for me.  I'm used to the Washington Coast beaches... which is like iceberg water.  The only way to get used to it is to become numb to the pain.  Surfside beach water was so warm!

Blake playing in the sand

We tried to build a swimming pool for Brooklyn... she played in it for a while and then crawled out...

Justin getting burried in the sand

Blake getting burried in the sand

We roasted marshmellows and made smores (unfortunately our graham crackers were stale...)

Blake loved to play dominoes at the house

Sunblock was a must... and was applied several times a day

The house had lots of games and the boys loved to play them.

Here's Brooklyn laying down in the water... she couldn't get enough. 

This was our beach house... the one in the middle

Here's Andrew sitting on my chair in the water.  The kids loved to sit in the water and let the waves roll over them.

Here's Brooklyn ready to get Blake sleeping on the couch

The beach wears you out!

We did lots of eating and relaxing... Here's Andrew eating and Todd reading on the deck.

Brooklyn's turn in the chair

Crawling through the water

My turn to eat... finally!

Our family on the beach

Todd, me, and Brooklyn

Andrew playing in the sand

We packed up on Thursday and headed up to Galveston (about 45 minutes up the coast)  We enjoyed ice cream from a darling ice cream parlor.  The shop had only been reopened for 3 weeks due to all the damage from the huricanes the year before.

Then we toured a pirate ship... fun and HOT

The boys loved being in a real pirate ship. It was cool to see the captains quarters and the areas they lived in for months at a time.

Stay tuned for more of the vacation posts soon!