Myrtle Beach

This last weekend, the kids and I had the opportunity to go to Myrtle Beach for a Military Spouses Retreat put on by the Chaplin in Chris' Brigade.  They paid for the hotel, food, and even childcare when I was in the seminars.  We had so much fun!  

This is the view from our hotel balcony.

The kids and I would go from the hotel pools (yes, plural), which included a lazy river and a couple of hot tubs, to the short walk to the beach.  We had such a blast.

 

 

Saturday night, we went to Broadway on the Beach which has everything you can imagine.  Tons of shopping, restaurants, and rides.  We ate dinner at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville.  They had guys on stilts who made balloon animals, and it was a fun atmosphere.  After that, we walked around and let the kids go on some of the rides.

After we checked out on Sunday, we we stopped at the Ripley's Aquarium.  That was a lot of fun too.  We got to see a diver in the tank feeding the sting rays.  It was so nice to get away and not have to worry about anything.  We are so grateful for the opportunity and we definitely  want to go back with Chris. 

This month, Kayla received the Terrific Kids Award from her class.  Basically, it's like student of the month and they make a big deal about it at school.  All the parents were invited for an award ceremony with refreshments following.  Kayla's teacher wrote this on the award: "Kayla exemplifies good citizenship in the respect, integrity, caring, attitude and fairness she demonstrates daily.  She is a happy child who enjoys being involved and accepts everyone open-heartedly.  It is important to Kayla to be patriotic by supporting her dad and all service members who are serving their country."  I am so proud of you, Kayla!

After many, many years of coveting and dreaming of having a piano, thanks to my wonderful parents, I finally got one.  I have enjoyed playing it every day and have even started giving the kids piano lessons.  Kayla is a natural and loves it too.  She wakes in the morning and first thing, starts practicing her songs.  Thank you so much, Mom and Dad!