~Myrtle Beach: Day 1~

The life of a beach bum. A life where you fall asleep to the waves crashing and wind whistling. You sleep in till you want to, and then take a little extra time to get out of bed just because you can. You grab a bite to eat and grow accustomed to the extra crunch from the sand that has made its way into the house and especially the kitchen. Bottles of sunscreen are passed down the counter, which means the yummy smell of Banana Boat permanently wafts in the air. The natural glow of your skin means you don’t even touch your make-up bag. You bring only a handful of clothes because you live – literally live – in your swimsuit all week. Your day may begin with a run on the beach and a cup of coffee on the porch. Or maybe a morning ride in the kayak on the calm, flat water. But, it almost always ends with a sunset full of oranges, pinks, reds, and purples. Ah yes, the life of a beach bum.
The time finally has finally come to live life as a beach bum. Or at least to live a week as such. We saved for more than a year and couldn’t wait for the day to come. And when it did, we took it all in and savored every.single.moment.

Because we were coming from a previous family vacation (New Jersey!), we spent a little extra time on Saturday morning with the DeGroot side of our family before jumping on the plane to head down south. But, boy we were anxious to get to the beach.
My parents picked us up from the airport and we headed to the house. It was already late afternoon but that didn’t stop anyone. We busted out the football, tossed it around, ran through the waves, played with our little Aves, and soaked up the sun.

It felt so good to be back, and to take Dustin for the first time. It was more than 4 years since the last time I was at this beach – Garden City, SC. My mom’s side of the family – the Ledebuhr crew – used to make this trip every other year as our family tradition. With cousins getting older, getting married and having kids, it has just made it more difficult to do. Not to mention we are spread out across the US, from coast to coast. So not only were we back at the beach, but more importantly we were back together as a family. However, we really missed the Strege crew from the group this year!
It's just the beginning of our new life. Our life as beach bums.