Vacation: Day 7 Song of the day: Beach Baby - The First Class

"Beach baby, Beach Baby give me your hand
Give me somethin' that I can remember" - The First Class

This morning went along at a nice, slow and even pace...

At last! Finally, my idea of what constitutes a vacation materialized, and it just happens to be our last full day here. For some reason we lost our internet connection, so I pulled up a Word document on the laptop and began recording my morning notes as “The Boy” and his cousin remained in bed, lounging around for most of the morning. Upstairs, my sister was making coffee, bacon and sausage, while trying to make sure that the house was in "checkout" condition. Mom and I soon joined her. We sat at the table and talked for a while as the kids and Dad remained asleep.

"Just like before we can walk by the shore in the moonlight"

Last night, Dad slept alone on the bottom floor, in the gameroom. The reason? My niece had gone into their room last night and spent what seemed like hours talking to her grandmother. Dad wanted to sleep and so escaped downstairs to the game room. My sister fixed up the pullout sofa for him. He was then able to sleep comfortably.

Later in the morning, in preparation for tomorrow morning’s early exit, I vacuumed up the hair in our bathroom. There was enough blonde hair on the floor to make a small wig. None of the family members staying in the house this week are blondes. Go figure.

My sister and I ate the remainder of the crabs. They had been put in the back of the refrigerator and somehow had become somewhat frozen. Apparently, the temperature in the back of the fridge was just at the freezing point. This made eating the crabs, a bit of a disappointment...but not so much of disappointment to stop us from finishing them off.

Later, Mom wanted fresh fish to take back home, so she and my sister drove miles to the "local" fish market to pick up a few pounds. The kids have gone to the beach with my husband. All were reluctant to go, and bad "attitudes" abounded. There was also a little misunderstanding earlier today between "The Boy" and his cousin, involving three dollars and who it belonged to. They were given a lecture from Nana about false accusations and how money can cause problems in a family. Needless to say, I derived more than three dollars worth of fun from watching their antics. When it was all over, I felt as if I should have pitched in some cash just for the entertainment value alone.

"Beach baby, Beach baby there on the sand
From July 'till the end of September
Surfin' was fun, we'd be out in the sun every day"

Dad and I decided to stay in. I left him at the dining room table filling out contest applications. For as long as I can remember, he has always loved entering contests. What makes me smile is that he enters them the old fashioned way...forms filled out by hand, sealed with a lick and sent off with a stamp and a feeling of hope; knowing that one day he will win "big".

"Mmmm, I never thought that it would end
Oooooh oooooh, mmmm, and I was everybody's friend Ooooh ooooh"

Before long, the rest of the gang came home. Husband and kids, followed within moments by Mom and my sister. We ate dinner (The Last Supper), loaded up the dishwasher, did last minute laundry, loaded and unloaded the elevator several times, and then calmed the chocolate cake filled kids down. Yes Lord! It is time to go home! My sister said that this vacation was one of the "sweetest hells" she has ever gone through. I smiled and said to her, "Mine too". Currituck county is famous for its wild horses. It was fun, but I tell you literally: Wild horses couldn't keep me here!

"Long hot days
Cool Sea haze"

But you know...this is the stuff memories are made of.

"Juke box plays
But now it's fading awaaaaay..."