Ocean City, NJ
pamelamyers | August 31, 2014
This year, we were lucky enough to be able to steal a few extra days at the beach. Since Krista and Adam spent a few days at our beach house, we were able to crash at theirs in Ocean City. We couldn’t wait! Well, all of us except Zephyr. She was trying to stow away in our luggage!
I left work as early as I could on Wednesday and we arrived at the shore around dinnertime. After a quick bite of Mack and Manco pizza (yeah, it’s Manco and Manco now, but whatever, it’ll always be Mack and Manco to us) we headed for a walk to the boardwalk.
It was too late to do a lot, but we thought the kiddos might enjoy the arcade, so that was our first stop. Mark and Sam had a game of air hockey and I was impressed. She was a decent opponent!
After leaving the arcade, we walked a bit more and Sam was ready to burst when she saw Anna and Elsa of Frozen fame!
Baby Ryder wasn’t too impressed, so Pop Pop hung out while we all had fun.
The next morning, it was time to hit the beach early. It was a beautiful day and we had the best time. Sam loved the odd tidal pool that formed. It ran for blocks and blocks parallel to the beach and was sort of like a lake in the sand. You can see the waves and the ocean on the left side of the photo, where the lifeguard’s boat is. In this picture, the waves were coming up at high tide to meet the tidal pool, but on most of the beach there was a huge expanse of sand there.
You can see, she is having fun in her own little pool.
That night, we headed to the boardwalk for real. That is the one major benefit of staying in Ocean City – instant boardwalk access. The rides were the first order of business. We rode the train then Sam and Maddox got Krista and I on the balloon ride. With the two of them wildly spinning the seat, Krista and I were seasick!
Krista took the kids on the bears, but I stayed behind. As Krista so aptly put it, “Oh, great, more spinning.” 🙂
We had to ride the carousel because it is always one of Sam’s favorites.
Last day at the beach, and we were determined to get every bit of fun out of it. Sam had no problem having fun! We were back at the tidal pool and Sam made a cute castle with a bridge for her boat to sail up to. She worked so hard on all the details.
Strangely, Sam found a ladybug on the beach. It crawled right on her toe!
After Sam was done in the water, we plopped her into the lifeguard boat for a photo op. Picking up the oar was her idea and she looks great! Later, Maddox got in too.
A few family photos later…
…and it was time to bury Mark! The kids had a blast burying him from head to toe. Ok, well, neck to toe!
Last night, and one more chance at the boardwalk. We rode some rides, and then, what turned out to be Sam’s favorite thing of all, what she called, “The Spooky House”. It was very tame, but Sam thought it was wonderful. We went in twice and the second time, Mark told Sam to scare all the monsters. Each time one popped out, she’d yell BOO!
Did you think we would forget the Ferris Wheel? Not a chance. I don’t think I have ever gone to the boardwalk and not rode the Ferris Wheel. Mark and I are so glad Samantha loves it like we do.
It gets super cold up there, especially at night, and we left our jackets in the car. Mark happily obliged and kept Sam as toasty as he could.
Back to reality, back to work, back to home. It was fun, Summer, but we’re moving on to Fall. See you next year!
