Birthdays at the Beach: Assateague

Because we had already taken a nice vacation to Utah in the spring, and because we both had church camps in June, we didn't have much money or time leftover for another big family vacation. So we opted for a week at the beach. One of Maryland's state parks is right on the beach. Turns out we've been here before, but we didn't have the best experience. And I guess last time we weren't at the state park, rather the national seashore. But it doesn't make that much of a difference. It's all the same coast.

Anyway, this park is very sought-after. There are a lot of sites, but not a lot with electric hook-ups (something I now require for summer camping). The process to get reservations is very difficult and the odds are definitely against you. However, last July I, with backup provided by Chuck and my sister, was able to snag a site with a hook-up. Victory! We left Tuesday morning (traffic over the Bay Bridge was a breeze) and headed straight for the beach. That evening the park hosted a tie dye shirt party and we thought, what the heck. We all made shirts, fairly unsuccessfully, but definitely enjoying ourselves. Well 3/4ths of us enjoyed ourselves.








Wednesday we went to Chincoteague to explore the little town and see the lighthouse. We also stopped at NASA's Wallops Island. It was HOT. And BUGGY. I'm pretty sure I had a 5 millimeter-thick coating of sunscreen + bug spray on at all times. But we did get some delicious ice cream. That night the park showed an outdoor movie, so after an evening beach walk, we went to see the movie (the one with Mowgli in it?). The boys liked that for sure, while Chuck and I felt weird being the only adults there. (Where were all the parents?)
















Thursday was Ollie's birthday. He woke up to some pig decorations (his giggling! melted my mama heart!) and a breakfast of previously-made pig pancakes. Then it was off to the beach! After a good chunk of time spent playing in sand and water, we cleaned off and headed to Ocean City. The big attraction for the boys was the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum. This is something we would not have done, had it not been a birthday and had the boys not spent hours reading these books (they love them). So they enjoyed that. The adults enjoyed the air conditioning. After that we just walked the boardwalk, shopped in silly stores, and ate some pizza. I think Ollie had a good day.
















Friday was my birthday. Unlike last year's big one, this was one I just didn't care about. I did go for a run on the beach, followed up with some yoga also on the beach. The boys gave me some cards and a small present and then it was off to the beach. That afternoon, we did a small hike on the national seashore part of the island before deciding the bugs were too much and we headed back to the Scamp. We played our new game of "Pass the BIG Pigs" and did some campfire-wood-sack races.




Saturday morning we headed home after a morning walk on the beach. We had excellent, if not hot, weather, but it's the beach in summer. The ocean was warm enough for swimming and the boys certainly enjoyed getting out in it. And of course, the digging. Always the digging.