The Breuers: Labor Day Beach Trip

Two years ago, a group of my friends went on a beach trip to Isle of Palms, South Carolina (outside of Charleston). They were all bringing their kids, and since we were childless at the time, we opted out of attending - we thought it would be crazy with so many people in one house.

This year the trip was revived, and we were fortunately invited to join. And now that we have a child, we were completely excited about it! A little nervous about 14 adults and 13 children in one house, but still excited. I see my girlfriends frequently enough at girls' nights, but I rarely get to spend time with their children. So I was excited to spend some time with all the families and watch Lola play with the other children.

We had a big seven-bedroom house right on the beach. Each family had their own bedroom, and there was plenty of communal space so we never felt cramped. The location was perfect - it was so nice having a beachfront house.

We were there Friday evening through Monday morning, so we had two full days at the beach. In the morning, we got up and went to the beach, came back for lunch and nap, and then went back to the beach for a little while before dinner. The beach was so different than Grayton Beach - it was flat and long, and the tide came in very high during high tide. The water wasn't as clear as in the Gulf, but it was still pleasantly warm and not too rough.

Lola seemed to enjoy the the sand and water. It was very shallow pretty far out, so she could sit in the water and crawl through it. She played with the other kids some, but mainly Olivia, who is six. Olivia just loves to play with Lola, and it is so sweet. Lola seems to enjoy her too - she always smiles at her.

We ate in most meals, but Sunday night we headed out to Acme restaurant with the Brunes and the Nadis. It was quite a spectacle eating out with three babies and two three-year-olds, but I think we did okay. And the food was delicious.

In the evenings, after the kids were in bed, the adults played some hardcore nerdy board games. Thanks to Omar for introducing us to some new ones! We had a lot of fun, even if we did stay up way too late. Lola continued her streak of sleeping terribly while traveling, so it was a rough few nights - not a good mix when we stayed up late drinking. But we got to catch up on sleep once we got home. I think Joseph and I were in bed by 8 Monday night.

It was a wonderful trip, and much more relaxing than I expected. I enjoyed spending some quality time with my friends and their families.