Monroe Sea Grove Beach Trip 2010

The Monroe family headed down to Sea Grove last week for our annual vacation. We were scared that tar balls from the BP oil spill might damper our beach fun, but it turns out there wasn't much to be worried about. Little tar balls washed up every now and then, but they were as small as little rocks. They washed up with the waves and then back out, but never bothered us. It seems that late in the day it would get worse. I guess that's when the tide moves. Sam really did great. I think the sound of the ocean helped soothe him to sleep in the mornings. It didn't take long for him to lay his head down on my shoulder and hum himself to sleep. As soon as I was sure he was good and asleep we laid him down for a long morning nap under the umbrella.

Most mornings were like this, and it was much fun for me and Mike. He seemed to really like the ocean. The first time I let the waves wash up over his feet, he didn't like it. The water was actually pretty chilly, and I think the crashing scared him a little bit. By the end of the week, he didn't mind it at all. He loved jumping over the waves and would giggle when we lifted him up. The first part of the week the entire family joined us: Lauren, Michael, Johnny, Karen, Melanie, Jeff, Mary Madeline and Evans. Karen never ceases to amaze us with the wonderful meals she cooks. Fresh boiled and fried shrimp, a wonderful filet of fish, fresh corn, squash, potatoes, and cucumbers from the Skirum garden filled the table one night. It's by far Mike's favorite meal of the trip. Lauren and Michael had to head back to Auburn for work on Monday, and Johnny and Karen left in the middle of the week. We didn't let them leave without trying a delicious meal at the Red Bar this time! Even though it poured down rain on the way in the the restaurant, it didn't damper our fun. Red Bar never fails to deliver! And who ever travels to Sea Grove without a trip through Seaside for some gelato and a look around Sun Dog Books? Sam really enjoyed his trip for gelato!

I don't know how many more trips we'll have down to the Gulf coast in the near future because of the oil contamination, but we sure enjoyed this one.