Griswolds' Vacation 2019

This year's vacation was epic!  Top 5 for sure.  It's funny, it didn't start out that way.  The idea of it rankled me from the beginning.  Personally, I wasn't happy that we had to go to North Carolina to celebrate our son’s high school graduation with that side of the family.  Over 20 years, we have requested them to be in one place, all together, at once, and by us, 4 times.  Two times at about each end of those two decades.  I was a bit sour about it.  But Coco didn’t seemed phased, so I just went with it.
     We started in Raleigh, NC.  In a 24 hour period, Demi and I went to three open house and caught up with old friends.  My college roommate, his wife (also a Colby alum) and kids have lived in Cary, NC for 15 years.  Demi’s high school friend and husband moved there 4 years ago.  The six of us had a great time out in Cary.
     Team Griswold drove out to Topsail Beach over 2 1/2 hours.  It was a straight shot.  Was the reward for that drive ever worth it!  Our first time using VRBO and we struck gold!  This beach house was amazing.  Three floors, a huge garage, fenced in back yard with an enormous deck for walking the dog, two front deck balconies with clear views of the ocean, great open kitchen and living space, all had our own rooms and bathrooms and private beach access.  What a HQ!
     I was in the ocean every, single day.  The water was warm.  The waves were huge but not overpowering.  One did need to beware of riptides.  I swam and floated in that ocean for over an hour at a clip on party day.  The beach was sandy.  Instead of hunting for beach glass, people were searching for shark teeth.  The weather was perfect.  Even at close to 100 degrees, we were happy.  There was one overcast day.  No rain.
     The party was a huge success.  We spent a lot of time with the family.  We had an amazing dinner at my sisters-in-law’s in Snead’s Ferry.  She did a shrimp boil for 30, with two sets of spices.  There was an incredible Vietnamese/Thai restaurant in Wilmington.  We got ice cream, then walked the riverwalk in Wilmington.  The highlight was the jet ski trip.  About ten of us cruised a 9 mile stretch of the Intercoastal.  The boys had so much fun they went back another day.  Caz had an ear to ear grin, permanently spread across his face the whole ride.  I saw dolphins twice, with one diving under my jet ski.  Forget swimming with dolphins, go jet ski with them.  Caz and Coco perfected their bodysurfing.  Caz was at it daily.
     A truly marvelous vacation.   The Griswolds won this one!

Decision making - Weighing Risk, Rewards & Consequences

The boys have quite the operation going this summer.  I do admire it.  Caz hasn't been able to get out with all his pals often.  They have have crazy work schedules.  Dix has been deployed to CA.  Argonaut has been deployed to NC.  When they do manage to get out, Caz hasn't wanted to pay the consequences of misbehaving.  He often has to get up early for work.  A few times though, he has tip the scales the other way.  For those times, he uses his head.  He gets a ride from a friend who is not misbehaving or he sleeps over.  Now Caz has negotiated a deal with Coco.  For the prices of a trip to Taco Bell, Coco will pick up Caz from his friend's house.  They both seem happy with the deal.  And they are both safe in the end.  I give them a lot of credit.  A lot of kids their ages don't even stop to think about the consequences or to mull over options.  I am proud of them.

Independence Day 2019

Happy 4th of July USA!
     Thank you to those who serve and to their families!  Land of the free, because of the Brave.