School is out, and summer vacation is at its peak. The beaches are currently bustling with families soaking up the sun and seeking some fun. I have always felt fortunate living in North Carolina because our coastline is so accessible that even day trips to the beach are possible for some. I think the beach is where precious family memories are made. Trips to the beach were a part of my childhood and my husband’s childhood, and now our children and their cousins are making their own beach memories.
When my son thinks of summer vacation, he thinks of the BEACH with his cousins. We spend a week with my husband’s family in Topsail Beach every year in a lovely oceanfront home called, "Beach Place, Too" which is about two and half hours from our home. Surprisingly, we all live in Raleigh within 20 minutes of each other, but at home, our daily lives get in the way of frequent visits. Topsail is our chance to visit and even go back to a time of yesteryear. Topsail Beach is a quiet beach community on the southern end of Topsail Island. This North Carolina island has a rich history dating back to pirates in the 1700s.
There are no pirates in our cottage, but we have gorgeous crashing waves as our view from almost every window. Our time here is simple family time at its best.
Our days are spent eating watermelon on the beach.
Building sandcastles.
And applying sunscreen. I honestly think my 19-month-old left the beach with her chunky thighs as lily white as when we arrived.
Our nights are filled with simple seafood suppers. I'll share the great recipe for Topsail Spaghetti later.
Beach visitors gather in one spot for ice cream at the local putt-putt in the center of Topsail. It’s the only place where beach music blares, crowds gather, with sunburned faces and ice cream is your reward after a competitive, family game of miniature golf. As you sway your hips to the song “Barbara Ann,” you can actually imagine generations doing the exact same thing when the song was on the Billboard chart in 1961. The place probably still looks the same, too, if it were around that long ago.
A week at the beach goes by so quickly. In a flash, it’s time to go home. You feel as if you just unpacked your suitcase. It can’t be time to pack up again already! My 5-year-old doesn’t understand why we have to leave and why we can’t stay one more day. My 10-year-old nephew wants to stay one more week because he doesn’t want to leave his newly made beach friends.
It’s kind of a tradition now that my son leaves the island with a new T-shirt so that he can have a little bit of the beach with him at home. We always eat a great breakfast at the local beach grill after cottage checkout.
As we cross the island bridge to go back to the mainland, we also have lots of priceless family memories to talk about until we come back next year.
Counting the days!
When my son thinks of summer vacation, he thinks of the BEACH with his cousins. We spend a week with my husband’s family in Topsail Beach every year in a lovely oceanfront home called, "Beach Place, Too" which is about two and half hours from our home. Surprisingly, we all live in Raleigh within 20 minutes of each other, but at home, our daily lives get in the way of frequent visits. Topsail is our chance to visit and even go back to a time of yesteryear. Topsail Beach is a quiet beach community on the southern end of Topsail Island. This North Carolina island has a rich history dating back to pirates in the 1700s.
There are no pirates in our cottage, but we have gorgeous crashing waves as our view from almost every window. Our time here is simple family time at its best.
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| My husband's mom and her grandchildren |
Our days are spent eating watermelon on the beach.
And applying sunscreen. I honestly think my 19-month-old left the beach with her chunky thighs as lily white as when we arrived.
Our nights are filled with simple seafood suppers. I'll share the great recipe for Topsail Spaghetti later.
Beach visitors gather in one spot for ice cream at the local putt-putt in the center of Topsail. It’s the only place where beach music blares, crowds gather, with sunburned faces and ice cream is your reward after a competitive, family game of miniature golf. As you sway your hips to the song “Barbara Ann,” you can actually imagine generations doing the exact same thing when the song was on the Billboard chart in 1961. The place probably still looks the same, too, if it were around that long ago.
A week at the beach goes by so quickly. In a flash, it’s time to go home. You feel as if you just unpacked your suitcase. It can’t be time to pack up again already! My 5-year-old doesn’t understand why we have to leave and why we can’t stay one more day. My 10-year-old nephew wants to stay one more week because he doesn’t want to leave his newly made beach friends.
It’s kind of a tradition now that my son leaves the island with a new T-shirt so that he can have a little bit of the beach with him at home. We always eat a great breakfast at the local beach grill after cottage checkout.
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| Established in 1959 |
Counting the days!
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