11th birthday at Grandpa and Grandma's house in South Carolina

I've been very late at reporting this, but earlier this month Esme and I took a serious trip - out to South Carolina, to visit my father and stepmother, Grandpa Harvey and Grandma Gale.

Esme's birthday was the fourth, and we went a little before that, to have time to visit the ocean at Myrtle Beach, something even I had never done before.  So, it was a pretty special occasion.

We flew on a plane to get to Columbia, South Carolina - changing over at Atlanta, one of the busiest airports in the United States.  It was an adventure there, too.  Esme was quite nervous about flying but she did really good (there still might be some fingerprint marks in the seat armrests on those planes, though!  kidding).

Esme got to see Mom at my 'most lost' when the rental car wouldn't start in the parking garage - but they gave us a different car and it was all good from there.  I also admit I lost the rental car in the parking lot of a Walmart we went to for groceries one time -- but we found it just as the parking lot police were about to come help us.  I also got lost a few times and had to work my way back with the Google Maps on my phone.  But I think she also saw that you don't have to panic and freak out - you can get out of these situations and learn something.

The day we went to Myrtle Beach Grandpa still wasn't feeling very well, and his oxygen tanks were low.. it was a Sunday, so I put on my brave face and Esme and I took the hour and a half drive to Myrtle Beach by ourselves, arriving just a bit after eleven in the morning.  We went to the boardwalk by the SkyWheel and then on to the ocean to gather shells.  I think we were out there up to our knees for a little over two hours ,then I made her come in, and eat something, and buy some souvenirs.. including a towel and a sweatshirt.  She really wanted a boogie board - and of course, to take it to the ocean and get completely submerged in the waves.  It was a 60 degree day at best.. with nice sunshine but a cold wind.  But armed with towel and sweatshirt I took her down to the beach again (after depositing like fifteen pounds of shells in the trunk of the car) and she rode waves for another 45 minutes.  Then it was quick put on the dry things and get to the car to make the drive home.

 on the beach near the Sky Wheel in Myrtle Beach, SC

 Collecting seashells

 

 Seashells

 Trying to push over the leaning tree at the Visitor's Center

  Boogie boarding at the beach 

 Boogie boarding at the beach

 At the Swan Lake Iris Park in Sumter, SC

 Grandpa and Grandma giggle at a toy hermit crab

on the plane with her birthday gifts

tired and headed home!

Esme and her Grandma Gale made cupcakes together and Esme and I decorated them, and then they watched the Garfield movies.  The next day, we went to the Swan Lake Iris Gardens park and Grandpa came with us to see the swans.  Esme did get a headache halfway through there - but enjoyed seeing the swans and some turtles.  We grabbed some chicken and went home, and then Esme and I got a few more things at a craft store.  Later that night she opened her 11th birthday Owl, Harry Potter books and a sand dollar silver necklace I had gotten for her to commemorate the beach.  Grandma Gale gave her a souvenir net with shells that says 'Myrtle Beach' across the top which now hangs in her bedroom on the wall.

We had a great stay at Grandpa and Grandma's house.  Esme wishes she could have gone back for another day on the beach.. but she is happy with the shells and the boogie board and souvenirs and maybe a chance to go back in a few years (during a warmer time of the year!).  Grandpa said we probably got as good of a haul of shells as we did because it was the off-season for beachcombers.  When I finally asked Esme to come get in her towel to leave a six inch long blue conch shell (almost complete) washed up right by her elbow and I told her it was the Ocean telling her to listen to her Mother and it was time to go ;)  heh.

We made all the connecting flights back (although I got off at one wrong exit on the way back to the airport, backtracked and got back on) and Daddy picked us up at the Nashville Airport for a long drive home in the pouring rain.  We were so glad to be home and to have everyone together again.

One bad thing happened while we were gone - our dog Freckles ran out into the woods, maybe looking for us because we were gone, and she has not come back.  We have to expect the worst.  She was an excellent little dog, and we miss her.  Her sister Lucy, especially, misses her.  I got a sinus infection after getting home, as well, and that took up all the rest of my vacation time trying to get human again.

Freckles

I'm putting together a 16 by 20 poster frame of some of the pictures and ephemera we collected on our trip.  I'm going to hang it in the hallway beside the crayon drawing of the beach (and oddly, a plane overhead!) that Esme had made years ago 'in case we ever went to the beach it would be like this..'

Summer Journal and writing adventures

 Her sentence today was 'There were no aliens.'

The better organized writing area and her favorite pen we bought at a store earlier this year.

We started working on a story called the Adventure of the Twelve Charms.  I am writing it out for her and she is telling the story. Then we will go back (hopefully) and smooth it out some.  She started telling me this long 'dream' about elves and vampires and portals and a mission from the king.  Daddy said 'write it down - make it into a book!'.

So, we'll try and see where it goes!

There were lots of other Esme-isms today... the Force was running strong in this one. 

'This toast is firm.  That means solid.  I saw it in a cartoon I was watching.  I forget which one.'
 'The Ancient Egyptians didn't have hairbrushes.  So, why do I have to brush my hair?' - told her they did, beautiful ones actually,.. she hadn't seen it in the artifacts book we looked through...I told her to brush her hair and I would look some up for her to see.  She did, and we saw several beautiful bone combs and others.  I told her we might have to look up the Senet game, as there was a beautiful set shown in one of the pictures.  We saw African and Native American combs and brushes in the pages, too - she was impressed.
I told her that the story was just a first draft.  No, not a giraffe, a draft.  Err.. nevermind (as Daddy starts to joke about the second and fourth giraffe) -- we will go more over that after we get it written down.  It means we might have to change some things as we go.
You mean I have to clean up  this whole room tomorrow, like,everything, all gone?  Is that what you want me to do? //No, and you know it.. pick up some things and get them off the floor // so, on the ceiling then? *It's bedtime (Now she has the octopus toy on her head and is pretending to be a sleeping octopus..but removes it before I can kiss IT goodnight..as she wants the kiss goodnight.)

//and tomorrow is another day!

Adventure day

All ready to leave for the morning! With her 'best friend' Tigger the tiger (her cake top decoration) who came along in her coat pocket.

There was a story hour at the library. Half-way through the circle time they started the singing, and she froze up and came and dived into my lap saying she was scared and wanted to leave... I told her if we left we were going home. She did not like that idea. Eventually she decided it wasn't so bad and she went back into the circle and cooperated for the rest of the time. When we used to go to the story hour none of the children were as young as she was then (age 2-3), and she did not fit in well.  Now, most of the children are under three and there was only one other one her age... very strange dynamics going on!

We went to the Chinese restaurant after that, and while walking on the sidewalk the bell began to ring at the courthouse. She grabbed her ears and said that sound was going all over the world it was so loud - and she wanted me to make it stop. When it stopped she couldn't stop talking about how it went all over the world - into every town and it was still going in the air.  She did about as well as can be expected for her third 'real' restaurant experience ever, and maybe under ten occurrences of 'eating in' anywhere at all... I had to encourage her to eat anything that didn't look normal, ask her not lay down in the booth and put her feet in the air, not say the food was scary and cry we had food at home why are we here etc etc..  But she did like the umbrellas and the red ceiling.  I am sure if I do this more often with her (and more places like this that are not 'milkshake and french fry' places ) she will figure out it is not so bad and cooperate with that idea more.

"curious george smile" after she climbed up and did it well...

Another girl came along and showed her how to spin down on this pole - which she did finally get but she was being a rightful scaredy-pants about it as it was six feet up in the air.

She had a big story about being a 'drinkman' at the counter (shown behind in this picture) and I would give her five cents, or one cent, or a quarter - and she would give me drinks and be the drinkman. She went up in the bridge over several 'days' going to sleep, bringing the drinks, selling them to 'farmers' and their cows and other drinkmen, and then going back to her house to go to sleep at night. Eventually, she decided she was really a drink lady, and she would marry a drinkman, and they would give out drinks together at the counter.

This is the 'Paris' park, with the mini Eiffel tower in it.  I asked her 'pretend you are in Paris;, which got her to give me a 'huh what do you mean' look...

Swinging

Esme's attempt at using the camera, since this was the lightweight older one we had put away for a while... not too bad of a job!

We went to the Robertson's decorating center after the park to look at things and describe them - smooth things, mirrors, chickens, statues, beds, chairs, couches.... she loved the idea you could go up the stairs and walk all around in a circle.  As we came out the bells in that town, McKenzie, were ringing for noon and she looked at me and said 'See, all around the world.  I told you.  Just like that.'  I nearly fell over laughing and she was a little upset that I did... but I told her that was very funny.  She bought a basket and I bought a yard of cotton upholstery fabric there.. then we went home.

notes// She is working at drawing her thank you card to her Aunt Dot, and I will ask her to draw something else later.  She has told me she wants a giraffe and a spaceship for her Santa List.. but I have told her she will have to sit down and write that letter soon so she should decide well what is going to be on it.