The Uptons: Beachin' It Up 2012

We have been to the beach several times this spring and summer. Instead of doing lots of different posts about the beach, I figured I would condense them all into one post.

Sydney started off the summer a little hesitant towards the ocean. She loved digging in the sand while sitting on a blanket and enjoyed watching the going-ons on the beach like kites, surfers, and boats. When we would get close to the ocean, however, she would cling to us and lay her head on our shoulders. Her Pops dug her a small pool near the ocean, and she enjoyed sitting in it digging with her toys. Slowly but surely she started to show less trepidation but still insisted on being held. Finally, Blake put her down in the waves one afternoon without any warning. The tide had gone out and there were small tidal pools and the water was shallow in general. Low and behold, she LOVED it! We held her hands while she "jumped" over the waves, she pretended to catch fish for her daddy to eat, and she would splash the water with her hands. I know her love of the ocean will continue to grow!

We also did a few of Sydney's favorite things as well. We went a couple of times to the aquarium, where she loves watching the fish, penguins, turtles, and otters. She is not too keen on the sharks (who can blame her??) but she randomly loves to watch the jelly fish and the one long, nasty eel. Oddly enough, probably her most beloved thing to do is ride the trolley in Beaufort. The trolley rides around the historic Beaufort waterfront down to the marina and back again. I think we have done this ride at least 10 times this summer and it never gets old for her. She looks out the window the entire time and watches for her favorite things (a pirate someone has in the doorway of a tiny fishing cottage and the "green guy" which is a plastic thing human shape cutout, not sure how else to describe it). Funny that is what she likes to look at when there are gorgeous waterfront homes and tons of boats.

Sydney also had a couple of 'firsts' while at the beach. She enjoyed her first popsicle on the 4th of July (redneck baby style in her diaper of course). Moral of the popsicle story: it melted fast and she talks too much to truly enjoy yet- ha! :) She also took her first boat ride. While at the beach with her Uncle Brent and Aunt (soon to be official) Catherine, we took a dolphin watching cruise. Moral of this story? We saw zero dolphins and Sydney liked looking at the captain's dog more than anything else. In all seriousness, she liked being on the boat and even got to steer on a pretend ship's wheel and saw a baby osprey nest with three hatchlings peeking out. I was disappointed to not see any dolphins, but Sydney liked finally riding on a boat! She also went on a pier for the first time. She liked looking around and the wind blew her hair in ways that made for some hilarious pictures.

My favorite memory, though, is probably one not involving Sydney. While at the beach with Brent and Catherine, they got engaged!!!! When I met Catherine in 9th grade, never would I have imagined that we would become sister (in-laws) one day. Blake, Sydney, and I relished in celebrating their engagement and look forward to a wedding soon. Brent and Catherine compliment each other so well, something that I don't see everyday. I am so thankful they have found happiness together!

And now, here are about 1,000 pictures, put together from several different trips (only about half of what we actually took!):