Myrtle Beach - Gaither

My mom had planned to fly to Charleston, South Carolina to meet us on Wednesday but during the previous week, the threat of Hurrican Joaquin making landfall at that time got her worried about not being able to get in so she changed her plans to fly to Orlando on Monday and drive up with us instead (yes, she purposely made plans to drive all day in a minivan with six other people.  Bless her heart).  

Hurrican Joaquin didn't do much BUT a bad rain system did hit South Carolina the previous weekend which caused flooding in Charleston and other parts of the state. We weren't sure if it was going to be a "go" or not.  On both Monday and Tuesday we called the hotel in Charleston - - which is about a two hour drive from Myrtle Beach (we planned to spend Wednesday night there before heading on to Myrtle Beach) - - to see if it was flooded out or what.  But they told us it was fine and there was a bit of flooding in the downtown but it wasn't bad.  We also called the Gaithers on Monday and they confirmed that "As long as 'Bill' can get in, it's going to happen." It was all systems go then.  However, we did lose Aunt Shirley.  She had planned to drive up with a friend but she called us and said she was worried about going down the wrong road and drowning.  When you're 81, you can respect the worry.  Interestingly, we noted that a huge stretch of I-95 in South Carolina had been shut down from the flooding which included the city of Santee where we had stayed on our way back from Williamsburg.  I was grateful that I hadn't faced that predicament on the way back when it was me alone with the kids.  In this case, we were turning off I-95 before the closure so it didn't affect us.

We left Wednesday morning, just before 10:00.  Duncan was able to rearrange things in the van so that Colby could sit in the back with the girls and I could sit in the captain's seat next to Brady.  See, we don't need a new vehicle afterall.  We can just take out the captain's chair and put the dog there! Actually, after hearing all kinds of noises our van is making, we feel like we need to get rid of it posthaste.

Colby seemed happy to be sitting next to Aubree.

The trip went well although when we stopped for gas and the kids to stretch their legs, Brady started complaining that his backside was hurting.  Duncan discovered that he had a bit of a rash on it, perhaps from wetting the bed the night before (a very rare occurence).  I had nothing to put on it so Duncan walked to a little store that was next to the gas station but came back to report that he couldn't find anything there either.  I said "Do they have something like petroleum jelly even?  He just needs some kind of cream rubbed on there and he'll feel better.  A lot of it is pyschological." Duncan said they did have some of that and went back to get it.  Brady then asked "Did Daddy go to get the sour cream for me?" I just laughed and said "Yup." Sure enough, he felt a lot better once the "sour cream" was put on his backside.  

We arrived at our hotel about 4:30.  We saw a bit of high water along the way but nothing major.  We dropped off our stuff in our two-bedroom suite (a room for us and a room for my mom) and then went to explore the town.  Charleston is located right on the Atlantic, for those not familiar with the geography, so we did a walk along that for a bit and then set off to find a place to eat supper.  We soon discovered that because of the flooding fears, the city felt pretty empty.  We had pizza and then walked up and down the market streets, visiting some shops and found some "Charleston" pins for the girls.  Brady has decided to collect magnets (although he doesn't get one in every city) but  assured me, "When I get a little older, I'll start a pin collection." Did he think I was worried?

Grabbing a snack at the hotel after checking in.  Watching the coverage of the flood...

Hard to tell in this picture but it was the biggest pizza we had ever seen.  I think it was 24".

Pay attention to Brady's pose in this picture.  You will see it A LOT.

Duncan and I had a spirited discussion on the meaning of this sign.  One of us thought there were no restrictions at all to park here after 6 p.m. while the other thought the sign meant that it was parking at all times for residents but they could only park there for two hours during the hours of 9 am - 6 pm.  Hmmm....  We did end up parking there.

We quickly realized how beautiful and quaint the city was and my mom was determined to take a carriage ride in the morning to see the city from that perspective. We were concerned it would be a little cost prohibitive for the six of us to accompany her but we were able to work out a pretty good deal and I'm so glad we did.  It was a gorgeous day and we just LOVED the city.  I, for sure, want to go back sometime. After the one-hour ride, we drove over to Mount Pleasant where we could catch a ferry ride to tour Fort Sumter.  This is where we met up with Rondinellis.  I didn't think the boys were going to love viewing artificats from the Civil War so we worked it out for Duncan and Calleigh to join my mom, Kathy, and Bruno in doing the Fort and then I would take Aubree, Brady, and Colby to the Children's Museum.  Unfortunately our passes didn't work at this one but they were kind enough to give me an "educator's" discount.  The kids really loved the museum so it all worked out perfectly. One thing that cracked me up was when we were in a section that had a Pirate ship and you could dress up as one too.  The other two were ready to move on so I said to Brady, "Come on, Brady. Take that off and let's go.  He says "Hold on Mom.  I need to turn back into Brady instead of a pirate."

Carriage ride.

Guess Brady got a lot out of it.

The homes were so pretty.

Walking through the market.

Fort Sumter

Glad these two got to spend some time without the other kids.

That is in fact his own sword he was traveling with.

Is this kid running for office?  What's with all the thumbs up?

The Publix grocery store area was a big hit.

Colby missed the memo about us being vegetarians.

Turning back into Brady.

This was their favorite part.  There were a bunch of hallways in this "castle' to run through.

Aubree loved this little door.

We finished our respecive activites and then it was off to Myrtle Beach to get settled in our rental.  My mom had gotten a 4-bedroom condo off VRBO.  We stopped for supper at Waffle House (yes, you read that right) and then started the last leg of the trip. I started looking at the info for the condo and asked my mom "Hey, did they send you an email with the code to get in the door to the condo?" She pauses and says "No-o-o-o." She goes and searches her emails again with no luck.  Fine, we'll just call them.  But it's after 5:00 pm and it goes to voicemail.  It says in case of an emergency to call a different extension but when you call the number, there is no place to even put in an extension.  We are beginning to get a little worried.  My mom sends them an email and then Duncan tells me I should look them up on Facebook and try to contact them that way.  They had the same phone number posted on their FB page but I posted something on their wall and sent them a message through Messenger.  We arrived at the condo and hadn't heard anything so Duncan decided to take the kids down to the beach and my mom and I would just hang tight hoping to hear something.  Within five minutes, they posted something back to me from their FB page - - they had to go to their office and send the email from there.  Thank goodness for social media in this case!

The condo was great.  Since Shirley didn't end up coming, the girls had a room to themselves with two single beds while Duncan and I shared with the boys - - we had two double beds in ours.  I put Duncan in with Brady to keep my bed available for when - - not if - - Colby would end up with me.  I pushed my bed up against the wall so as not to be worried about falls (I didn't want to go through THAT again) but Duncan's bed would have been blocking the door to the bathroom so he just left it and I put pillows on the floor which appeared to be laminate.  Sure enough, about an hour into my sleep, I hear a noise and the box fan go off.  Brady had fallen out of the bed, unplugging the fan as he fell.  I guess it wasn't too bad because he slept through the whole thing. Duncan put some sleeping bags on the floor to make it more confortable for him and put him there.  A few hours later, Brady wakes up and was "outraged" to find himself sleeping there.  "WHAT?!!" I'm not sleeping HERE!  I'm sleeping with Daddy." So back he went and Duncan had to cuddle with him for the rest of the night.  The next day we did move the bed against the wall and everything was fine.

Girls' room.

Our room.

Condo's pool.

Friday was just a gorgous day again and we were grateful to be a very short walk across the street from the beach.  Maybe it's every beach - - perhaps in the south at least - - but we had never looked for shark's teeth before.  It seemed to be a big thing to do at this beach and we soon found ourselves fully engrossed in looking for the teeth.  Admittedly, it is lots of fun even for the adults!  The water was warmer than we anticipated and the kids spent most of the time in it.  I even went in myself, making my way out to a sandbar a little ways out.  But then on the way back in, as I was carrying Colby back in my arms, I stepped down and felt something pinching my foot.  I guess it must have been a crab.  I gave a little scream and thankfully was able to keep my footing.  When I got back to shore, the side of my foot was bleeding - - although not terribly - - and I could see little marks on the top of the foot. Right then and there I knew I wasn't going back in!  I did, however, keep this incident secret from little ears.

I went on Yelp and found this great vegetarian/vegan restaurant that we went to for lunch.  It was so hard to decide on what to eat - - for once, because there were so many options that we could actually eat!

Nice outdoor seating.

Colby fell asleep on the way and slept the entire time we were there, even transferring back and forth between my mom and me.  Guess that's what the beach does to a kid.

Love these pictures of the boys.  Colby trying to figure out what to do with his thumbs.

Couldn't quite figure it out.

Kids did the pool in the afternoon even though the water was pretty cold! The ocean was much warmer.

The first concert (yes, there were THREE) was Friday evening at 7:00 at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center.  I don't know if it was because it was a Christian concert or if the attendants were too old to care or what but no one ever checked our tickets!  We quickly found out seats which were at an angle to the front and were in row "H".  I presume the rows started with "A" so that will tell you how far back we were.  In case you are wondering, yes, we were most likely the youngest people in the place.  Most attendees were over 60, I would guess. We did end up with three kids behind us (they came halfway through) and we saw about two other kids the rest of the time.  In total, we guessed there were probably around 4,000 in attendance.

Love this picture of the girls.  This is near the entrance to the Convention Center.

Being silly.

For those of you not familiar with the Gaithers (which is most likely all of you!), they are Bill and Gloria who are in their 70's and wrote many songs, some that you routinely may sing today.  Bill is also part of a group called the "Gaither Vocal Band" (made up of five men) and is in charge of the whole homecoming concert series.  At these concert series, its not just the Vocal Band that performs, but many other Christian artists. Hence, why there are three concerts - - there are many groups and singers and they can't all fit fit into one event.

The kids did remarkably well that first evening.  Brady fell asleep almost immediately and Colby seemed to actually be listening to things.  At about 9:15 - - more than two hours into the concert - - they announced that it was time for an intermission and then it would be on to the second half.  I think Duncan was a little taken aback! We walked outside (among all the people taking a smoke break.  Yuck!) to stretch our legs and walk around a bit.  As I called to the kids to go back in after a little bit, Brady says "The car is this way" while pointing in the other direction.  We kept walking and when he realized we were going back to our seats he says "We have to watch this AGAIN?!!" He couldn't have been too worn out from it though since he had slept through most of it.

All smiles at the break until he realized we were going back in.

The second half brought out the Vocal Band, which is my favorite and has our favorite singer, David Phelps, so time flew by.  Pretty soon, all the kids were asleep which worked out perfectly for us (we had Aunt Shirley's two extra seats so we had room for the girls to stretch out a bit).  Finally, almost at the end of the show, Bill said he had a special guest and out comes Mark Lowry which I know is meaningless to everyone else.  But he was part of the group for many years and always MC'd the concerts and the girls think he's hilarious.  He left last year and we lamented the fact that he wouldn't be there.  But out he came and he sang the song he wrote "Mary Did You Know" which is one of our favorite songs.  We tried to wake the girls up but they wouldn't rouse.  I was sorry they had missed it but it really made my night to hear that song.  One interesting thing that happened while he was on stage was that Bill said something like "This is your day of rest" and then Mark said "Any Seventh Day Adventists in the crowd?" We couldn't figure out the meaning of it since it was Friday when Bill said "THIS" is your day of rest and also, as far as we know, Mark is a Baptist, not an SDA. It was very, very strange.  But we were excited to give a holler when he asked the question!

The Vocal Band

The next morning, things kicked off at 10:00.  We already knew there was going to be a speaker so we kind of planned that if he got up to speak, Duncan would leave with the kids.  We knew it was going to be a shorter set anyway since we were coming back that evening.  Sure enough, a gentleman got up to speak at about 11:15 and so left Duncan to take the kids to the beach to look for more shark teeth.  It was nice to sit and listen without the kids for a bit!  The sermon was the gentleman's life story, essentially, and it was excellent.

Trying to get a family picture on Sabbath morning.  I guess you can see which kids have sensitive eyes like I do.

Colby fell asleep again.  As usual, his hand is in my hair.

Sabbbath afternoon we went back to the condo and had a big pasta lunch, watched some Planet Earth, napped and then it was back for the final concert.  This time since sunset would be happening soon after it commenced, we told the kids we would buy them popcorn and ice cream at the concessions if they behaved.  Honestly, I don't know that they even needed the enticement because they did so well. I had actually brought along a lot of books and sticker books for entertainment but it ended up being dark in the center each time so all that went out the window.  Apparently the music did a good enough job of entertaining them.


This time when they had intermission, two plus hours in, we didn't bat an eyelash. We walked around a little bit then went into the big hall adjacent to where the concert was happening.  All of the artists had tables set up where they were selling their memorabilia, CD's, etc.  That's when I spotted the aforementioned  David Phelps, my favorite singer from the Vocal Band.  Of course, we had to wait in line so we could get a picture with him.  We also spotted Wes Hampton, also of the Vocal Band and Aubree insisted we get a picture with him too.  At the risk of sounding like a teenage groupie, it was pretty cool!

I look just a little weird in this picture but oh well.  This is David Phelps.

Wes Hampton.  He was really nice - - tried to guess the kids ages and when he said the girls were 14 and 17, they dissolved into a fit of giggles.

This concert ended after the four hour mark too but I loved every minute of it.  It ended with the Bill Gaither written song "Because He Lives" which was really powerful.  We walked back to the van and unfortunately, the evening took a sad turn when I got a message from a mutual friend that my friend, Karri, who was my best friend at the hospital for many years and was in my wedding, had lost her 27-year old daughter to a terrible car accident in Eustis.  The worst part is that she has two little boys, almost the same ages as Brady and Colby.  Just horrible.  I couldn't get it out of my mind.  I went to see her on Monday afternoon (thank goodness my mom was still here to be with the kids) for a few hours and she's hanging in there as best she can.  I was inspired to make a CD of some of the songs that really touched me over the weekend and hopefully it will be some small comfort.  We go to the funeral tomorrow.  Hug your kids...

We left Sunday morning after a stop at a local restaurant for breakfast and then it was a straight shot of eight hours home.  We decided that the trip had been very worth while.  It was funny though - - my mom said to Duncan "Fifteen years ago, did you ever imagine that you would sit in a Christian concert, and one lasting more than four hours?" Duncan says "I didn't imagine LAST WEEK that I would be doing that." But he liked it all too.

Monday morning Duncan left for Kansas City for a couple of days for work (got back this morning) so it was nice that my mom got to stay a few extra days.  But when we dropped her off at the airport last night, both of the girls were crying hysterically.  The only way to comfort them was to tell them we are going on a cruise next year (true statement!)

A few other pictures from before the trip...

Went to the Whitaker triplets birthday party on Sunday, October 4. Here the kids are trying to do some kind of game to figure out teams for hide-n-seek.

Watching a baby alligator.

Friends dressing alike.  Duncan tried to make Allen feel better about his team not winning a Superbowl in almost 20 years by wearing Broncos colors.  Gotta throw him a bone sometimes.

Will, Price, and Molley.  Turning four!

Sarah, Violet, and Molley.  Some four year old girls.  Kind of made me nostalgic for when my girls were this age.

Sunday night I took the girls and Braelyn, and met up with Elaine for "Soup for Supper" at the church.  It was really, really nice.  Ladies made soup (it was free!) and we brought desserts and then they had crafts to do.  Calleigh and Aubree loved all of it.  I loved being able to relax while eating good food!

Grandma helped making the sock snowmen.

Braelyn working on a Christmas ornament.

Opened my USAToday app one day and was pleasantly surprised to see my church (not my EXACT one) in the top headline.

Gigi took kids for a walk to the playground one day.

The girls love dress up.  I would say it's their first or second favorite thing to play.  They bought these costumes with their own money.  I'm sure some can easily identify them.

Have a great week!