Myrtle Beach

Every year my parents take a two week trip to Myrtle Beach.  Max is always invited along for the first week, but not the second.  Why is anyone's guess.  I can't imagine the reason.  
Last year Max was 5 months old and hated to be put on the sand.  I had to hold him the entire time, which was fine, as long as he was napping.  He got bored and squirmy pretty quickly when awake and on my lap.  Luckily, the ocean lulled him to sleep most of the time and despite our struggles with naps at home, Max was an champion napper at the beach.  
This year was much more fun and a leeeetle bit easier.  Max slept through the night (as usual) and napped at least an hour and a half each day.  He enjoyed being in the sand and loved the water.  This guy had absolutely no fear.  He went running straight into the ocean and got mad when he had to hold my hand.

As much as Max enjoyed the ocean, he didn't care too much for the pool.  I guess there wasn't enough excitement and danger. 

See how apathetic he is compared to the ocean pictures?  Pools are boring.  Which is fine with me, as I find hotel pools a little on the icky side.

When he wasn't trying to swim across the ocean, Max really enjoyed the planes that flew back and forth with the advertisement banners.  He would stop and point to every plane, wave, and call out "bye bye."  He did this every.single.time.  It was so cute.  Where does he get these things?

Going to the beach with a toddler is a very different experience.  My days of lounging in a chair by the water with a book are long gone!  Maybe they'll return in about 13 years!  However, what is lost in relaxation is made up for 100 times in fun!  It is so special to see the beach through the eyes of Max and remember the thrill of making and destroying sandcastles.

I remember being deathly afraid of the ocean when I was about three.  Who knows if Max will develop that fear one day as well, but right now he has nothing but a sense of adventure!  I can't believe how fearless he was.  The waves must have appeared huge to him, but he kept running and crawling straight towards them!

Andres joined us the final weekend and I just love these pictures.  Papi missed his boy!  Next year Max will be almost 2 1/2 for our beach trip.  It is so hard for me to believe how fast he's growing.  I'm hoping that each year gets easier as Max becomes more able to entertain himself with sand toys and building sandcastles.  Who knows?  It is so much fun playing with him and I'm just trying to soak in every stage because the time moves so quickly!