** ~ Oak Island Adventures ~ **

I'm back from a much needed vacation. We left last Friday for Oak Island. My SIL , her BF , Ayla , Jake , hubby and myself , arrived Friday night , turned the a.c. on and went out to eat chinese for dinner.

Saturday we rode to Holden Beach to visit my brother , spent the afternoon by the pool and went to Joe's Barbecue for dinner. I had catfish and shrimp , it was delicious. Jake loves buttons (shrimp) , we don't know why , but for some reason he calls shrimp , buttons (LOL).

Sunday , I babysit Ayla for my SIL , so they could go to the beach for awhile. She's a very good baby. My SIL and her BF left for home that afternoon.
My youngest daughter and her BF came down Sunday evening . Jake was excited to see Mom and Dad. We went to the beach and enjoyed watching Jake explore the ocean and the beautiful sunset.

On Monday we took Jake to visit the Oak Island Nature Center. It is built near the marshes , so we explored some and went inside to see the animals. They take injured wildlife and pets that are no longer wanted.
After we left the nature center , we stopped for homemade ice cream. It was a gift shop , but outside they served ice cream from a small trailer. They had it decorated tropically and Jimmy Buffet playing all the time.
They called this little paradise * The Leaky Tiki *. Jake wanted pink ice cream (strawberry) and ate the whole scoop , then announced he was ready for chocolate (LOL).

My brother grilled a feast for us on Monday night , hamburgers , hotdogs for Curious Jake , ribs , garlic bread , peppers and onions , red potatoes all cooked on the grill. He's a great cook and it was all delicious , I bet I gained a pound or two.
We where going to go fishing Monday morning , but the ocean was rough from the storm.

Tuesday we decided to checkout the antique shops and thrift stores. We also took Jake to the small airport to watch the planes take off and land. Jake was fascinated with the airplanes.
Jake wasn't thrilled about shopping , but the antique store had a shop cat and she held his attention. He loves cats , I have two cats and he chases them and tries to torture them when he can. But they love him , when he was sick , they stayed near him , even napping with him. Most of the time they keep their distance.
I bought a 50's chicken motif bill/letter holder , my kitchen is decorated with chickens and vintage 50's items.
We took Jake for that chocolate ice cream he wanted the day before and to the beach that afternoon . I picked up some driftwood and shells.
Later that evening we went to play putt-putt , this was Jake's first time playing putt-putt. He was so cute , he would take the ball and sit it next to the hole and knock it in. Hole in one everytime (LOL).

Wednesday morning , my daughter and I went to the beach early and picked up shells. I will share more about what I plan to do with the shells this week.

It was wonderful to get away and enjoy some new scenery. I enjoyed the quiet mornings , when everyone else was sleeping. I did some sketching and reading. I started reading The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron w/ Mark Bryan , great book to help with that inner critic. Some of the glitter girls have spoke about this book and recommended it. I found it a couple of weeks ago at a thrift store , a great book at a great price.

Will share more about the trip and art this week.
Hope everyone is doing well and THANK-YOU for the wonderful birthday wishes.

**** Happy Hugs ****