July 17 - Day 3 Ocean City
We went to the beach early again. This time we had a much shorter walk (about 2 blocks) since we didn't need to make the store detour. Abby LOVED the water and was fearless. The water was pretty cool (even though the day was very hot). Unfortunately, we saw a lot of jellyfish so we didn't get to do a lot of swimming. I have been stung several times by jellyfish and I did not want Abby to get stung. Jellyfish hurt sooooo bad.



Like mommy, like daughter. She loves the beach!!



Covered in sand just as she should be.



We built a lot of sand castles. And also packed a lot of heavy sand in one small bucket.



Partners in crime.



I know my dad would be so proud of her. He loved building sand castles.

July 16 - Day 2 Ocean City
After a good night's sleep, we got dressed in bathing suits, loaded up all necessary beach stuff and walked to the beach. Because we had not yet gone to the store, we had to walk a few blocks to stock up on some bottled water. The girls did great but we did have a few meltdowns through that first full day. We knew the kids were tired and were actually expecting it. But even with a few scattered tears, we still had a wonderful and fun day. It was very hot but it was beautiful.



Abby and Olivia all ready for the beach. They are sitting on the steps of the house.



They walked the first part of the walk to the store holding hands.



Hats? Check! Beach cover-ups? Check! Sunglasses? Check! Good friend? Check! And that last one is most important!

We found a little place to eat lunch. It was good (though a bit slow!) The girls took pretty long naps that day so right when they woke up we went to dinner. After dinner we stopped by the store so we could get basics like milk, bread, and fruit. Even though it was a little late, it was vacation, so we stopped by a very good ice cream store.



Chocolate ice cream with sprinkles makes any vacation!

July 15 - Day 1 Ocean City
This year for vacation we went to Ocean City, NJ - http://www.oceancityvacation.com/. We went on vacation with our friends Amanda and her daughter Olivia. Amanda and I went through the adoption process at the same time. It is definitely like being pregnant at the same time. Olivia is just one month older than Abby and even though we live in different states (they live in Pennsylvania) we have all become good friends. Our other friends, Julia and her daughter Katy, were also supposed to join us but due to illness they had to stay home. :-(

Abby is a wonderful traveler. She just kind of rolls with delays, sitting still, and lots of walking. Our flight to Philadelphia was early so we had to be up and ready early. We arrived at the airport to find a VERY long security line. The Atlanta airport is busy no matter what time you travel. Fortunately, I brought Abby's stroller and anyone with a stroller gets to go to a slightly shorter line. Abby has flown enough now to know to take off her shoes when going through security. She looks like a little professional.



Abby was great on the plane. I had packed some new books, sticker books, paper and crayons, and a few card games. Between that and eating breakfast, she was busy the entire flight.

We arrived in Philadelphia on time and made our way to pick up the rental car. Ugh. Though I had reserved a toddler car seat when I made the reservation, they only had a (tiny) infant car seat. After a lot of waiting, they finally sent a manager to the store to buy a seat and he came back with a booster seat (for much older kids). Strike two. We were there for 2 hours and I finally had reached the point of wanting to go to another rental agency when someone turned in a toddler car seat.

We met Amanda and Olivia at a cute little restaurant not too far from the airport and after a late lunch, we followed them to Ocean City. Olivia and Abby were both so excited to see each other! Amanda and Olivia live in Philadelphia. We last saw them the week before Christmas in New York City so it was really something to see how much Olivia had grown.

By the time we arrived in Ocean City, it was late afternoon. We found the house without any trouble and after unloading the cars, we quickly walked to the beach. The weather had cleared up and it was a really great evening.



YAY!! We are finally at the beach!



When we got to the beach Abby was so excited she just plopped right down in the sand. Yes, I felt that way too!



She was also ready to start immediately with the sand castles.



Two adorable friends happy on the beach.



So this is the Jersey shore. Abby has now been to 7 states (Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey). Oh, and she has also been to 3 countries so far (Kazakhstan, Germany, and, of course, the U.S.).



We found a pizza place within walking distance and ate dinner there. It was ok but we definitely had better meals later in the week. After dinner, we walked back to the house (which was very nice!). The girls played a little before bath time and then bed. Both were pretty tired and went to sleep without any trouble.

We were definitely off to a great week.