Back from the Beach

Against our better judgement, we came home from the beach today as planned. We had a great time! We were a bit worried it would be too cool when we planned this trip about a month ago, but - holy cow - it was HOT!

We left on Friday morning, a little later than planned. A quick stop for coffee had us chuckling and wondering if McDonalds was going to make a t-shirt with a slogan to match their coffee lids.

The weather was supposed to be coolest on Friday, and we hit lots of little light rain showers on the way in. Since we were staying in North Myrtle Beach, we figured that Friday afternoon would best be spent in Myrtle Beach, checking out the scene. It was pretty empty!


The rain was gone by the time we got there, and it was getting hot. After doing a short lap up and down the main drag, we decided we'd much rather be swimming in the ocean. We snagged two cat collars that say "My owner went to Myrtle Beach and all I got was this lousy collar" and an airbrushed license plate for the front of the car that says "Dusty and Lefty are my co-pilots" before heading for the hotel. Nah, not really. :)

We were staying at a new hotel right at the Cherry Grove Pier. It was really nice! We were across the street from the beach, so we ran right in as soon as we got there.



We went for a walk on the pier before dinner. The light was just beautiful - there were some storm clouds around, and even now as I look at some of these pictures, I can't believe how pretty it was. I think this first one below is my favorite.







We went to dinner in North Myrtle Beach at Bonefish Grill. Yes, it's a chain, but one of my favorites. Plus, it was seafood. They had a really long wait, but we snagged two seats at the end of a table in the bar. There was a party next to us, and one man asked if we were with "SOS." I had no idea what he was refering to - if I was supposed to know what that meant? We saw other references to SOS all weekend and were relieved to come home and find out that no, it is not a cult - it's some sort of Shagging club (the South Caorlina state dance... not the Austin Powers version...).

On Saturday morning, I convinced Greg to get up and go jogging with me on the beach. It was actually the first time we've ever jogged together, and now I want to make it a habit. It was so much fun to have someone to talk to! We did 3 miles total, probably a little more than 2 of it jogging. We spent the rest of Saturday camped out at the beach. The hotel pool had a lazy river, which we were both super excited about, but by the time we got there on Saturday afternoon, they had it drained to fix a pump. So sad. Next time.

For dinner on Saturday, we went to a place in Little River called the Parson's Table. It was a little church that's been converted into a restaurant - so cute! The food was good, but not fabulous. The chocolate chip pecan pie, though, was heavenly. The first picture is us outside, and the second one is inside the restaurant.


We got up early on Sunday morning to go for a walk on the beach, and give our feet one last taste of the Atlantic. I think we look a little bit like we just woke up in these pictures, which we did. But it was so worth it.






We went to IHOP for breakfast because it seemed like a vacation-y thing to do, and just beat the rush.













We headed south for Murrel's Inlet, looking for the "Marshwalk" that I've read about on the internet, with pictures of a boardwalk along the marsh. But we couldn't find it, despite the sign that said "Marshwalk 0.06 miles >" There wasn't much else there, and it was getting hot again, so we decided to head back. We hit some beach traffic, but nothing too terrible, and got in this afternoon to Dusty and Lefty begging for some fish flavored saltwater taffy.