Visiting Gran Jen on the Outer Banks

After a great visit with grandpa Jack we drove north and took a ferry from Cedar Island to Ocracoke island.  Xander loved the long ferry ride and we had lots of fun chasing each other around the deck.

 

 

We arrived in Ocracoke and had a lovely lunch there with Gran Jen and Rod.  After lunch we got to see the Ocracoke ponies.  Both Xander and Maya got pony stuffed animals from Gran that they loved.  The ferry ride from Ocracoke over to Hatteras was quiet and uneventful and the kids napped with their new ponies.

 

 

Our first evening in Avon was a lovely dinner at the beach house and then Uncle Rod showed Xander how to light fireworks!

 

We had a wonderful time enjoying the beach and relaxing.  The kids loved playing in the sand and being chased by the surf.  Xander learned how to build sand castles, and Maya learned how to get covered in sand.  Gran had a great time playing with the kids.

 

 

 

I was still trying to get in as much training as I could so I enjoyed being able to swim in the canal just behind the house.  During one swim, while the kids were hanging out with Gran and Rod, Erin and I actually got a chance to do a wonderful open water swim together, lovely.  We also were able to take Xander for a Kayak trip out in the canal.  He loved it, especially pulling up a few crab pots and peeking inside to see the crabs.

 

 

I was also doing lots of running, and Xander decided that he wanted to go for runs too.  So, after my workout we would head out for a run.  Xander actually made it over half a mile on our run, pretty amazing.  He enjoyed it so much that we went again a few days later.

 

Being in Avon was a bit of a trip down memory lane for me.  We vacationed there every year when I was a kid and so many things were unchanged, we even swung by the old house that we used to rent, it was just down the street from us.

 

One thing that was different was the Cape Hatteras light house.  Years ago they moved it from its precarious spot near the ocean to a safer location further back.  They also did enough structural work to it that you can now climb it, which you never could when I was visiting.  I had to go to the top, even though the kids couldn't go with us.  Erin and I trekked all the way up, the view was amazing!

 

 

 

It was a wonderful family vacation together.