We just returned from a family trip to North Myrtle Beach, SC. We went with my husband's family. Pictured below are Eddie (my father-in-law), Daniel (my brother-in-law) wearing Caedmon (my nephew), Ashley (my sister-in-law), me, Azlan, Matt, Patriot, and Sandy (my mother-in-law).

You may notice I said a "family trip" rather than a "vacation." The difference? A vacation is filled with sleeping late, lazy afternoons on the beach, and eating great food. A family trip involves waking whenever the kids do (in our case, just after dawn), folding laundry, disciplining kids, washing dishes, and eating in restaurants with balloons and clowns. Both trips have their place in the life cycle of a family, but they are very different experiences.

I learned this difference last summer. I thought it would be my first vacation with kids. At the time, Patriot was 1 1/2 years old and I was pregnant with Azlan. I remember telling Matt before the trip that I needed this trip because I needed a break. I did not get the break I was expecting. I expected a vacation like those of my BC days. I didn't realize that vacations, like all of the rest of life, change when you have kids.

So this year I began the trip with a different set of expectations and we had a nice family trip. Our trip was filled with activities and adventures we'd never have at home. Patriot played "little golf" for the first time. We built sand castles and colored them with food coloring. We threw seaweed. We took morning walks on the beach. Azlan ate at least a pound of sand. Azlan and Caedmon got to ride in the car together. We grown ups got to play cards almost every day. We tried new restaurants and discovered Patriot likes fish.

Was it the most relaxing week I've ever had? No. But it was a great family trip. Check out more pictures here.